"You're right to think that the students who've gone missing are no longer in this world… I'm a trickster spirit. I don't have the capacity to drag people down to hell."
These had been Kokkuri-san's disturbing words from yesterday.
The students have been dragged… to hell? Does it mean that they're actually dead?!
What kind of entity can drag people down to hell?
My blood ran cold at the horrific thought.
It was lunch time.
Hatsu and I were walking down the hallway, heading for the staff room when, I noticed a young male student outside of the door.
The math teacher Shimura-san stepped outside to meet him; the student having apparently called for him.
'Yes, Hisagi, is there something you wanted to talk to me about?'
Unexpectedly, the male student took a cutter out of his pocket and aimed it at the startled young teacher, shouting hysterically, 'Satoru-kun had told it to me! The reason why you took on me in class the other day is because you're homophobic!'
I was frozen with shock while Hatsu jumped at the boy and tackled him down on the floor, but the latter had managed to slash the professor at his right flank.
Shimura-san sank down onto his knees in pain, holding his bleeding wound.
The other students present on the scene began to scream, some stampeding away, while the teachers in the staff room, yelled the injured professor's name, rushing into the corridor to help him.
***
A short while later…
Standing in the courtyard, alongside the principal, a few teachers and students, Hatsu and I watched the ambulance and the police vehicles drive away.
Shimura-san had been given first-aid before being taken to the hospital; the male student Hisagi having been handed over to the authorities.
All classes were dismissed for the rest of the day, extracurriculars included, even if, the students couldn't leave the compound early, unless their parents came to fetch them.
'Gosh, just what the hell is going on?!' muttered Hatsu.
'Satoru-kun...' I murmured, thoughtfully.
The day we had arrived, there had been a fight in the schoolyard between two students and one of them had mentioned some Satoru-kun. And today, again, when the student Hisagi had attacked Shimura-san, he had taken that same name.
To be exact, he had said that Satoru-kun has told him that Shimura-san is homophobic. In other words, what Satoru-kun had told the male student had more or less served as a trigger.
Was it inadvertent on the part of the mysterious Satoru-kun?
We needed to meet the latter to know it.
'Who is Satoru-kun?'
'Oh, Satoru-kun isn't a student of this high school,' Tsukine Ubaraki informed me, shifting closer by my side. 'He's not a student of any other schools either. In fact, he's the character of an urban legend!'
Hatsu and I stared at each other, this striking a chord in us.
***
Another short while later…
'I've been able to talk to the boy from the fight of the day we had arrived,' called Hatsu, as he half-ran to me where I was waiting for him by the swimming pool's building. 'He's admitted having summoned Satoru-kun!'
He grinned victoriously.
At last, we had a lead. More than a lead. We had most certainly found our culprit.
He began explaining to me all that he had been able to find on Satoru-kun.
'He is said to appear in the form of a young boy. There are many suppositions about what he is. Some say that he is a spirit, others a ghost, or even a demon, but one thing's for sure, he knows everything about the present, the past and the future. You can ask him any question and he'll answer you. To summon him, a ritual has to be performed. There are rules and if the person who's summoned him break any of these rules, the person dies and...'
He paused for one long second to make the suspense last.
'...is dragged to hell by Satoru-kun!' he completed with emphasis.
Everything seemed to concord. I recalled Kokkuri-san's words. We had indeed found our culprit!
'How is he summoned?' I inquired and Hatsu explained to me the procedure.
After some deliberation, I decided, 'I'm going to summon him!'
'What?' he exclaimed, stunned. 'Are you crazy? You want to serve as bait?! It's no! Forget it!'
'Human lives are in danger, Hatsu,' I argued, in a pleading tone. 'And it's out of the question that we use a student as bait. It has got to be one of the two of us. I'll summon him to lure him to us while you'll take position not very far, and once he shows up, you'll take him down.' I added, 'I prefer that it's me who's the bait. If it's you, I risk falling asleep at the crucial moment and put your life at risk.'
'Shun...' he whined, conflicted. 'I don't like this. Master Kagami and Tsunan wouldn't be happy either!'
'Too many people have already disappeared. We have to put an end to this.'
He fixated me a whole minute, deliberating, before he exhaled, giving in.
***
After school was over, I entered the public phone-box in front of the compound and taking a deep breath, I dialed the number of the cellphone which was in my possession. I didn't have a cellphone of my own and hoped that Hatsu's would do the thing.
'Satoru-kun, Satoru-kun, please come here!' I said the chant through the speaker. 'Satoru-kun, Satoru-kun, please show yourself! Satoru-kun, Satoru-kun, please answer me if you are there!'
I hanged up the public pay-phone then and switched off the mobile phone, waited for a few seconds, before I switched the cellphone on again.
'It's done!' I announced, as I stepped out of the phone box to meet Hatsu who was waiting for me with Kōmori-san.
'Well then, we only have to wait now!'
We stared at each other in trepidation.
Unexpectedly, the flying animal in his arms jumped at his face.
'Dammit! What's the matter with this animal? I find it extremely agitated today!' Hatsu exclaimed as he pulled Kōmori-san away from his face and glowered at it.
The blond looked at me then, pointing at the small animal in his hold as he asked in bewilderment, 'Do you think that it has understood what you're about to do and it is against it?'
I remembered the time with the Oumukade. The small animal had seemed quite agitated at that time too.
'I really, truly have the impression that it can understand everything! There's something very uncanny about this animal!' stated Hatsu, scrutinizing Kōmori-san with the eyes for a minute before he released the animal which flew up to me.
'Satoru-kun will wait for you to be alone to appear, so we're gonna make sure that you don't find yourself all alone until we're ready.'
I nodded.
***
The public park of Narita was the perfect location for our plan.
It was quite small, with a lake and benches, and several surrounding buildings that gave off a nice view onto the park, but above all, it was very crowded. People crossed through the park in succession.
When it turned dark though, it was another matter.
I remained seated onto one of the benches facing the lake, while Hatsu left to take his position inside a building on construction westward, which was desert by this time.
From an upper floor, he had a direct view on my position through the telescopic sight of his snipper riffle.
The legend of Satoru-kun was well authentic. The first time he called me, it was to tell me about his position, and every time, he was drawing closer. It was amazing how he was traveling so far, this fast. I understood better how students of schools across the country have been touched.
When the moon was high up in the sky, the park became totally desert. There was no wind tonight, everything seemed to be still; airless.
When Satoru-kun informed me that he was in Narita, I got to my feet and walked up to the rail by the lake, taking my position.
'If you don't want to do it anymore, you only have to say one word and I'll rush down to be with you!' Hatsu told me through the wireless headset. It was a tactical communication equipment. The blond had many such gadgets, some of which, I didn't even know existed.
I was scared of course, not because I didn't trust Hatsu's snipper expertise but because the situation called for it.
Our whole plan was based on the hope that Satoru-kun doesn't realize that he's being lured into a trap.
The mobile phone in my hand rang at that moment, making me jump.
Taking a deep calming breath, I answered the call.
'I'm right behind you,' said Satoru-kun.
Indeed, I became aware of a presence behind me in that instant and the atmosphere turned strangely heavy suddenly, sending a shrill down my spine.
I was about to turn around in reflex, but I stopped myself just in time. I was well aware of the rules. If I looked at him, touched him, or delayed in asking him my question, I'd die and get dragged to hell. Not to forget that calling him when one didn't really have a question to ask was as good as suicide too.
This was why I had thought about my question in advance. In fact, Hatsu had helped me with that. I remembered the cynical face I had made when Hatsu had told me to ask Satoru-kun what I was going to eat for lunch tomorrow. I had to admit that it was simple, though.
'There he is!' exclaimed Hatsu. 'My! He does have the appearance of a young boy, probably of around fifteen.'
I heard Hatsu get ready to shoot.
'It's useless for you to formulate your question. I already know what you're going to ask me,' said Satoru-kun with snide. '"How is Subaru doing"?'
My eyes went wide in stupefaction. Subaru… Why is he talking about her? Yes... It's true that it's a question that's constantly on my mind. How does he know this?
Hatsu had been about to pull the trigger when he froze. I heard it very clearly when he stopped breathing.
'But tell me, do you really wish to know? It's true that you've asked her not to try to get into contact with you, but despite that, her lack of trying hurts you.'
'No. It's false!' I stated, his words affecting more than I would have thought possible.
'You're lying to yourself. Admit it, that deep inside of you, you feel abandoned!'
I shook my head, repeating, 'No. It's not true.' I pressed my eyes shut, trying my best to keep my composure.
He's provoking you to push you to turn around to look at him, in this way, he can drag you down to hell, Shun! I warned myself in my mind.
'You can't help but hold a grudge against her about it! Admit it! ADMIT IT!'
His voice had turned into a snarl and I cried out, 'No!'
At that moment, a gunshot echoed through the park, causing me to go still for one long second before I flung around, and my heart skipped a beat as I found Satoru-kun, still standing upright, despite having been hit at the head!
I stared at the dark-haired boy there, clothed in a school uniform, frantically.
'And shit!' Hatsu cursed, adjusting his riffle for a second shot, panic clear in his voice.
Satoru-kun reached out for me with his hand and as he touched me, I was suddenly transported somewhere else. Into an apartment house. And in that apartment house, I saw a little boy.
I recognized him to be a child Satoru-kun, with the same ruffled short black hair and eyes of the same color.
My heart accelerated in my chest. What's going on? Where am I?
It was like watching somebody's dream. Or rather, somebody's memories.
I realized that Satoru-kun was in fact a ghost! And I was seeing his souvenirs!
In fact, I wasn't only seeing his souvenirs but I could also feel his emotions; all of them.
It was daytime outside and the child Satoru was under the covers in bed. From the living room, a booming male voice rose, growling, 'He's only acting to be sick just so he won't have to go to school and stress me while I'm at work!'
The male voice belonged to Satoru's father and he went on accusing his wife of mothering the child too much.
From his bedroom, Satoru could hear everything and he coiled up in bed, covering his head with the covers, sobbing to himself.
'You have a fragile health. How unfortunate we are as your parents!' the boy's mother would say to him sometimes, while his father would tell him that he's wretched.
And then, I found myself in the living room, with a slightly older Satoru covered in bruises sitting at the low table doing his homework and helplessly watching from the corner of his eyes his father beating his wife in the kitchen.
It was such a pitiful sight that I had to close my eyes temporarily.
Emotional and physical abuses were Satoru's daily life.
In another flashback, I saw a thirteen years old Satoru kneeled in front of his sobbing mother, who has been beaten black and blue by her husband again. The woman was sitting at the table in the kitchen and the boy was begging her, 'Please, okā-san, leave him! Let's run away together! I'll find work! I'll help you!'
She slapped Satoru across of the face, snapping at him, 'He's my husband! I've married him! I love him! So, don't you ever dare to say this again, understood?!'
The woman jerked to her feet then and ran to her room, shutting herself in, while Satoru curled up into a ball on the floor, crying his little heart out.
I felt sick in the pit of my stomach.
In yet another flashback, the boy's mother was sent to the hospital by her husband. Satoru was fifteen at that time. I realized that it was at this precise moment that everything went completely wired.
Having had enough of all those years of abuse and wishing to protect his mother despite everything, Satoru informed the police that his father was responsible of his mother's state.
The latter denied the whole thing.
'You should be ashamed of yourself young man for accusing your father and causing pain to your mother like this! You should learn to respect your parents!' the police officers scolded Satoru.
'Why are you doing this? Don't you understand that I love him?' the boy's sobbing mother muttered at him in her hospital bed, shattering Satoru's heart completely.
I watched as, in desperation, Satoru went to his maternal grand-parents' house to ask them for help, but these refused, only repeating to him what they have always said, 'We had warned Kosaki not to marry that big brute of Taizō. She's only got what she deserves! Now get lost! You're the progeny of that boar of Taizō!'
He was about to leave their house, when his mother's young unmarried brother called Satoru to his room.
'It's alright! I happen to get angry too sometimes like your dad. There's no need to make a mountain out of a mole hill!' the latter said to Satoru, shrugging it off, before he tired to molest the vulnerable teenager.
I was sure that I was going to puke if it didn't stop. But there was more to come.
Satoru managed to escape, running away and screaming frantically. That day, he ended up onto the roof of his high school at sunset and he climbed over the fence to stand over the edge.
'Humans! I curse them all! Every mother's son of them!' he gritted out, tearfully and took a step forward, throwing himself off the roof; committing suicide.
Letting out a choked cry, I staggered backward and fell, as I came back to reality again; horrified by what I had seen of Satoru-kun's human life.
At the same time, another gunshot echoed through the park, the bullet hitting Satoru-kun directly at the head again and his in-animated body hit the floor.
Only a second had passed between the moment Satoru-kun had touched me and the second gunshot.
Adding to my horror, the ground under Satoru-kun began to crack and a hole opened up to swallow him in its flames before it closed up, leaving no trace but a large burn mark on the ground.
My muscles froze into place; I didn't know if I was having an attack of cataplexy or not, but I remained petrified where I was, my breathing erratic.
Hatsu was screaming my name in hysterical panic as he rushed to me in the park with Kōmori-san.
'Shun! Shun, are you alright? I'm really sorry! I don't understand what happened. The first shot should have killed him instantly! You must have been very scared!'
'No. It's not that! I have seen… I have seen...'
Words failed me.
Thank you for reading!
Glossary
Okā-san - mother