It was raining after class.
We were in the middle of a tea break during a late meeting in the conference room.
During the meeting, Naru made a fuss about being an idiot and not telling everyone about Kasai-san's case. I heard him, but I wasn't really listening. Instead, I had looked out the window and watched the rain fall.
The monotonous rain made me feel gloomy.
―I thought about that, knowing today was one unlucky day. There are two possibilities. The first possibility is that someone (a criminal) is responsible for this. With the exception of divine intervention, I think it could just be that everyone is having a hard time.
The rain softly came down like were strings of silver. The clouds darkened the sky, which created a depressing mood.
And then the next thing I knew, I was in an amusement park.
Why am I in an amusement park?
...Of course, this is a dream.
It was a small amusement park. I was filled with excitement.
I realized this place looked familiar. It looked just like the amusement park my mom had once taken me to. I was standing in the front of a mirror house. In the middle was a glass mirror, and around it was a maze. That's right. When I was young, I would cry in that mirror house. When I saw my reflection in the mirrors, my reflection was scary so I'd cry. But now it's alright because I'm grown up. I used to roll up my sleeves and jump into the mirror house. I would go through the continuous maze. It wasn't necessary to go through the maze, but I went anyway. The maze was a reflection of the mirror. I had walked and walked. It was just my shadow and me. I had walked to the middle of the maze. For some strange reason, I was rushed and clumsy, which is why I had slammed into the glass.
What's with this huge maze anyway!
The maze was getting darker and darker. Ah, that's why. This maze darkens as time passes. While thinking about this, I could no longer see my feet. The only available light was the light reflected by the mirror.
What do I do? There's no exit. As I feared, he didn't come!
I started to run. My reflection also ran. Hundreds of me turned and ran, but in the midst of all, only one shadow wasn't moving. I aimed at it. That must be the clue to get out of this maze. I rushed towards the unmoving shadow.
...Naru.
In the darkness, Naru was there, completely clothed in black. Only his hands and face were pale as moonlight.
"It's impossible to get out," I told Naru.
Without saying anything, he pointed at something to his side. His pale fingers left a white trail in the darkness.
I could see the tip of his finger.
That's...the school. The inside of the school was inversed black and white, like a photographic negative. The wall was black, while the blackboard was white. The wall and floor had a white outline, but other than that they were transparent. This was the school's shadow.
And that's an unripe will-o-wisp. There were pale, clear will-o-wisps scattered throughout the entire school. In the darkness, I stared at them fixedly, placing all my attention on them.
"What's...that?" I asked Naru as I looked up at him.
Naru answered, "You'll understand."
...I'll understand? So that's it. Of course, I get it now. That will-o-wisp has evil intentions. Furthermore, it's not of this world. I shivered.
There were countless will-o-wisps. All of them were evil. I couldn't help but watch them. They exhibited a cold color. As I was watching them, they flashed little by little. Gradually the scene became blurry and normal colors came into place again. I could clearly see a wall.
"...?"
A wall. A very pale green wall. I was surrounded by a strange wall on all sides.
"Mai!"
What?!
I lifted my head and saw Naru. There was a harsh expression on his face.
"Just now, you were asleep, weren't you?"
Eh? Asleep? ...Of course.
Huh?!
I looked around to see everyone's cold eyes piercing at me.
"I'm sorry. I did fall asleep."
A...awkward.
"You were completely sound asleep with your eyes open."
"Sorry..."
Naru looked at me with cold eyes. "Are you my assistant? Or are you a hindrance?"
...W-, why you.
"Hold on a moment, why are you being so mean! I was sleepy so I couldn't help it. I didn't sleep well because I kept thinking about this case. It's not like I fell asleep while driving!"
Naru sent me another icy stare. "You've become aggressive, haven't you?"
"It's a perfectly natural response. Congressmen that bear the burden of the fate of an entire country have to sleep. Even people who have to complete difficult tasks that are as smart as the president have to sleep. So there's nothing bad about a mere, low-class person like me being asleep."
"...Wonderful, you've distorted my words."
"Oh dear, you've made the director upset," Matsazuki-san taunted.
"I'm fine," Naru replied.
...Really.
"With that kind of personality, you won't be living a long life," Naru pressed on.
...This guy, this guy, this guy!
Ah—how refreshing. You may have a sharp tongue, but you're very capable. On top of that, you're also quite handsome! If you had a good personality, it would be too good to be true, and you'd be the one suffering an early death, wouldn't you!
Naru's gaze fell onto my direction, and soon everyone else's did the same thing.
"Let's forget about this foolishness," Naru said. "We must return to the topic at hand."
So sleeping is just foolishness? I'd like to see you say that while marching to the National Diet.
2
Naru lightly tapped the table with his finger. "I don't know whether or not Kasai-san's situation is related to this case..."
Ayako leaned towards him. "Well, how much faith do you place on that child, Kasai?"
"I believe her."
"Heh." Ayako's cruel eyes flashed. "Well I think she's lying. Please, as if she can actually bend spoons."
"Isn't spoon bending fake?"
I asked, "It's not, right? Spoon bending isn't just a magic trick."
I wasn't sure though. But it's probably safer to ask Ayako instead of Bou-san or John.
"So is it?" I asked.
John nodded. "Right. Uri Geller started spoon bending. Uri Geller is the best psychic of the century...his supernatural powers were shown to the public. He had PK, clairvoyance, and prediction abilities similar to that of a prophet. He made the impossible possible. Geller was everywhere when it came to spoon bending. All the children saw him do it too."
"Um, you mean the Gellerini?
"Yes, that's right. But the Gellerini had unstable powers. When they lost their powers, they would rely on magic tricks. Some of them were exposed as cheaters.
"I see."
"Because of that, some people began to doubt Geller's ability."
"They doubted Uri Geller?"
"Yeah. At that time, America's Society of Parapsychology had publicly announced that Uri Geller was a fake. That incident left such a strong impression on people that everyone now believes spoon bending is fake."
"But John, did you think Uri Geller's powers were real?"
John put on a tired smile. "Not really... It's just, he was too showy. At any rate, they were just illusions[1] that garnered more attention than they deserved."
"Illusion?"
"Um...basically it's accomplished by using lots of magic tricks. Like making airplanes and trucks disappear."
"Ah, I get it now."
Listening in, Bou-san leaned towards us. "I think Geller was a fake too."
"Why?" I asked.
"Hmm. Psychic ability...if it's the ability of sensing hidden things, hearing noises, or seeing things, then that's the ability to sense things that shouldn't be there. Geller was well-received at first, but he was later in a bind. He could do everything, but there was still something strange about him," the monk admitted.
"Right," John nodded. "There are two types of psychic abilities, ESP and PK. ESP is extrasensory perception, a special ability in which one can perceive things that normal people cannot. There are two branches of ESP: clairvoyance and telepathy."
"I see."
"PK stands for psychokinesis. It's an ability that normal people do not have. Basically it's the power to move objects with your mind... Generally psychics fall into one of these classifications: PK or ESP. Occasionally someone will be a mix of each, but most people will fall into just one of those categories."
Bou-san nodded. "Edgar Cayce Jean Dickson is an amazing clairvoyant, but I've never heard of him bending a spoon before. Likewise, Nina Kulagina has strong PK powers, but I've never heard of her having ESP. Only Kulagina and Davis have that kind of PK power."
"That's right," John agreed. "But for Uri Geller, assuming his PK was the best, was his ESP also the best too? If that's the case, then that means his power was unrestricted. However, I still think he was a fake."
Ayako leaned forward. "I've always wondered about that. Why does the spoon bend? If the metal bends, then what kind of spoon is it? And if PK can bend the spoon, then is it even a spoon? Isn't that strange?"
"—So you're basically saying that PK is just a magic trick?" I wondered aloud.
"No, that's different," Bou-san asserted. "There are three types of PK: PK-MT, PK-ST, and PK-LT."
...Wow, this is too much information.
"Spoon bending would fall under the PK-ST category. It's the ability to influence stationary objects. There are a lot of misunderstandings regarding this ability. There have been many reports of frauds that claim to have this. Actually, PK-MT is considered the best ability out of all of them. This is the ability to influence moving objects, such as changing the eyes of a die as it's rolling. If you're thinking about getting a two, then you really will get a two."
"Hehh."
"PK-MT is also widely considered to be fake. However, the majority of people have this. This latent ability varies in power for different people."
"...Do I have it too?"
"Maybe. If someone has PK-ST, it doesn't necessarily mean that said person is a fake. Unlike the Gellerini's PK, Shelby Meyer's was fake. She bent a special type of metal. She seemed credible but terribly arrogant."
"Huh?"
"Generally, for people with psychic abilities, like Geller, would act as a magician. In that case, he would be able to perform magic without having to put up with others' complaints. But even magicians have limits. Otherwise, people would get suspicious, right? If I remember correctly, Meyer was also a magician, similar to Rolfe-something or other, but Rolfe constantly got into conflicts and fights with others. Despite this, this Rolfe magician was eventually backed up by Meyer. In other words, Meyer had confirmed his powers."
"Oh—"
"And there was also Nina Kulagina. She was very strong. She had both PK-ST and PK-LT. PK-LT is the ability to influence living organisms, such as making them move. Such actions were often a cinch for her. She could cure illnesses with just physical contact. She stopped a frog's heart and even a human heart."
"She could stop hearts—?!"
"Yes. During the experiment, she aroused the researcher's curiosity. If she could stop a frog's heart, then she might be able to stop a human's heart. He got a volunteer for the experiment, and eventually the volunteer's heart was in imminent danger of stopping. The doctor witnessing this was able to save him though."
Oh my god—
"...Also, another very important figure in PK is England's Oliver Davis. He also has PK-ST. Normally, PK is used to move matchboxes, spoons, or other little objects. But there's a big gap of power between this guy and the others. Dr. Davis is more of a serious researcher than a PK-user, and as such he hasn't been publicized much. If I remember correctly, last year there was a video of him doing an experiment. In the experiment, he threw a 50-kg block of aluminum into a wall."
"Wow."
"But PK is just limited that way. Neither Shelby Meyer nor Oliver Davis had PK-LT either. I haven't heard of anyone being able to influence living things. Despite that...Uri Geller could do all the PK, right? On top of that, he could also use ESP. Still, he looked suspicious to me."
"Oh..." Naru interposed. "Well...in any case, regarding Kasai-san's problem, for the time being, the important thing is she believed in her powers. She felt that her teacher's attack on her was quite unfair. This resulted in..."
"Cursing to kill"?
"Yes," Naru interposed.
"That's our current situation. She can't have PK-LT like Nuna Kulagina though, right?"
...In any case, if she could stop hearts...
"...That's...not possible, right?"
Naru pondered the idea for a moment.
"...Correct, it wouldn't happen," he clarified.
"Anyway, we need to deal with our current situation. Perform some exorcisms."
Everyone stood up.
3
As everyone left to do their exorcisms, I stayed in the conference room. I was alone and bored... Before I realized it, it was already evening. Dusk had come. The sounds of sweeping and cleaning continued for some time. Eventually there was no sign of students. With all the sounds gone, the school had really become a lonely place. I unintentionally thought about the dream I had. It was definitely about this school. The dark labyrinth. A place covered with will-o-wisps. What kind of spirits were they?
"......?"
I don't know. But it was just a dream. Um, how should I think about this? On the other hand, whoever is guiding me in my dreams can't exist (The Naru in my dreams comes out, talks to me and watches over me. Plus, he's always smiling). I really should get a book on dream interpretation.
...I continued to think about it. As I was tidying up the place, there was a light knock on the door.
"Yes?"
My voice stuttered, as we were just talking about Kasai-san a moment ago. I couldn't help but feel like I was in a flutter.
"Huh? You're alone?" the girl asked.
"Yeah."
Her eyes swept through the room.
"Can I come in?"
"Yeah, come in, come in."
"Thank you. ...What are you doing?"
"As a good-for-nothing, I'm just arranging documents here while looking over the equipment."
"How unlucky."
Once again I noticed that Kasai-san was sitting in a strange position.
"Heh..."
What a strange thing to say.
"So how're things going?"
"―Well, it's weird. Shibuya-san seems to think our medium's having problems," I said.
"I'm different though. Naru—Shibuya-san, is also different. He's a ghost hunter," I clarified.
"Heh, cool."
I looked blankly ahead. Come to think of it, no one has ever asked me what a "ghost hunter" was.
Oh yeah, Kasai-san has some psychic abilities herself so she must comprehend some of those strange things.
"...But, he might actually be an Onmiyouji[2]. Ah, I'm not admiring him or anything, but it's true," I continued.
Kasai-san whistled.
"In that case, he's even more amazing. Hehh, to think he's an Onmiyouji too," she said.
I was so moved that I was speechless.
"And what about the exorcisms? Did they go well?"
"Well, it seems that we have a difficult road before us. Our group's spirit medium says there are no ghosts here. We were almost fighting about it."
Kasai-san raised her eyebrows. "There aren't any? Then what caused the incidents at the school?"
"Yeah, well. I don't know about that. The only person in our group who can see ghosts is the medium, and she says she can't see any. We'll have to investigate from a different angle.–Oh right, Kasai-san, have you seen any spirits here?"
Kasai-san waved no. "No. I don't have that kind of power. I might not even have ESP."
"ESP?"
Does she mean the kind that everyone was talking about?
"Don't tell me you don't know? ESP is a type of psychic ability. I'm no good at ESP, not at all. But I can do PK. I had no choice but to use my PK-ST. ...And that's when strange things have been happening."
Kasai-san shrugged.
"Wow... Kasai-san sure knows her stuff..."
"Yeah. I'm just telling you what Kei-sensei told me. It's because Kei-sensei is very knowledgeable about parapsychological research."
"You mean Ubusuna-sensei? Hehh, she sure is."
"Yeah. That's why there were rumors of the Biology club becoming an occult club. In actuality, the club didn't really have any activities at all."
Kasai-san's using the past tense.
"...So how's the Biology club faring now?"
"Actually it's virtually over. The only member left is me. Mizuo put an end to it."
"He ended it?" I asked.
Kasai-san gave a lonely smile.
"What of it? It happened a long time ago. When I started bending spoons, he changed completely."
"That way of thinking is unproductive. If everybody were to try their utmost for themselves only, then eventually others won't be able to influence them."
Kasai-san stared back at me. "...Thank you. I feel a bit responsible though. About Mizuo, Kei-sensei, and all those things that happened afterwards..."
"You don't need to think that way."
Kasai-san is making that lonely smile again.
"That's right. But still, Kei-sensei has been put in a difficult position too. Since she's protecting me, all the teachers are criticizing her, and even PTA is criticizing her too. –During the time in which the school was split up into believers and non-believers, teachers and students alike shot her stony looks. Everyone was so mean and sarcastic to her. She ended up completely ostracized. In addition, the criticisms have been heavier lately. In any case, there are no ghosts here and no ESP, but people still claim to see ghosts here. Some students discuss these things in private with Kei-sensei."
This time Kasai-san let out a real smile.
"Ubusuna-sensei, right?" I asked.
"Right."
Kasai-san grinned. "...It's because I'm a junior. When I was attacked by the school, she came to my aid. The teaching practically came to a halt. And eventually I couldn't think anymore."
"...Oh. What does Ubusuna-sensei teach?"
"You don't know? She's the Biology teacher in this school."
I had to gather up my thoughts for a moment.
"So, about what those students were talking about..."
"Eh? What?" she asked. "Even if I knew, I can't tell you. It's confidential."
"Oh."
Kasai-san edged closer to me.
"You can go to Yoshino-sensei's house and ask him."
Kasai-san seemed ready to move.
I was also a bit restless.
"By Yoshino-sensei, do you mean the one who humiliated you in the school morning assembly?"
"Yes...that's the one." She let out a satisfactory smile. "Hehh, I see. Did he make you nervous?"
"Well, about that— He had dark shadows under his eyes."
"Serves him right. ...No, what am I saying, this isn't right. Sorry, I couldn't help myself."
"It's okay, it's okay."
We furrowed our brows and laughed heartily.
While laughing, I imagined a spoon in my mind. And then I bent it. So bending a spoon can change people's fates; what a warped idea.
...I couldn't help but think that way.
As I talked with Kasai-san a little while longer, Taka-san came into the conference room.
"Yeesh, I can't find Norio anywhere," she whined.
"That sucks. Would you like some tea? I was just about to make some."
"That would be nice. Kasai-senpai, nice to see you."
"Same here."
Kasai-san was on her toes now. She seemed wary. But Taka didn't mind. Though already cheerful, Kasai-san eventually became relaxed and opened up to us more. We were able to wipe off her seemingly unfriendly personality, and our conversation eventually became really exciting. We were even able to see her smile.
"...It's been a long time since I had a conversation like this with someone other than Kei-sensei," Kasai-san said gratefully.
On the other hand, Taka looked really tired.
"...Poor you... If you want, we can hang out sometime," Taka suggested.
"Yeah. Thank you. Today was really fun. And Taniyama-san, thank you."
"Will you come back?" I asked her.
"Yeah."
Taka stood up with a bounce and bowed.
"I've gotta go too! Kasai-senpai, wanna leave together?"
"Of course."
As I waved good-bye, I felt warm feelings swell in my heart as I saw them off.
4
The next day, everyone gathered in the conference room. Naru brought up news about Yoshino-sensei. Yesterday, Yoshino-sensei was in a car accident by himself, and one of the members of the Track & Field Club had collapsed in the locker room.
Naru frowned. The teacher in the car accident said he saw a ghost in the rear mirror. These incidents still happened even though John and Bou-san performed exorcisms yesterday evening.
...In other words, the spirit isn't gone.
Furthermore, Taka's already hospitalized homeroom teacher, wasn't doing well either. His condition worsened, and despite being in a hospital, he still sees a ghost, which continues to cause disturbance there. He's also vomiting blood.
Despite the exorcisms, the teacher's condition wasn't improving.
"...It's not working," Naru calmly stated.
We were speechless as well.
Suddenly, I recalled the dream I had yesterday about the school. Will-o-wisps were scattered everywhere. I had the feeling that they were evil spirits. But the dream wasn't important or anything.
Not long afterwards, Ayako was glaring at Masako, with a sarcastic look in her eyes.
"So there are no ghosts here? Even with all that's happened?"
Stubborn Masako.
"There are none," she firmly replied.
Even so, the medium had an uneasy look in her eyes.
"Did you observe everything thoroughly? So you really didn't see even one spirit at all."
"Even if you expect there to be some, there are none!" Masako was almost shouting. "If I don't see them, then there aren't any here!"
"Well then, how do you explain this school's situation? Is everyone lying? Or is this a mass breakout of hysteria—?"
...Ayako, you're sure enjoying yourself. Stop it.
Masako scowled at Ayako. After watching the two, we decided to leave the conference room.
While doing so, Bou-san said, "Hey—Naru-chan."
With an unhappy, bitter expression in his eyes, Naru looked at the monk.
"Masako is just being obstinate. Lighten up. Masako's trying her best."
"...It's not good enough."
Upon hearing Ayako's protest, Bou-san turned to the woman. "Quiet, you. We need Masako in this situation. Although Masako can't see any ghosts, this place really is haunted. Probably because the spirit is exceptionally strong, or because we're dealing with mass hysteria. To make matters worse, we're unsure if the exorcisms are helping at all. Naru, don't you think so?"
We became silent and looked at Naru to see his reaction. He was completely calm and composed as he answered, "If we cannot rely on Hara-san, then would you care to find another spirit medium to hire?"
...What a blunt answer.
Clearly this guy was thinking, "I hate Masako." But, to say something like that, Masako definitely won't be able to rest in peace (not that she's dead or anything like that).
What a cold-blooded jerk.
Bou-san was so shocked that when he saw Naru, the monk stood up and shrugged his shoulders. Ashamed, Ayako stood up too. As if attracted by a lure, John also stood up—and then our meeting ended.
Leaving me with Naru and the yet-to-be-found Lin-san.
"Naru, what you said just then was kind of mean."
"Of course it was."
...Oh. So it was obvious, wasn't it?
"What did you tell Masako?"
So many strange things have been happening, and Masako is no match for them.
For a moment, Naru seemed to falter.
"Exactly what kind of weakness of yours does Masako know about?" I pressed.
"There's no such thing."
("...Oh. Well, back then you should've told Masako that.")
Can I really say that? If I could I would. I don't know. I can't help but recall Naru's ever unpleasant face when he went on that date with Masako.
After sending me a glare, he stood up.
"Lin, let's get back to work!"
This guy is running away!
I hastily left, tilting my head to see his back go into the distance. Since he ran out of mean things to say, he just did whatever he could to evade the question. And he was ambiguous again. I'm positive something happened. Just as I thought, she's using his weakness. The problem is: what kind of weakness is it?
For a moment, I recalled the spoon bending incident. I wasn't really put in such an awkward position. The spoon incident was nothing compared to this.
As always, the world is filled with numerous puzzles...
70% Translated~