As foretold by the Oracle, he was driven from the hill, wandering the wasteland.
The Shiki at his side was, at least as far as he was concerned, nothing more than an extension of that curse. His little brother's corpse was the most forthright symbol of his sin. He was to, with him at his side, wander over the barren, frozen soil.
In the dense night ruled over by the evil spirits, he merely kept his head down, walking on resolutely while accompanied by the wil;-o'-the-wisps. Aware of his little brother who had become a Shiki at his side, cowed into silence he traversed the frozen earth beneath his feet.
At last, as the vigorous jeers of the evil spirits surrounding at a distance died out, the great earth was tinged in white light. The fine grains of the cold ground glittered in the light of dawn, its textures exposed, and, suspecting the presence beside him that had at last begun to dim had faded, he raised his face.
He was alone in the great rift between heaven and earth.
There was neither a trace of the evil spirits that trailed him, nor of his little brother.
As far as he could see upon of the cold ground and the dull skies, the undulations of obstinate deep red stretched on to the horizon, above which hung low clouds like sheep that had seeped in muddy waters. The dawn dyed red the melancholy clouds and those highs and lows in a catastrophic cross-hatch.
There were the dips and valleys of the inorganic earth, the life like, coordinated writhing of the clouds, and interposed betwixt the two left in the gap was none other than him and he alone. If he turned to look behind him, in the distance he could see the green hill passed over by the night. Pushed aside by the winds, the swirl of the clouds was cut off in the skies above that hill, a small, round beam of light pouring straight down upon it.
It was due to that light that, far away as he was, the greenery of that hill and the circular wall enclosing its base, as well as the white town erected on its summit were clear to view. It floated within the somber world, literally shimmering. A green so greed as to be radiant, stones so pure white they stung the eyes, with a splendor as if in direct contact with that sky above.
That was the hometown he was driven out of, unable to make restitution, the land where his brother who had become a Shiki slept, which lead to him being driven out into the wilderness, only able to stand, as if he existed only to cast shadows upon the earth, longing for it.
The clouds, the earth, the light, the hill. They awoke a memory within him of when he received the temple's verdict.
Why, the elder asked.
The hall contained in grey stone, closely, closely
"Junior Monk."
Called out to, Seishin turned to look. Looking fresh from the bath with a towel over his head, Ikebe peered into the temple office window.
"Pardon me. Do you have a moment?"
Ikebe said apologetically. Seishin set his pencil down. "What is it?"
"Junior Monk, I suppose you haven't seen Megumi-chan from the Shimizu-san's place, have you?"
"No." Seishin tilted his head. The Shimizus were a parish family but he had mostly never met with their daughter Megumi, and he couldn't remember when he'd last seen her face or when that was. "I haven't seen her in a long while. ---What's happened?"
"Well, it seems she hasn't come home yet. Resident officer Takami-san is here, but."
Seishin stood and stepped out of the office. As he rounded the corner in the hallway, Takami stood in the dirt floor entryway with a flashlight in one hand, Miwako kneeling upon the rising step into the home with a look of concern on her face.
"Good evening. What's happened to Megumi-chan?"
"Ah---Excuse the intrusion, Junior Monk. I hope you weren't in the middle of work?"
"Don't mind it. Megumi-chan hasn't come home?"
That's right, said Takami who exlpained the situation. While doing so he wiped the sweat dampening the back of his neck. He must have been bitten by mosquitoes, the sun burnt nape of his neck peppered in red.
"I mean lately, you know, a lot of things have happened. So everyone would be worried, right?"
"What happened in Yamairi?" Seishin started to say, but Takami waved his hand.
"What, no, not the talks about a degenerate or anything like that. Though there may be people who are thinking along those lines. But, while those rumors are also making people unease, there are the ones about the wild dogs. Lately, there's a lot of talk of people seeing wild dogs in the mountains lately."
Aa, Seishin murmured. "That is so, certainly."
"I figured, the Junior Monk has not seen Megumi-chan, then?"
Yes, Seishin nodded.
Miwako's brows knitted together as she touched her hand to her cheek.
"I wonder if it might not be best to go and help?"
"That's right. ---I'll head out for a bit."
As Seishin turned back, Takami hastily called out. "No, that's! I didn't come to have the Junior Monk join in. It's just that she might be stranded someplace, so I had just come to see if there was any sign of her."
Takami was unexpectedly flustered.
"But,"
"No, really. If I have the Junior Monk help, I'll be scolded by the elderly," Takami said with a forced smile. "To tell the truth, just a while ago, the Madame of the Ozaki's just finished scolding me. For carelessly going to consult with the doctor."
I see, Seishin smiled bitterly.
"So, please do not mind and leave it be."
"Then, I'll go," Ikebe said.
"No, Ikebe-kun, but..."
At Takami's attempt to keep him from joining, he smiled. "A parishioner is in peril! Isn't it better if there are more people helping?"
"That's right," Miwako smiled. "Ikebe-kun, might you do this for us? You'd just finished with your bath, too, I really am sorry."
"Not at all. She's a young lady after all, Shimizu-san must not have a heart to go on. Either way I was just going to go on to sleep anyway. Junior Monk, please keep on working."
"I'm sorry."
Don't be, Ikebe said cheerfully. "Just let me change my clothes right quick, Takami-san, please wait just a moment."
"Man, I'm really sorry," Takami scratched his head as he saw Ikebe hurry into the depths of the temple living quarters. "It'd be good if she just went to a friend's house and lost track of time."
"It would," Miwako said with a sigh. "But, it has become this late. Shimizu-san must indeed be so worried."
"That's right. No call, and even with it this late, she hasn't come back."
Miwako slightly inclined her head. "Have you tried Kanemasa?"
Ha? Takami blinked. Unable to follow his mother's line of thinking, Seishin also looked to her face.
"Oh dear, I wonder if I've said something so off?" Miwako, bewildered, pinched her mouth tightly. "I had heard that a family had moved into Kanemasa. Perhaps by chance, they had a child of the same age. Megumi-chan had gone up the hill, hadn't she? I wonder if she hadn't met with somebody from Kanemasa and became caught up in a conversation in which she lost track of time, perhaps?"
"Aa---that could be."
"But, Mother. If that were the case, Megumi-chan would have had the opportunity to call, wouldn't she? Kanemasa's family likely would have pressed her to call as well."
"My, but the idea of calling never even entered their minds precisely because they lost track of time, is what I am saying. In the village of course one would call but the rumors say that that family is from the city, so perhaps the idea that it would be best to call home or such does not cross their minds, don't you think?"
"But, even so...."
"That's true. Even so, not making contact over dinner, is certainly strange," Miwako said, smilinig with a blush. "My apologies. I was just thinking that she had gone up the hill, and from there it had just came to mind. Please forget about it."
No, no, Takami said while smiling when suddenly he seemed struck by something.
"It might still be the case, even if unexpectedly. ----But." Takami tilted his head. "I have heard rumors that it seemed they had moved in but, as for what kind of people they are..."
"My, aren't there people who have at least seen them?"
"About that," Takami said, his voice lowering. "There isn't anybody. It seems they don't come out of the house at all."
"Is that so?" Miwako said, her eyes wide in surprise.
"There's talk that that a young guy from there's been sighted, but nothing on the essential family themselves. To say the least, they don't seem to have any plans to interact with their neighbors. With them acting like that, anything that would lead to Megumi-chan meeting with them is hard to think up...."
Seishin nodded in his mind. The Kirishikis had moved in the day before yesterday. Meeting Tatsumi was something that happened yesterday. He hadn't heard any rumors about the master of the house but that the essential man of the family had yet to show himself before the village.
Because they had only been moved in for two days, they were probably still finishing cleaning up from the move. Maybe they just didn't feel up to walking around the village but, him not showing himself at all was somewhat of a surprising circumstance. Did they not have any interest in what type of village they had just moved into? Did he not want to take a walk about to survey the surroundings of his house like Tatsumi or----.
Seishin tilted his head, when Ikebe returned in jeans and a long sleeved shirt with a flashlight in hand.
"Sorry, thanks for waiting!"