"Sumi-senpai, see you later!"
"Bye, Ran. Bye, Sonoko."
Waving goodbye to Ran and Sonoko at the school gate, Tsukamoto Sumi remained where she was, watching until the two girls disappeared from sight.
Before long, it was already past six in the evening.
The remaining students trickled out of the campus in ones and twos. Sumi glanced at her watch, decided the timing was about right, and turned back toward the school grounds.
She left her handbag at the security office near the entrance. Rather than taking the main paths, she moved lightly, deliberately sticking close to blind spots between buildings, subtly concealing her presence.
This wasn't the first time she'd done this.
Lately, after school—once most students had left—Tsukamoto Sumi would stay behind a little longer.
Her goal, of course, was to find the person behind the so-called supernatural incidents and the rumors spreading through campus.
To avoid alerting them, she only acted once every two or three days. After all, the other party was hiding in the shadows, while she was out in the open. She didn't want to be seen.
She made her way back toward the sports storage room. Seeing that the corridor ahead was empty, she waited another two or three minutes before stepping out from the corner.
She had assumed tonight might once again yield nothing.
But the moment she reached the storage room entrance, her eyes flickered sharply.
The door—had been tampered with again after they left.
Sumi was certain of it. When she'd parted ways with Shimizu Koji and the others, every club near the gym—aside from the Kendo Club—had already cleared out.
The Kendo Club had been training overtime for the upcoming tournament, and its members almost never came to this storage room.
Almost never.
Still, Sumi felt it far more likely that this was the work of the person lurking in the shadows.
She pushed the door open and stepped inside, but everything looked normal. Standing in front of Hosaka Hideaki's desk, she couldn't even tell whether the cloth covering it had been disturbed.
Frowning, she stared for a moment before turning and leaving.
Her next destination: the so-called "Library of Resentment" from the rumors.
—
After separating from Ran and Sonoko, Shimizu Koji returned to his classroom to pack up like everyone else.
But instead of leaving, he stayed behind alone.
Standing by the window, he watched students file out beneath the building one by one, until silence fell and only the glow of the setting sun remained.
Then Koji went to the sports storage room again—confirming that his earlier feeling hadn't been mistaken.
After that, following the sequence of ghost stories Sonoko had told him about, he visited the Library of Resentment, Hosaka Hideaki's former classroom, and finally the staircase said to be drenched with water every morning.
He found nothing in the library or the classroom.
Walking alone through empty hallways, Koji eventually arrived at the last site tied to the rumors: Building B.
Most of this building housed cultural and athletic club rooms. With night approaching, the entire structure was shrouded in darkness, giving off an unsettling atmosphere.
Some lights were still on elsewhere on campus, but this building was pitch-black. Spotting a security guard in the distance preparing to begin flashlight patrols, Koji didn't hesitate—he stepped inside.
Though his footsteps were light, the sound of climbing stairs echoed clearly through the silent stairwell. If anyone else were here, they'd probably be scared out of their mind.
Before long, Koji reached the third floor—the rumored epicenter of the supernatural incidents, and the place where Hosaka had supposedly fallen to his death. An art classroom sat nearby.
The staircase was empty. Only faint bluish moonlight reflected off the floor.
Everything looked completely normal.
"Looks like nothing's wrong… was it really just my imagination?"
Koji narrowed his eyes slightly, stepped out of the stairwell, leaned against the hallway railing, and rested his chin on his hand in thought.
—
Then, as his mind drifted—
He suddenly felt something like a faint breeze brush past him.
Turning his head, Koji's pupils shrank.
A figure.
A real, unmistakable human figure.
A boy wearing Teitan Academy's uniform stood there, his expression melancholic. He leaned against the railing, gazing into the distance.
"Sigh…"
The boy let out a soft sigh.
To Koji's ears, it was as clear and tangible as his own footsteps had been moments earlier.
The next instant, the boy seemed to notice something wrong. He turned his head—
And locked eyes with Koji.
"Y-you… you can see me?!"
Before Koji could speak, the boy's eyes widened in shock, and he stumbled backward two steps.
Koji's gaze sharpened. He snapped out of it—and then calmly regained his composure.
This wasn't exactly unfamiliar territory.
A soul, huh?
He'd even seen his own once.
That time, he'd been walking normally down the sidewalk when a beam of light suddenly fell from the sky and merged into his body.
Then his soul left his body.
Then a truck sent his body flying.
After that, he'd lived for two more days as a soul. He'd learned that the power involved was called a talisman.
And after that—there was nothing more.
"Y-you're… a student?" The boy's voice trembled, fear evident in his expression—along with a faint hint of excitement.
Koji couldn't help but feel confused. What exactly was he scared of? Normally, shouldn't Koji be the frightened one?
"Yes. I can see you," Koji replied evenly.
"You're Hosaka Hideaki, right?"
Hosaka seemed to finally calm down. Perhaps seeing Koji's uniform helped. He nodded vigorously, excitement flickering in his eyes—though when he opened his mouth, no words came out.
"You want to ask why I can see you?" Koji continued.
"Sorry. I don't know either. But I'm pretty sure this is an exception—I don't think I'm normal."
Hosaka Hideaki was gentle—soft, even. Koji felt certain of this assessment despite having just met him.
As expected, hearing Koji's words caused Hosaka's eyes to dim again.
He knew he was already dead.
"The recent supernatural incidents… were they your doing?"
"Huh? Supernatural—n-no, that's not—ah… yes. It was me."
Koji watched his awkward reaction and frowned slightly. Reaching out, he tried to touch Hosaka's figure.
A chill ran faintly through his fingers.
Koji withdrew his hand.
Yes—this was the same sensation he'd felt back in the storage room.
But now, it didn't feel like malice.
More like the natural repulsion between life and death—between yin and yang.
"U-um—"
"The rumors… were they just someone's prank?" Koji asked calmly.
"Someone you know?"
Hosaka Hideaki's lips moved. He seemed to want to deny it, to hide something—
But in the end, he was still too inexperienced.
Or perhaps… simply too gentle.