Ghost Hunt Volume 1 Chapter 8
Feb. 27th, 2018 01:06 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sera131Table of Contents
Chapter 8 - Alert Cancelled
1
In the end, Naru didn’t come back.
Being the good and admirable young lady that I am, I changed into my uniform, which I’d prepared beforehand, and diligently attended class.
When I entered the classroom, Kuroda-joshi called out to me first thing.
“Taniyama-san… are you okay?”
“Yeah. Sorry for making you worry,” I said, arriving at my seat.
As soon as I sat down, I was grabbed by Keiko and the others. “Hey, Mai, I heard you had a hard time yesterday?”
“How do you know?”
“Kuroda-joshi. She’s been going around boasting about it for quite a while.”
...oh wow.
Yuuri grumbled dejectedly, “It must be nice to be spiritually sensitive… I wish I could help, too…”
Give it up, it’s dangerous.
Michiru said, “Oh well. At least I was able to listen to Shibuya-san’s beautiful voice.”
Keiko grinned widely, too. “You can say that again. I was really surprised. He called out of the blue.”
...Huh?
I quickly leaned toward Keiko. “What’d you say?”
“Well, he called all three of us.”
“Naru did? When!?”
Keiko blinked in surprise. “Last night. You didn’t know?”
“No, I didn’t. Naru’s been missing since yesterday afternoon. Where’d he call from?”
“I didn’t hear anything about that.”
“What’d he say?”
Keiko and the others exchanged glances.
In a hushed voice, Michiru said, “He asked a bunch of questions. About the old school building, and about you.”
“Me?”
“Yeah. Also, about the teacher, and then about Kuroda-joshi.”
...What about?
What the heck is that Naru up to, going and disappearing?
As I was puzzling this over, the teacher came in.
As soon as the teacher appeared, he said, “Kuroda, Taniyama, the principal called for you. “Go right away.”
...Huh!?
2
Joshi and I knocked at the principal’s office.
When we went inside, there were eight people gathered there.
Naru’s face was among them.
...Why you! Is this where you were?
However, since we’re in front of the principal, for now, “Sorry for the delay…” is all I said in greeting, then sat in the proffered chair.
What’s with this gathering?
Naru, Miko-san, Bou-san, and John. Then the principal, the vice principal, and the guidance counselor. ...Oh, and Masako to top it all off.
Naru stood up. “First of all, are these the only people involved in the current case?”
The principal nodded.
Naru told everyone to make themselves comfortable, then turned off the room’s light. He closed the curtains and the room went completely dark.
“Now… I will speak to you regarding a small matter.”
As Naru said this, he turned on a switch or something. I heard a small click. At the same time, a white light started blinking.
The light, which was sitting on top of the principal’s desk, shined and disappeared over and over again like a strobe light.
“Please focus on the light.”
The white light pulsed inside the room.
Naru spoke quietly. “Breath in time with the light. Slowly… relax your shoulders…”
The monotonous blink of the light created a mysterious atmosphere. The world, illuminated by the strobe, strangely seemed to lose its sense of reality.
“...Can you hear your breathing?” he quietly asked. “Count your breaths to yourself…”
He repeated his words again.
...I’m kind of sleepy… Did I not get enough sleep last night? It feels like I’m half-asleep.
Naru’s quiet voice was distant, as if sinking down from somewhere.
—Tonight… something will happen…
—It will happen to a chair on the second floor of the old school building… the chair will move…
—Tonight, in the old school building… inside the laboratory…
Laboratory… chair…
……
***
“Very good.”
The lights in the room suddenly came on.
Being dazzled, we blinked our eyes.
“...eh?”
“Thank you for your time.”
There was an old chair beside Naru, who bowed his head slightly.
...a chair…
***
Leaving the principal’s office, I called out to Naru, who was about to exit the school.
“Naru!”
Naru turned around. His eyes were a deep color of darkness and as always, filled with self-confidence.
“Yesterday… where’d you go after that?”
“Here and there. ...I heard you were injured?”
“Mhm. I’m okay. Just a bump on my head.”
“Well, my condolences. More importantly, I hope it doesn’t cause brain damage.”
...Hey now!
“Say, what was that about just now?”
Naru didn’t answer. Instead, he said, “Don’t you need to return to class?”
“Never mind that!”
“I see, no wonder you’re dumb.”
...You jerk!
Naru raised a hand and started to leave. I remembered there was something else I wanted to ask him.
“Naru!”
“What?” he asked, sounding annoyed.
“...This may be a dumb question, but…”
“Ignorant.”
I didn’t say anything yet!
Typical.
“Last night, you came back… didn’t you?”
“To the old school building?” He gave me a dubious look.
“...you didn’t come back?”
“I just came back a little while ago.”
Wow. I guess it really was a dream.
Yeah, definitely. Naru would never be that kind.
Naru looked at me questioningly. I waved my hands and shooed him away.
It was a dream, just like I thought. Uh-huh, for sure.
...But, of all things, why’d I have a dream like that?
…?
...No way...
Hey, wait a minute!
Could it be… I-I’m!?
Oh gosh…
3
After school, I headed to the old school building.
First going to where the van was parked, I found Naru rummaging around inside.
The moment I saw Naru’s face through the van’s window, my heart danced with joy.
Ahh, what’s wrong with me!?
I couldn’t speak.
Just talk to him like you always do. Go on!
As I was trying to encouraging myself, Naru noticed me. He looked over his shoulder at me with his dark eyes.
Not good… I’m blushing.
Naru appeared to be listening to a tape inside the van. When he noticed me, he removed his headphones and asked, “Did you set up the recorders last night, Mai?”
“Yeah… Video would’ve been better, but I didn’t know how.”
“Even a recorder’s not bad for you. They picked up some really interesting sounds.”
“Did they record last night’s poltergeist?”
“Perfectly.”
That’s a relief.
“Oh, that’s right, the shoe shelf…”
Naru looked back as if to say, ‘Hm?’ You don’t have to look at me!
“Um… well… the shoe shelf… was warm.”
“The one that fell?”
“Yeah. If I remember correctly, didn’t you say… that things moved by a poltergeist rise in temperature?”
“You remembered it properly. Well done.”
Yay, he praised me! ...No, that can’t be right.
Naru stood up and handed me a ton of cords.
“......?”
“Set up the equipment.”
Huh!?
***
Naru even had John, who just happened to pass by, running around helping him carry the extremely massive equipment.
On John’s shoulder, he carried the night vision camera, and on Naru’s shoulder, he carried… a machine I’ve never seen before.
“Hey~, what’s up?”
When we arrived in front of the lab, we set down the equipment.
Naru ordered me to assemble the tripod, then went inside the lab himself.
He pulled out a chair from the corner of the room. It was an old, rickety chair.
He placed it in the middle of the room and drew a circle around it with chalk.
“What’s that for?”
A chair inside a circle. I wonder if it’s some kind of good luck charm.
After finishing it, he quickly left the room.
We went back to the van and carried equipment a second time. In the end, we made another two round trips and I was quickly worn out.
“Hey, what is all this?” I asked Naru.
He positioned the night vision camera without expression.
“Heyyy.”
He ignored me and headed for the equipment placed in the corridor.
...What’s with this guy!
There was sort of a lot of equipment. Naru was busily fiddling with the complicated looking machines.
“Hey, Shibuya-sama~, what’s that? Tell me what’s going on.”
Sighing, he leaned against the wall and folded his arms. “This is radar.”
“Radar like what’s in planes?”
“Right.”
...oh wow.
“What are you going to use something like that for?”
“I can’t say. Otherwise, there won’t be any effect.
“But I’m your assistant, so…”
“No.”
Urgh, cheapskate.
“I’ll tell you tomorrow. Don’t ask until then.”
“Well then, just one thing.”
“What?”
“Have you come to a solution?”
“I’m not sure. But maybe…”
Naru ended there and refused to speak further. No matter what I asked, he wouldn’t answer.
John, unable to standby and watch this any longer, said to me, “Mai-san, Shibuya-san’s got some kind of solution, yeah. He said he’d tell you tomorrow, so why dunt you wait?”
“...Okay…”
Naru pretended not to notice. He took out a hammer and nails next, then began to cover all the lab windows with large plywood boards and nailed them in place.
...Is a typhoon or something coming?
When he was done with that, he handed John and me thick Magic Markers and said, “Both of you sign the boards. Big.”
Huh?
Well, he probably won’t answer even if I ask.
I grudgingly wrote my name on the plywood boards with characters as big as possible.
“The windows are sealed, yes?”
“Yeah.”
The windows, which were nailed, wouldn’t budge.
After that, Naru ushered us out of the lab. He closed the door and nailed it with boards from the outside. He handed us the pens again and said, “Sign it.”
Resigning myself, I wrote my name under John’s signature.
Meanwhile, Naru kneeled by a machine that was placed in the corridor. He covered the front panel, which was lined with switches, and stuck a piece of paper on top of that. Additionally, he had John and me write our names there.
Then I was sent home.
What the heck was that?
Making people do all kinds of things for him.
4
I went to school early the next day.
I headed straight for the old school building.
Naru was already there, doing something inside the van. There was a person beside him.
Oh?
Uh-oh, isn’t that the assistant who got injured!?
I ran up to the van and knocked on the window.
“Mornin’.” I nodded in greeting to the assistant. “Are you feeling better now?”
The assistant stared at me coldly.
...You know, I was hit by a shoe shelf, too, and ended up with a huge lump, so could you… maybe call us even?
Opening the vans door, Naru said, “You’re here rather early.”
“Very.”
Come on, it’s tomorrow now, so what was that yesterday? Didn’t you say you’d tell me?
Naru looked a little weary.
“Say, how’d it turn out? What was that yesterday?”
Naru sighed. “Mai, can you keep a secret?”
“If you tell me not to say anything, I’ll never say a word.”
Naru seemed to think for a moment. “Wait a bit. Everyone will be here soon.”
Everyone… you say? Could that be Miko-san and the others?
What is it that you're thinking?
***
Before the party of psychics arrived, there was a bit of a squabble.
Kuroda-joshi made an appearance before class.
Similar to me, she pressed Naru for answers, demanding to know what that was yesterday. Then she and Naru started arguing due to the fact that I had said that that was for after everyone arrived.
Joshi had said she was staying, but Naru told her to leave.
In the end, Joshi won through sheer pigheadedness, leaving Naru to sigh.
The chime signaling the start of class rang and a short while later, Miko-san and the others began to gather.
I guess that means we’re skipping class.
Well, whatever.
When Miko-san, Bou-san, John, and Masako had all gathered, Naru headed towards the old school building.
Holding a cane in one hand, the assistant, who was limping, followed behind with an 8mm video format camcorder.
“What’re you going to show us today?” Bou-san asked laughingly.
Miko-san also said, “Shouldn’t you give up? You’ll just make a fool of yourself again.”
Without expression, Naru said, “I simply want you to act as witnesses to an experiment.”
“Oh?”
Miko-san and Bou-san blinked in surprise.
In front of the lab, the equipment was sitting there peacefully, just as it had been yesterday.
“Both of you, do me a favor and look over the equipment. Check whether or not the paper you signed yesterday has been broken.”
Why?
At some point, the assistant had started recording video.
I checked the paper that was stuck to the machine. It wasn’t broken and it was definitely my writing.
“It’s all right, yes?”
“Yeah.”
“Yes, definitely, it’s just like it was yesterday.”
“And where you signed the door? It’s your writing, correct?”
“Yeah.”
“Right.”
Naru nodded, then picked up a crowbar. Inserting it between the door and the board, he abruptly yanked it away. The plywood split and fell.
As we exchanged confused looks, Naru went inside the lab.
...Oh?
The chalk circle was in the center of the room.
I’m certain the chair… wasn’t it placed inside that circle?
The chair wasn’t there. It was lying by the window instead.
“Shibuya-san, the chair moved!”
“Indeed,” Naru replied with a self-satisfied smirk.
Miko-san cut in. “Wait, what’s that?”
Without answering her, Naru walked over to the night vision camera that’d been placed inside the room.
“Hey, Naru-chan,” Miko-san said impatiently.
Naru glanced around at us with a look of confidence.
“Thank you for your cooperation. I will be withdrawing by the end of today.”
Eh? What!?
***
“Do you mean to say you’ve solved the case or something?” Miko-san asked with a malicious smile.
“Yes, that was my meaning.”
“Ground subsidence?”
...what a cynical person.
Naru nodded, however. “Yes.”
“Ha!” Bou-san said derisively. “Why don’t you just accept it already? Does something like that really happen due to ground subsidence?”
“Regarding the matter I received a request from the principal about, I believe everything can be explained by ground subsidence.”
“Then what about the windows in the lab that broke? Or the disturbance the day before yesterday!?”
...That’s right. There’s no way that was ground subsidence.
“That was a poltergeist.”
“See!” Miko-san and Bou-san said triumphantly.
“The fact is, you can’t exorcise it. Ain’t that right? That’s why you’re planning to leave after only investigating,” Bou-san accused, jabbing a finger at him.
Naru was unfazed. “I don’t think there’s any need for an exorcism.” He rewound the video tape. “Would you like to see?”
***
The video showed the chair in the lab (naturally). The chair was captured in the middle of the screen. I watched the chair intently.
“What is this?” came Joshi’s displeased voice.
There was no answer from Naru.
“Hey—”
Before Joshi finished speaking any further, the chair rocked with a thump.
The chair shook. Then slid. Across the floor. Nothing was moving it. Only the chair moved, and after sliding to the window, it swayed heavily and collapsed. It didn’t move anymore after that.
Naru clicked the play button off.
“What… was that just now?” I asked.
“It’s as you’ve seen.”
“The chair moved, didn’t it?”
“Yes, it moved.”
...so what does that mean?
Bou-san spat, “That was a full-fledged poltergeist! If we don’t exorcise it…”
Naru said coldly, “That’s not necessary.”
Looking towards me, who was blinking in surprise, Naru uttered the words, “I gave everyone a suggestion yesterday.”
“Eh?”
“Something similar to hypnotism. I said the chair would move at night.”
That light. The one like a strobe light.
“That was hypnotism?” I asked.
Naru nodded slightly. “...Sort of. In addition to that, I put a chair here. And I locked all this room’s windows from the inside. Furthermore, Mai and John helped me put up the boards. I also locked the door and sealed it. With that, no one could go inside and I’d know without a doubt if someone entered by force.”
“Yeah.”
The sealed boards would break, for sure! And just because they’re broken doesn’t mean they can be replaced. Because John and I signed our names.
Naru was somewhat hesitant to speak. After furtively glancing around at us, he lifted his gaze. His eyes were deeper than darkness.
“Half of poltergeist are cases where a human is the culprit. Generally, children in their early teens. Sometimes it’s women with strong spiritual sensitivity.”
“Are you saying it’s a prank?”
When I asked that, Naru said, “Simpleton.”
...You don’t have to say anything like that so decisively, you know!
“It’s a type of psychic ability. The person often does it subconsciously. Those who’ve accumulated stress due to something do it with an unconscious desire for attention or to be noticed.”
“Oh~”
“In such cases, when a suggestion is planted, that suggestion happens almost exactly.”
Suggestion… how he said the chair would move?
Bou-san cut in. “Then, are you saying the chair moving… was caused by a person?”
“Precisely.”
“It wasn’t the work of a spirit? That uproar in the old school building either?”
This was from Miko-san.
“In all likelihood. At least, I’ve never failed with this method so far.”
“...Who is it?”
“It’s…” Naru quieted.
Someone who wants attention. Someone who wants to be noticed.
If it’s someone who craves the limelight, there’s a bunch. In front of me right now.
But...
I discreetly turned my gaze. To a certain someone.
Sporadically, everyone’s eyes gathered on her.
On Kuroda-joshi.
“...Me…?” She asked in a panicked voice. Then, “That’s ridiculous…”
She shook her head.
Naru nodded. “You’re the most likely candidate.”
“You’re saying I did it? That poltergeist?” Her eyes had a somewhat frightened look.
“It’s more natural to think you did it than anyone else.” Naru said, then looked towards us.
5
“I remembered there being a connection to you since the beginning. For example, you said you saw spirits from the war in the old school building. And that you also saw a spirit that looked like a nurse. But there’s no evidence a hospital was built here. And apparently, this area wasn’t affected by air raids, nor could I find any information that the school was used as a hospital.”
“That can’t be…”
“—So, it follows that you were either mistaken or deliberately lying. Miko-san had also told us so. She said Kuroda-san didn’t have psychic powers.” Naru looked toward Miko-san.
“That’s right, I definitely thought it wasn’t true.”
“Kuroda-san… whether you’re doing it deliberately or seeing something imaginary with the hope of seeing it… That I don’t know.”
“I wasn’t lying!” Joshi cried.
“I thought you were just playing being spiritually sensitive at first.” Naru pulled the tape out of the tape deck. He played with it with his fingers. “As I mentioned before, half the causes of poltergeist are due to a person’s subconscious.
“I was quite troubled when a phenomenon that could only be considered a poltergeist occurred in the old school building. Because, considering the results measured by the equipment, I wouldn’t have thought there was a spirit. Hara-san had also concluded there wasn’t a spirit.”
“Yes. There was not.” Masako nodded.
“If it’s not a spirit, then a human must be the cause. If this was an ordinary house, the culprit would be a person living inside the house. A child in their early teens. Or a woman with strong spiritual sensitivity.
“The individual does it unconsciously when excessive stress builds up. The subconscious undercurrent is a desire to be noticed by or receive attention from a family member who’s neglecting them.
“Therefore, the person responsible often becomes the target of the poltergeist. Some are even seriously injured. Because if they’re injured, subconsciously it means they receive sympathy and attention.
“However… no one lives in the old school building.”
Everyone stayed absolutely silent.
“So then, we should look at things another way. Wouldn’t the culprit be someone who attracted the attention of the poltergeist, someone given sympathy? In that case… the only ones who meet this requirement are Kuroda-san and… Mai.”
…Me?
Why you! You suspected me as a culprit, too!?
“If you compare the two, the suspicious one is definitely Kuroda-san.” Naru said, focusing on Joshi’s pale face. “It seems you’re famous for having strong spiritual sensitivity. That’s why you’ve attracted the attention of everyone around you. Since middle school.”
“......”
...Oh yeah, Michiru and the others said that, huh?
“You said evil spirits live in the old school building. However… what if it turns out there are no spirits in the old school building? What if everyone found out it was because of ground subsidence and not spirits?”
Bou-san answered. “Loss of authority. Which is to say, she’d lose people’s trust.”
Miko-san added, “...it’d mean her saying she was spiritually sensitive was a lie.”
“...Right. For Kuroda-san, evil spirits in the old school building were necessary for her to continue drawing the attention of those around her. Spirits must dwell in the old school building. For her sake.”
Everyone focused on Joshi with wistful looks.
“...I can sort of understand that kind of mentality,” I murmured.
Joshi looked up in surprise. I gave her a small smile in return. Everyone wants to be special, wants something everyone will admire them for. I want a special talent. And I want to be appreciated for that talent.
The talent she wanted was psychic powers…
“As things stand, Kuroda-san is stricken by a terribly anxiety over losing her position. That puts a huge pressure on her subconscious. Her subconscious thinks, There must be a spirit. There has to be. A poltergeist must happen. It must. And then…”
Bou-san took over for me. “...the subconscious carries it out.”
At once, I said, “But is a person capable of something like that? Like before a test or something, I desperately hope the school will fall down, but that doesn’t happen.”
“That’s a problem of ability.”
Oh?
Naru turned his gaze to Joshi. His expression was just a little soft. “I believe she’s a laten saikikku.”
“Saikikku?”
“A person with supernatural powers so to speak. Though she’s not aware of it herself, and no one’s noticed, she probably possesses a certain degree of PK. For Mai’s benefit, PK means psychokinesis.”
...Shut up, you bastard.
“Hmm…” After looking at Joshi, Miko-san looked toward Naru and tilted her head. “But, based on that theory, her elevated stress happened after your ground subsidence theory, right? So then, what about me being locked in the classroom? And her being attacked?
“Even if she was lying about being attacked, what about the video going out? I won’t be convinced unless you explain these.”
Masako muttered, “You being locked in was your own doing.”
“Hey, are you saying I forgot closing it myself?”
“Isn’t that so?”
Naru held up a hand to halt the pair. “...Shall I explain?” he directed toward Kuroda-joshi.
She lowered her head and nodded.
“Regarding the incident where Miko-san was locked up.” Naru removed a single nail from his pocket.
“What’s that?”
“It’s a nail.”
“I can see that!”
“This was stuck in the door sill.”
...eh?
“The door most likely wouldn’t open because of this nail. I noticed it earlier. But I didn’t think it was particularly necessary to say anything.”
Miko-san plucked the nail from Naru’s hand. Staring at it, she asked, “So, you’re saying someone did it on purpose?”
“Yes.”
“Who… It was you, wasn’t it!?” Miko-san glared at Joshi.
Joshi shrank inward. I couldn’t help patting her shoulder.
...Don’t worry about it.
Naru said, “You just meant it as a little prank, right? Just before that, Miko-san made quite a few insulting remarks to you.”
...uh-huh.
“Then what about the trouble with the video?”
“I examined the tape at length concerning that. That wasn’t spirit interference. It was deliberately erased.”
“Was that her, too?”
“When Mai got to the lab, Kuroda-san was already there, so it probably was.”
“......”
Miko-san bit her lip in annoyance.
Joshi shrank further inward.
Her voice saying, “I’m sorry,” was heard only by me.
John comforted her with a melancholic or perhaps slightly sorrowful tinged voice. “Dunt worry about it. It was just a bit o’ mischief, is all.”
“That’s the problem!? It was malicious!”
Naru said bluntly, “It was probably mortifying and unendurable to be labeled not spiritually sensitive by you, Miko-san. Wouldn’t it be best if you learned a lesson from all this and watched you tongue a bit more carefully?”
...Can you really say that to someone else?
“Is this satisfactory? Are you convinced?”
Miko-san folded her arms haughtily. “I get it, more or less. But what are we going to do now? We can’t go home with things as they are. The principal hired us so he could do construction.”
“We’ll just say the exorcism is finished and go home.”
“What if Kuroda-san interferes with construction?” Miko-san blatantly stared at Joshi.
“This is what I intend to report to the principal:
“‘The old schoolhouse was haunted by the spirits of those who died in the war. They have been exorcised, so you may go ahead with construction.’ —Will that do, Kuroda-san?”
Looking like she was about to cry, Joshi nodded.
“...those who died in the war…huh,” Miko-san grumbled.
Bou-san asked, “So, do you think that’s okay?”
Naru shrugged. “I think it’s fine.”
Masako said, “I am still left with some uneasiness. Why don’t we tell the principal the true story? Wouldn’t it be best to report the current story as it is?”
“She’s been sufficiently subdued. I don’t think there’s any need to corner her any further.”
...wow, you’re saying some pretty nice things, aren’t you?
In a sullen voice, Miko-san hesitantly asked, “Then… who gets credit for the exorcism?”
An uncomfortable silence immediately descended.
Naru easily replied, “We say everyone worked together. Nobody minds that, do they?”
“...Wow.” Miko-san stared at Naru seriously. “...you sure are a nice guy. Why would you share the credit?”
Naru just lightly shrugged. Then he turned to me with a sharp look and said, “Mai. Not a word to anyone about this matter.”
“I know, I know.”
Miko-san seemed strangely moved. “You’re quite a gentleman, aren’t you?”
“Certainly.”
“Hmm…. do you have a girlfriend?”
“I fail to see the point of your question.”
“Even though you’re younger, I’m willing to put up with it.”
“Well, thank you.”
...you amorous miko. How are you a miko? How!?
Naru smiled. “I appreciate your kind offer, but I’m sorry. I’ve gotten used to seeing myself in the mirror.”
Ayako blushed right away.
...Huh?
In the next instant, Bou-san burst out laughing. Miko-san turned away.
...So, Miko-san’s not good enough because he’s used to seeing his own face in the mirror?
Well look at that, Miko-san’s been utterly defeated… but did you have say it like that?
Hurry up and turn into a narcissus already, you jerk!
6
Naru abruptly picked a camera up in his arms and walked away.
Everyone watched this in confusion, and Naru looked back at us with dark eyes.
“Aren’t you going to prepare to leave?”
“Oh, that's right.” Miko-san popped up. “That case wasn’t such a big deal, was it?”
To that, Bou-san quipped, “Considering that, you got pretty scared, didn’t you?”
“Get serious!”
...prepare to leave.
The moment I heard Naru’s words, my chest felt hollow inside.
I’m just a student. His assistant was injured and I was hired to be his stand-in assistant.
Which means… there’s nothing that connects Naru to me.
There's no need to guess we won’t meet again.
When I thought so, I suddenly felt a lump in my throat. I’ll never see him again. I’ll go back to my life and Naru will go back to his. There’s no reason for us to meet again.
I feel like I have to say something. It’s frustrating.
As I watched Naru, who started carrying the equipment from inside the lab to the corridor, he looked back.
“Don’t you both need to get to class?”
“I don’t feel like it today.”
When I said that, Naru looked at me with contempt.
“Shouldn’t you make a little more of an effort to be smart?”
...This jerk!
Well, what do I care?
Naru’s going to part with me and not care one bit. But he could at least care a little more. Even though it was temporary, I was his assistant.
...But what does that matter? I mean, his real assistant, although it’s with the help of a cane, can walk now.
Hmm, it’s making me feel a bit angry.
...Why do I have to be the only one with this empty feeling?
As I was getting irrationally angry and glaring at Naru’s back, Naru looked over his shoulder.
“If you’re not going to class, help me with the equipment removal.”
Hey! Don’t you go working me to death all the way to the end!
***
Joshi bowed deeply and returned to class without saying anything.
While I helped Naru load equipment into the van, I couldn’t help feeling a strong urge to say something.
But no way is this a situation where I can just say something like, “Please tell me your address.”
Winding the last remaining cords, Naru carried them in his arms. With that, there was nothing left around the lab.
“Mai, you can go back now, too,” Naru said in his usual manner.
...Hmph…
You really don’t feel anything.
Augh, I hate this guy!
“‘kay. I’ll go to class then.”
“Okay.”
“Or, should I see you off?” I tried quietly asking.
However, Naru responded, “Why?”
...I don’t have a good answer as to ‘why?’
“Well, you know, even though it was a short time, you were my boss.
“It’s not necessary. Besides, shouldn’t you go to class? If you get any more stupid, it’ll be unmanageable.”
...You jerk!
Okay, fine, I get it!
I’m going back to class! I won’t even see you off! And even if this is the end, I’m going to forget everything about you henceforth!
I’ll never think about you again, you stupid bastard!
***
I reluctantly returned to class and listened to the lesson with a somewhat restless feeling. My seat is next to the window, it’s the spring season, and the old school building is opposite the opened window. Unintentionally, my gaze fell on the old school building.
It happened as I was absently staring at the building.
Soundlessly, the glass in the windows of the old school building distorted. The glass that sparsely remained clouded white. A high-pitched cracking noise arrived with delay. In conjunction with the noise, the glass broke and rained downward. Without thinking, I half rose to my feet.
Standing half way up, I focused on the old school building across the sports field. The teacher started to give me a warning, but his voice trailed off at the piercing sound of glass breaking. A murmuring occurred throughout the classroom.
In my eyes, the old school building seemed to shudder. The half-collapsed roof on the west side undulated, and after bulging slightly, began to sink. The roof tiles ran down and a pale yellow cloud of dust arose. The roof sank down into the west side, falling into the smoke it itself had sent rising.
The fading echoes of the building rumbling slowly reached us.
The ground gently sank around the west side of the old school building where it had already been demolished. It sank into a cone shape like an hourglass and a large, round hole opened up. The old school building, collapsing entirely from the entryway to the west side, was like a ship sinking into the sea of dust.
***
I quietly slipped away from the window side, where the teacher and students had gathered, and broke into a run.
I rushed to the old school building.
The grey van wasn’t in its usual spot.
As expected, the faces I sought weren’t among the crowd of people who rushed over, either.
Those disagreeable Ghost Hunters had gone away.
***
A couple of days later, construction began on what little remained of the old school building. At the same time, rumors about Kuroda-joshi’s spiritual sensitivity circulated around campus...
Collaborators: csakuras
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