Case 15: The Disturbing Mansion [Part Two] (1)

That happened three days ago.

I ran into Takako Takamura in front of the main university gate, and she handed me a piece of paper with those incomprehensible words written on it. “What the hell is this?” I asked her, and she cocked her head in reply, “Who knows?”

Incidentally, this girl named Takako Takamura, who stood with her hair was dancing in the wind and her tall body leaning to one side, was the half-sister of ‘Ayana Takamura’, a Koumei institute student who had mysteriously disappeared several years prior.

A super-extreme denpa(net slang referring to those who repeat occult-like words and actions without regard for their surroundings) who tried to incarnate with malicious intent by spreading taboo words all over the school. To me who knew about her in detail, Takako Takamura who had been called a ‘vessel’ by her half-sister and who bore a life-like resemblance to her despite only sharing half their blood, was a little creepy.

『It was there beside my pillow when I woke up this morning.』

『Huh?』

『I was the one who probably doth write it.』

『Doth write it?』

『And, they were probably the words doth by my sister.』

『Did…your way of speaking become abnormal?』

I asked her that, and in response, Takako Takamura distorted her well-shaped facial features into a grin.

『I’ve recently become addicted to classic literature. In summary, I think my sister is warning you of danger.』

『Danger?』

『I think something bad will happen to you from now on.』

『W…wait a second.』

『You’ll be forced to make the final choice very soon, and on top of that, you’ll be buried alive in the mountains.』

--The final choice? Buried alive?

At the time I thought, are you kidding me? She went ahead and said something creepy again, but I let it slide.

Now that I think of it, Takako Takamura’s words turned out to be completely true.

That’s right, now--- I was in complete darkness, unable to move my arms or legs.

“…………..Ptch……..Hey, are you alive?”

I chocked out the dust I had inhaled and called out, and a familiar voice rang out beyond the darkness.

“….What…is this place? Hell? Kokytos….?”

“Ahhh, you’re alive. Thank goodness. ….Ummm, this isn’t hell, we’re in the mountains. We got buried in a lot of collapsed timber--”

I spoke that far, when an intense pain ran down my right leg.

It was in the area around my right knee. And, ahead of that--- I couldn’t feel anything. I couldn’t even tell if I still had legs given that I couldn’t move my body. Even though my head already understood it, but my right leg was continuing to send signals of throbbing pain, as if to say, “It’s an emergency”. It hurt, and it was dark, I suddenly felt scared and was on the verge of panicking.

However, I took a deep breath and told myself, “Calm down”.

…How long, have we been here since then? In the darkness, I gently turned the watch on my left arm in the direction of my face while trying not to hurt my hand on the broken wood. Similarly, I slowly moved my right arm, and somehow managed to turn on the light of my watch.

Monday, 16 April 2012, 19:17.

…Ah, it’ll be almost a full day soon. Had I been in this condition for almost twenty-four hours? The moment I realized this, I remembered how intensely parched my throat was. A stinging pain stuck to the back of my throat. Water, water….isn’t there water somewhere?

“….I can’t move my body.”

At that moment, I heard her voice beyond the darkness.

“Yeah…my leg is trapped, and I can’t move either.”

“Why did something like this happen?”

“Why? --- You don’t remember anything?”

“I remember… coming here with you.”

“Can you stop being so informal. It’s like we’re married.”

I couldn't help but laugh as we ended up doing the usual back and forth with no regard for the location.

And, laughing calmed my heart down a little. I was able to ask, “You’re not injured, are you?”

“Probably not.”

“That’s good.”

-- I was about to say that my legs were in a bit of bad shape, but I stopped myself. There was no use in saying it, and she might get a little worried.

“Well, there’s nothing to do but wait. I’m sure help will come soon.”

“…When?”

“…How should I know? It’ll be here soon.”

“………..”

“………..”

But, I was at a loss for words when I realized that help would not come anytime soon.

My surroundings fell dead silent.

Without even the cries of mountain birds, it felt as if the world had ended.

“It’s emotionally taxing if it stays like this.”

I spoke, trying to rouse my dark, crushing heart.

“Let’s do something else…right, don’t you have some riddles in mind?”

After a moment's silence, she spoke.

“If it’s interesting stories you want to hear, then.”

“Oh, sure.”

I answered simply, when suddenly, I shuddered.

The things she thought of as ‘interesting’ were a little different than what one would ordinarily think of as interesting.

“….Never mind! It’s fine, don’t tell me. I can’t even run away if I listen to a scary story in this situation.”

I said that, but she had already begun to slowly narrate in a whisper.

“Why did ‘Gandame’ smile, I wonder?”

“Hey, stop it.”

“Being smiled at means you die— the lineage of mountain goddess ghost stories is found all over Japan, but why is smiling linked with death I wonder?”

“I told you! We’re in the middle of the mountain where that ‘Gandame’ is said to appear, so stop it. If a smiling woman with cloudy eyes appears in the darkness, I can’t run away even if I wanted to!”

I retorted sharply, and she fell silent.

My surroundings returned to dark silence once more, and somewhere beyond the dark mountains, I heard a crunching sound.

Was It an animal—or a monster from the mountain?

I didn’t know, but either one was fine, as long as it could me forget the pain in my right leg. As if to shake off the stinging pain, I thought back. Everything that led us here. Everything that led us to this point, to the dark abyss we passed through.

That’s right—that day, Friday the 13th of April.

I was in a hurry.

I had regained recognition of Yoishi Mitsurugi once more, and was told by Krishna-san.

『If you’ve decided to walk together with Yoishi, then go and meet Takita-san.』

I had no idea what was going on, but as soon as I finished my lectures, I ran out of the university. However, I ran into Takako Takamura at the front fate, and was given a strange message or prophecy, but I made light of it and ran off to the station.

It was all to uncover the truth behind the darkness that enveloped the girl known as Yoishi Mitsurugi.