Shinrei Tantei Yakumo – ANOTHER FILES Vol 3 Chapter 1

ANOTHER FILES – THE TOWER OF JUDGEMENT
file 01: the ghost of the clock tower (TRANSLATION NOTES)

That clock tower stood in the centre of the university campus –

The fifteen-metre tall brick tower had a room on the top floor. It was constructed like the lookout of a mediaeval castle.

However, the needles of the clock were stopped pointing at eleven fifty-five.

Though it was said that it had broken in an air raid or had been struck by lightning, few knew the truth.

There was a strange old rumour about this clock tower –

There was a large full-length mirror in the small room at the top of the tower.

It was said that the mirror was a doorway to the underworld and that you could reunite with the dead if you stood in front of that mirror at eleven fifty five –

However, n.o.body had ever confirmed that mirror.

Because those that reunited with the dead were taken away to the underworld –

1

The man silently climbed the stairs –

The stairs within the clock tower.

There was an atrium inside the tower with stairs that circled the walls.

With just the faint light of the torch in his hand, he went up the stairs one step at a time.

The smell of dust and mould a.s.saulted his nose.

After reaching the midway point, the man stopped, feeling like somebody had called out to him.

He turned around and looked down the stairs, but it was dark and he couldn’t see below him. He didn’t plan on going back even if somebody had called him anyway.

– I need to confirm the truth.

That was the man’s strong will.

There was a room at the top of this clock tower. He had heard a rumour that there was a large full-length mirror there which you could meet the dead with if you stood in front of it.

The man wanted to confirm the truth of that rumour.

He knew that most of these rumours were false, but he had still stepped into the clock tower.

The man had somebody he wanted to meet no matter what. That person was somebody no longer in this world. A resident of the underworld.

After some time, he reached the top –

Unlike the stairs, there was a window that let in the light. Though it was night, the moonlight made it possible for him to see fairly well.

A circle had used this room in the past.

They had left behind an a.s.sortment of clutter, of course including things like desks and chairs.

In the front of the room – the wall with the clock – stood the full-length mirror, alone.

The oval mirror, supported by a pedestal, had curling ivy decorating the frame. It appeared fairly old.

The mirror’s surface was dirty with dust, but it let out an unsettling presence which made you think the rumour might be true.

However, there wasn’t anything strange about the mirror itself.

The man checked his wrist.w.a.tch. It would soon be eleven fifty-five.

The man stared at the mirror.

In the gloomy world of the mirror, all he could see was the dreary room and his own face.

– So it was just a rumour, like I thought.

Just as the man gave up and was about to turn around, he thought he saw something move in the mirror.

He turned around with a start.

However, he didn’t see anybody there, of course.

‘Just my imagination…’

The moment he turned towards the mirror again, there was a loud thump and the window on the side opened.

A cold wind blew in.

Dust got in the man’s eyes, so the man covered his face.

He blinked a few times and looked up, and then he noticed that there was a dark silhouette in front of the open window.

It was probably human.

They wore something like a black hood over their head, so he couldn’t see their face.

The man backed away in shock.

'Please… I… was…’

The shadow spoke.

It was a voice so hoa.r.s.e you couldn’t tell if it was a man’s or a woman’s.

'Wha…’

The man was so terrified that he tried to run away, but he stumbled and fell.

He bore with the pain and stood up, but the silhouette came to block his way, along with a foul smell.

The man held his breath and froze.

'Don’t be afraid… I… am your…’

The silhouette spoke.

When he heard the voice up close like this, he could determine its gender, even though it was hoa.r.s.e.

'C-could it be… you’re…’

He could just see lips under the hood. Plump, bewitching lips turned up in a smile.

'I…’

The silhouette confessed the truth in the man’s ears –

Though they were shocking words, they deserved the man’s belief.

'You really are…’

Just as the man spoke, his consciousness slipped away into the dark –

2

Ozawa Haruka was on the south end of campus, heading for the prefabricated building behind Building B.

The autumn sky spread above her, no clouds to be seen.

The wind was chilly. With her short hair, her neck felt cold.

– Should I let it grow out a bit?

She had that on her mind as she reached the building in question.

The prefabricated two-storey building had ten small rooms on each floor and was lent out by the university for circle activities.

Haruka stood in front of the door to the Movie Research Circle at the very end of the first floor.

She wasn’t a member of the Movie Research Circle. The Movie Research Circle didn’t even exist.

The owner of the room, Saitou Yak.u.mo, had tricked the faculty and had made the room his own – he was actually living here.

'Hey.’

Haruka called out as she opened the door.

Yak.u.mo was sitting in the chair in front of the door while reading a book.

His skin was pale. Though he had a handsome profile, his hair was a mess, making him look wild.

Even though he must have noticed that Haruka had come, he didn’t even look up from his book, let alone greet her.

It wasn’t that he was in a bad mood. This was how Yak.u.mo always acted.

Haruka sighed and sat across from Yak.u.mo, but Yak.u.mo still didn’t look away from his book.

'Hey. You could at least greet me,’ grumbled Haruka, at which point Yak.u.mo finally looked up.

His almond eyes looked straight at Haruka.

'Was that a greeting?’

'Eh?’

’“h.e.l.lo” or “How are you?” – I would recognise those as greetings, but all you uttered was “Hey” in a strange voice.’

'Strange voice…’

'Strange voice, as in a voice that is strange.’

'I know that.’

– He says such awful things.

'Then you have no right to complain.’

Yak.u.mo looked back to his book.

Haruka wanted to argue, but there was a reason she couldn’t today.

'Um… There’s something I want to ask you about…’

As Haruka started to speak, Yak.u.mo waved his hand to cut her off.

'I refuse!’

'I haven’t said anything yet…’

'It’s definitely some sort of trouble again,’ Yak.u.mo said brusquely.

'Why do you think it’s trouble?’

'You don’t know?’

'I’m asking because I don’t know.’

'Because you’re a natural-born troublemaker.’

That’s not true – is what Haruka wanted to say, but Yak.u.mo had hit the bullseye.

She had brought Yak.u.mo a lot of trouble up until now. Trouble was the reason she had met Yak.u.mo.

Haruka’s friend, Miki, had been possessed by a ghost, so she had gone to Yak.u.mo, who was knowledgeable about ghosts.

Normally, Yak.u.mo hid it with a black contact lens, but Yak.u.mo’s left eye was dyed a vivid red.

Though Haruka thought there was no need to hide it since it was beautiful, people loathed those who were different from themselves – or so Yak.u.mo always said.

Yak.u.mo’s left eye wasn’t just red. It could see the spirits of the dead – that is, ghosts.

With that unique ability and his unusually bright mind, he hadn’t just expelled the spirit possessing Miki – he had even solved the murder case surrounding the issue.

Ever since then, Haruka had experienced various cases with Yak.u.mo. They weren’t all ones that Haruka had brought to him, but it was true that many of them had been.

There was no helping being called a troublemaker.

Furthermore, she had indeed been planning on talking to Yak.u.mo about some trouble, just as he had expected. And one related to spiritual phenomena at that –

'I know…’ Haruka said with a sigh.

'If you know it yourself, get rid of that trouble already. You probably just stuck your neck in yourself, right?’

Yak.u.mo waved his hand as if brus.h.i.+ng away a fly.

'Even if you tell me that, my friend looked really troubled… I can’t just leave them alone…’

'People call that meddlesome.’

'I know that.’

She understood that even without Yak.u.mo telling her, but she just couldn’t say 'No’ once somebody asked her anything.

Though part of it was just her concern, it was also related to how she had lost her older twin sister when she was younger.

In contrast to her older sister who was kind and could do anything, Haruka had always felt inferior. After her sister died, Haruka’s inferiority complex had evolved in this unexpected way.

n.o.body said this.

But still, she felt like it would have been better if she had died, instead of her sister –

She was afraid of being told that she was unnecessary.

She always stuck her neck in like that, but she couldn’t do anything on her own, so she always ended up relying on Yak.u.mo.

– For some reason, I want to cry.

After a while, Yak.u.mo said with a sigh, 'So what happened?’

'Eh?’

'You probably plan on telling me anyway even though I refused – ’

Yak.u.mo propped up his chin with his hand, looking bored.

Haruka didn’t know what had brought about this series of events, but it looked like Yak.u.mo would listen to her.

Though Yak.u.mo said a lot of things, he was the type of person who couldn’t leave somebody who was troubled alone. That was one of Yak.u.mo’s good points.

'What are you grinning about?’

Haruka hurriedly made herself look more serious.

'Thank you,’ Haruka said honestly, which made Yak.u.mo frown at her look he was looking at something filthy.

'That’s creepy.’

'Creepy…. Don’t you think that’s rude?’

'I said it because I don’t.’

'Ah, of course.’

Haruka had tried to tell Yak.u.mo off, but he didn’t care at all.

Though there were many things that she wanted to say, it would be troublesome if she made Yak.u.mo’s mood darken.

'So?’ urged Yak.u.mo.

'Actually… I don’t know the details either. I wanted you to come with me to listen…’

'So you took on the trouble without even knowing what it was?’

'Sorry…’

She couldn’t rebut that either.

'Honestly,’ said Yak.u.mo with a sigh.

3

Is.h.i.+ Yuutarou sat in his seat while facing some doc.u.ments.

Is.h.i.+’s department, Criminal Affairs Division: Unsolved Cases Special Investigations, was in the detectives’ jurisdiction and investigated unsolved cases.

Though the name was splendid, in reality, they mainly did paperwork that piled up due to change of leaders.h.i.+p or downsizing departments.

Of course, Is.h.i.+ knew that paperwork was also very important, but it was depressing when that was all he was doing.

Though he knew it was imprudent, he still wanted something more exciting.

However, he wanted that to be as safe as possible.

He would rather not face knife-wielding suspects and be possessed by a ghost again, thank you very much.

'Tonkotsu[1], of course!’

The sudden yell made Is.h.i.+ jolt.

He turned his gaze towards Gotou Kazutos.h.i.+, his senior detective, who was snoring away on a row of chairs.

It seemed like he had been talking in his sleep.

The doc.u.ments Is.h.i.+ had asked him to file were still on top of the desk.

Gotou was a man who believed in doing rather than thinking.

Is.h.i.+ had a great deal of admiration for Gotou, who was a man of men. In the future, he wanted to be a reliable and broadminded detective just like him.

However –

Recently, perhaps because they hadn’t had any cases recently, Gotou did come to work, but he was always sleeping.

Since Is.h.i.+ knew that Gotou did not like paperwork, he tried to make up for his usual uselessness here.

That said, the work would never be finished if Gotou didn’t help a little bit.

'Detective Gotou – ’

Is.h.i.+ tried calling out to him, but there was no response.

'Detective Gotou.’

This time, Is.h.i.+ shook Gotou a little.

'I can’t eat any more.’

Gotou shook off Is.h.i.+’s hand while saying something nonsensical, which made Gotou lose his balance and fall from the chairs.

There was an incredibly loud thump.

'Ow…’

Gotou sat up, rubbing his back.

'Are you all right?’ asked Is.h.i.+, but Gotou glared at him with the face of a demon.

'Was it you?’

'Yes?’

'Did you make me fall?’

Gotou walked right up to him.

Gotou already had a frightening face usually – seeing him up close like this doubled the intimidation factor.

Is.h.i.+ let out an 'Eek!’ and backed away.

'Tell me – did you push me?’

'No, I… That wasn’t what happened!’

'What happened then?’

'I didn’t try to push you or anything, Detective Gotou – you just fell…’

'Stop mumbling!’

A fist crashed down on Is.h.i.+’s head. The shock made him see stars.

He wanted to explain, but saying something unnecessary to Gotou just after he woke up would only worsen his mood.

He decided to be happy it had ended with just one fist to the head.

With a sigh, Is.h.i.+ went back to his seat – just as the internal line rang.

He picked up the phone and said, 'Criminal Affairs Division: Unsolved Cases Special Investigations Department,’ but he almost fumbled his words.

He wished that they’d make the name easier or more stylish, like something in a TV show.

He heard Miyagawa Hideki, chief of the detectives, through the phone.

Though he had a small frame, with his fierce face and bald head, he was frightening enough that you might mistake him for a yakuza if you met him in the streets.

However, he wasn’t just frightening – he was a man so compa.s.sionate he wouldn’t lose to Gotou.

'h.e.l.lo, sir.’

Though there was an incredible amount of paperwork that had to be organised, if Miyagawa was going out of his way to call them, it had to be a case of some sort.

'No, we’re fine,’ Is.h.i.+ replied, glancing at Gotou. Gotou rubbed his eyes and lit a cigarette.

– As I thought.

'What is it?’

Is.h.i.+ felt himself growing excited – it had been a while since the last case.

'What happened?’

'Ah…’ replied Is.h.i.+, though h was confused, and Miyagawa quickly gave him the address.

Is.h.i.+ hurriedly wrote it on a memo.

Miyagawa said just that and hung up.

Is.h.i.+ couldn’t explain it, but an unpleasant feeling was growing within Is.h.i.+’s chest.

'Who was that?’ asked Gotou, startling Is.h.i.+ into a jump.

'Ah, er, it was Chief Miyagawa. He told us to investigate this place.’

Gotou friend and clicked his tongue.

'That guy’s definitely just pus.h.i.+ng trouble he doesn’t want to deal with towards us.’

'I wonder about that.’

Gotou and Miyagawa had known each other for a long time and both casually spoke ill of the other, but Is.h.i.+ had nothing he could say from his position.

'Well, we’ve got the free time anyway. Let’s deal with it,’ Gotou said carelessly. He grabbed the jacket hung on the back of his chair and strode out of the room.

Is.h.i.+ hurriedly chased after him.

He fell –

4

Hijikata Makoto sat at a table in the lounge of Meisei University.

It was just past the front entrance of Building A.

It was an atrium with a ceiling that went up three storeys and a large window that let in the light – it felt very open.

When she looked out the window, she could see an old brick clock tower. Even though the sun was so bright, it felt a bit creepy.

The pa.s.sing students were energetic, with an innocent and refres.h.i.+ng air to them.

Watching them made Makoto feel like she had returned to her school days.

Though they hadn’t all been good memories, it was still moving.

'What sort of person are they?’ asked Makoto to Iwata Kunihiro, who sat next to her.

Iwata was a senior from when Makoto was in university. He had soft features and sometimes seemed a bit absentminded, but he was quite a shrewd man.

'Hm… They look like a regular university student, but they can be a bit strange… Well, I think it’d be better for you just to meet them rather than to listen to my explanation,’ Iwata said so quickly it was hard to hear.

'You’re making quite a big thing out of this,’ said Makoto, which made Iwata laugh dryly.

Well, Iwata’s words made sense. If she was going to interview him afterwards, it would be better to listen to him with a blank slate rather than any preconceptions from information she had heard beforehand.

Iwata, who worked a publis.h.i.+ng company, had contacted her a week ago for the first time in a while.

He had asked her to interview an author.

Makoto worked at the culture department of a newspaper company. Though she was in charge of a culture column, she would publish an interview with an author about once a week. Iwata wanted her to put an interview with this author there.

Makoto had thought the work that Iwata sent was rather interesting and decided to interview the author.

The author was a university student – that was one of the points that had caught her interest.

Iwata had arranged things and chosen the interview location, which was why they were in the lounge of Meisei University.

'h.e.l.lo.’

Makoto turned around and saw a young man there.

Because of his small fame and round, childish face, he could have been mistaken for a middle schooler, but his black eyes alone had a strong volition within them.

'Hi, Sakurai-san.’

Iwata stood up with a smile.

It seemed that the young man in front of Makoto was the author Sakurai Itsuki.

'It’s nice to meet you. I’m Hijikata from Hokutou Newspaper.’

Makoto stood up and held out her business card.

'Sorry, I don’t have a business card…’

Itsuki replied in a clear voice that contrasted with his appearance.

'Please don’t be concerned about that. I look forward to our interview today.’

'As do I – ’

With simple greetings finished, they all sat down. Makoto and Iwata sat next to each other with Sakurai opposite them.

'Makocchan, you thought that the person who wrote this was female, didn’t you?’ said Iwata smugly as he tapped Sakurai’s book, The Ghost of the Clock Tower, which was on the table.

'I did,’ Makoto replied honestly, now understanding why Iwata hadn’t wanted to talk about the author.

He had probably wanted to surprise her.

Just as he had planned, she was surprised. The Ghost of the Clock Tower had a female protagonist who used the p.r.o.noun 'watas.h.i.+’[2].

The story was written as the diary of the protagonist, who had accidentally killed someone and was tormented by that guilt, falling apart psychologically.

The story described the woman’s mental state with such expression, so it had to be written by a woman – so Makoto had thought.

It hadn’t helped that the name Sakurai Itsuki could have been that of a man or a woman.

'I thought that he was a woman at first too, so I was shocked when we met,’ Iwata said with an amused smile.

'Yes, you were.’

'And on top of that…’

'Since we’re all here, would it be all right if we started the interview?’ interrupted Makoto before Iwata got started.

Once he began to speak, he never stopped – that was something troublesome about Iwata.

Iwata frowned, looking like he still wanted to talk, but in contrast to that, Sakurai smiled and responded, 'Yes, of course.’

He seemed like a pleasant young man, unlike his writing style.

Makoto got Sakurai’s permission to use a voice recorder, pressed the record b.u.t.ton and began after preparing herself.

'The Ghost of the Clock Tower was very interesting.’

'Thank you very much.’

Sakurai looked rather nervous, perhaps because he was feeling conscious of being recorded.

First, Makoto would need to make him relax.

'I read it all in one go. It was thrilling experiencing the everyday slowly go out of control.’

'I’m glad to hear it.’

'The setting is novel too.’

'Is it?’

'Yes. I’ve never read anything like this before – ’

As Makoto said that, even Sakurai looked a bit embarra.s.sed. His expression was a bit more relaxed now.

Makoto wasn’t just giving him lip service though.

Sakurai’s work, The Ghost of the Clock Tower, really contained a unique world.

The protagonist opened her eyes and realised that she had killed someone the night before – that was where the story began.

It was never explained why the protagonist had killed someone or how she had done it – none of the concrete questions.

Readers were drawn in by how the collapse of her everyday was expressed.

'I feel a bit embarra.s.sed,’ said Sakurai, closing his eyes.

'The descriptions are fantastic as well. Is this your first work?’

After getting Sakurai to go at her pace, Makoto asked him a question.

'No, I’m part of the literature circle.’

'The literature circle? What sort of activities do you do?’

'Normally, we just get excited talking about authors we like, like Akutagawa or Dazai, but we regularly publish something like a fiction magazine.’

'A magazine? That’s rather full-scale.’

'Calling it a magazine would be a bit much. It’s more like a booklet – ’

Makoto thought it was quite something already for the circle to create something that had actual form, when many circles just played around.

'Are your works published there as well, Sakurai-san?’

'Yes…’

'I’d love to read them.’

After Makoto said that, Sakurai shook his head.

'No, they really aren’t anything that I could show anyone.’

'You don’t have to be humble.’

'No, they really are awful.’

'But you’ve written such a wonderful book…’

Makoto looked at The Ghost of the Clock Tower on the table.

'I didn’t write that – ’ said Sakurai, looking troubled.

'Eh?’

Makoto looked at Iwata in shock.

Iwata seemed to already have known that, as his expression was just as cool as before.

'What on earth did you mean by those words?’ asked Makoto, choosing her words carefully.

'Exactly what I said,’ Sakurai said matter-of-factly.

Makoto was even more confused.

'Sakurai-san, you didn’t write this work – is that what you’re saying?’

'Yes, that is what I’m saying.’

– A ghost writer?

Makoto shook away the suspicion that came to her.

Celebrities might use ghost writers, but that was only after they had built up popularity with their own name.

It would be strange if that were the case here.

'Are you saying that this was plagiarised or that there was a ghost writer?’

'Yes,’ said Sakurai with a nod.

This would completely change the direction of the interview.

Makoto looked beside her again. Iwata looked as cool as always. He even looked like he was enjoying the situation.

If what Sakurai said was true and there really was another author, the editor wouldn’t be able to stay calm like this.

'Who wrote it?’ asked Makoto after taking a deep breath to calm down.

Sakurai looked at the clock tower outside the window. The smile left his face.

After a silence, Sakurai said just this.

'A ghost.’

'By ghost, do you mean the spirit of somebody who died?’ repeated Makoto.

Sakurai responded with another nod. 'Yes.’

– Is he one of those?

Makoto understood now, though she lamented it.

Though it was the first she had heard of a ghost writing something, she had often heard things like 'I saw the words in a dream’ or 'I felt like somebody else was in my head when I was writing’.

It was impossible from a normal point of view, and it was never actually like that. It was just that the writer fell in a sort of trance when they started writing.

'A ghost? That’s an interesting feeling,’ said Makoto, but Sakurai shook her head.

'No, it wasn’t just a feeling. A ghost really did write this.’

'But…’

'Look, you can see that clock tower, right?’

Sakurai pointed at the clock tower outside the window.

'Yes.’

'The ghost living in that clock tower made me write that work – ’

Sakurai’s trancelike expression made a chill run down Makoto’s spine.

5

Haruka sat next to Yak.u.mo at a table by the window in the canteen.

It was already past lunchtime, so there were few people and the kitchen was closed.

'Why do I have to come all the way out here?’ grumbled Yak.u.mo as he propped his chin up with his hand, looking bored.

'It’s nice sometimes as a change of pace, isn’t it?’ said Haruka with a shrug.

She had thought about meeting in the Movie Research Circle room, but Yak.u.mo had complained when they had done that during the 'tree of deceit’ case.

In the end, Yak.u.mo complained no matter what she did.

Just as Yak.u.mo was about to complain again, a female student entered the canteen.

She was the person they were waiting for – Koike Kanae.

'Kanae – ’

Haruka raised her hand and Kanae’s expression brightened immediately when she noticed. She ran over.

Though she had beautiful futures, her shoulder-length hair was ink-black and she had little makeup on, so she left a plain impression.

She had a reserved personality as well, so she didn’t stand out much.

However, that was just her being considerate of others. She was a woman with incredibly firm beliefs.

Haruka liked that part of Kanae.

'This is Koike Kanae-san, who is in the same lecture as me. This is Saitou Yak.u.mo-kun – ’

Haruka introduced the two to each other.

'h.e.l.lo,’ said Kanae, but Yak.u.mo gave no response at all.

Kanae looked troubled, so Haruka said, 'This is how he always is,’ urging her to sit down.

Yak.u.mo still looked displeased, chin in his hand.

Perhaps because of his att.i.tude, Kanae was nervous. That said, if Haruka pointed that out, it would only make the mood worse.

'So, we’d like to hear your story in detail,’ said Haruka.

Kanae nodded and started speaking, though she looked concerned about Yak.u.mo.

'Have you heard the rumour about that clock tower?’ Kanae looked outside the window.

From where Haruka was sitting, the other school buildings got in the way so she could only see the very top of the tower.

'Rumour?’

Haruka c.o.c.ked her head.

She had been at this university for almost three years, but she couldn’t remember hearing any rumours about the clock tower.

'Yes. People say there’s a big mirror in the room at the top of the tower, and that it’s connected to the underworld…’

'The underworld?’ asked Haruka, which made Yak.u.mo snort derisively.

'The underworld is believed to be the place where the dead live.’

Yak.u.mo’s explanation brought a memory back to Haruka.

Even in the Izanagi and Izanami legend, the underworld was where the dead Izanami was said to live.

'So it’s connected to the world of the dead?’ asked Haruka, to which Kanae nodded.

'Can you really have something like that?’ said Haruka in her shock, at which point Yak.u.mo’s cold gaze turned her way.

'Are you serious?’

'What?’

'Not even elementary school kids would believe that now.’

It was exactly as Yak.u.mo said, but there had to have been a nicer way of putting it. However, it was pointless to expect that from Yak.u.mo.

That said, after Yak.u.mo said that, Kanae had gone silent and was looking down. They would get nowhere like this.

'Putting aside whether the rumour is true or not, could you tell me the rest?’ urged Haruka.

Kanae nodded and continued, 'There’s more to the rumour surrounding the clock tower – ’

Haruka felt like a shadow covered Kanae’s eyes as she said that.

'More?’

'Yes. If you stand in front of that mirror at eleven fifty five, you can see somebody who’s died once more…. but….’

Kanae dropped her gaze to the table.

'But what?’ asked Haruka, but Kanae said nothing. She just kept looking down.

How much time pa.s.sed? After a long silence, Kanae looked up suddenly.

'You get taken to the underworld too – ’

Kanae’s eyes were strangely bright now, as if something had possessed them.

Haruka glanced at Yak.u.mo.

She was sure that he would be smirking as if to say it were all a joke, but unexpectedly, he was listening carefully as well.

Putting aside whether Kanae’s rumour was true or not, she wouldn’t have come for advice just after hearing a rumour.

'Could it be that you went to that clock tower, Kanae?’ asked Haruka.

Kanae nodded. 'About two weeks ago, I ended up going to check whether the rumour was true…’

Kanae’s voice grew quieter.

'How pointless – you got wrapped up in trouble because you went to a place like that just to amuse yourself.’

Yak.u.mo’s words dripped with disgust.

From Yak.u.mo’s perspective, since he could see the spirits of the dead, going to spiritual spots for fun was unforgiveable.

Kanae looked down, perhaps sensing the unpleasant mood.

At this rate, the conversation would stop. 'So did you go yourself?’ asked Haruka, forcing the conversation to go forward.

'I went with a senior from my circle…’ replied Kanae in a quiet voice.

'And you saw something on top of the clock tower then?’ asked Haruka

Kanae shook her head, still looking down. 'I didn’t see anything. At first, I was too afraid to go inside… but Nis.h.i.+zawa-san, who was with me, went to the very top.’

'Is Nis.h.i.+zawa-san the senior you went with?’

'Yes.’

'And Nis.h.i.+zawa-san saw a ghost there?’

'I was waiting outside the tower when I heard a scream…’

'A scream?’

'Yes. I was afraid, but I thought that something might have happened to Nis.h.i.+zawa-san so I went inside the clock tower. I went up the stairs to the very top room, and then…’

Kanae bit her lip, looking pained. After a silence, she said, 'Nis.h.i.+zawa-san was collapsed there…’

'How was Nis.h.i.+zawa-san?’ asked Haruka as she held her breath.

'It looked like he had just fainted, so I kept asking him if he was OK, but at first there was no response at all. After a while though, he woke up.’

'And that senior said he saw a ghost then?’ asked Haruka.

Kanae nodded. Her lips were trembling slightly. Haruka placed a hand on Kanae’s shoulder.

Kanae had experienced something so frightening two weeks ago, but Haruka hadn’t noticed at all until Kanae had told her. She felt pathetic.

'There’s still more to the story, right?’ asked Yak.u.mo with a yawn, sounding bored.

Kanae looked up slightly.

'What do you mean?’ asked Haruka. Yak.u.mo sighed.

'I mean what I said. If that were the end of the story, we wouldn’t need to be here.’

That was true. Right now, the story was just about a ghost sighting. Though that was frightening, that would also be the end of the story.

'Ever since then, Nis.h.i.+zawa-san has been strange.’ Kanae’s eyes were slightly wet with tears.

'What do you mean by strange?’ asked Haruka.

Kanae bit her lip before continuing. 'No matter what anyone asks him, it’s like he’s somewhere else, and he doesn’t eat at all. Though he’s always been thin, he keeps getting thinner… At this rate, Nis.h.i.+zawa-san might…’

Kanae clutched her hand to her chest, as if to stop her trembling.

According to the rumour whispered about the clock tower, those who reunited with the dead were taken to the underworld themselves – in short, they died.

Kanae was probably worried about that.

'Hey, Yak.u.mo-kun, let’s do something for her,’ said Haruka, which just made Yak.u.mo let out a dramatic sigh –

6

'Man, what a pain,’ grumbled Gotou as he lit his cigarette from the pa.s.senger seat.

In the driver’s seat, Is.h.i.+ just gave a vague 'Mm’ in reply.

'Who just tells somebody to go to a case without explaining anything?’

’S-sorry.’

'And you should’ve asked about the details.’

'Even if you tell me that, I was told to ask at the scene…’

'You were told to? Think for yourself sometimes!’

Gotou hit Is.h.i.+’s head.

'Sorry,’ repeated Is.h.i.+.

Though he had a slender face and wore silver-framed gla.s.ses that made him look intelligent, Is.h.i.+ was incredibly timid.

Even though everything would be fine if he could just be confident and say what was on his mind, he always backed down, too concerned about what others were thinking.

Gotou always felt somewhat irritated when he saw Is.h.i.+ like that. If only Gotou could teach him – but no, Gotou, clumsy himself, just ended up reprimanding him.

Sometimes he thought that it would be better for Is.h.i.+ if he were paired with somebody else.

'This appears to be the place.’

While Gotou was thinking thoughts that were unlike him, they had reached the location. Is.h.i.+ parked the car by the road.

Gotou got off the car and saw that they were at an intersection at the foot of a slope –

If they kept going up, they would reach Meisei University, the school Yak.u.mo and Haruka went to.

He saw two men in suits at the traffic light. One was tall with a firm body and chiselled features – s.h.i.+noda Hisao.

s.h.i.+noda had been with Gotou when he was in investigations. They were about the same age.

Though he looked like a nice middle-aged man on the outside, on the inside he was arrogant, delighted in others failures and sucked up to his boss. Gotou couldn’t get along with men like him.

Gotou had never talked to the other man, but if he remembered correctly, his name was Onodera. He was a pale, small-framed and slender man in his late twenties.

Gotou walked towards them.

'Oh, it’s you, Gotou? Looks like you’re doing well,’ s.h.i.+noda said, noticing Gotou.

It was a sticky and disagreeable voice. He was probably mocking Gotou, who had been thrown into the Unsolved Cases Special Investigations department after causing a number of problems.

However, Gotou didn’t care at all.

'That’s the only good point.’

'I’m glad. I wish I could transfer over – I’m so busy I can’t even sleep.’

s.h.i.+noda’s smile was mocking as well. It looked like he really wanted to make fun of Gotou.

'I’m glad you’re busy, though I heard that your solve rate is rather low… Slacking off?’ said Gotou, which made s.h.i.+noda’s face twitch.

Though the Unsolved Cases department was a plum job, they had solved quite a few cases.

Of course, it wasn’t just Gotou. It was because they had had Yak.u.mo’s cooperation and his power to see the spirits of the dead. It was still true that he had results though.

'It’s because you go over people’s boundaries like that that you get demoted.’

s.h.i.+noda’s tone was much rougher now, probably because Gotou had really got on his nerves.

– What a simple guy.

'It’s no help if you worry about boundaries and just increase the number of unsolved cases.’

'What?’

'What? Wanna go?’

Is.h.i.+ interrupted just before it became a fight.

'Detective Gotou, let’s calm down.’

'Shut up. He’s the one who tried to start a fight.’

'But fighting here will solve nothing.’

'I know that.’

It was just as Is.h.i.+ said though.

They’d get nowhere fighting with a detective whose only skill was his pride. Gotou’s fist had nowhere to go though.

There was no helping it – he dropped it on Is.h.i.+’s head.

'Why me…’ said Is.h.i.+, looking like he might cry at any moment.

Why? Because Gotou was in a bad mood, that was all. Gotou snorted and looked the other way.

'What happened?’ asked Is.h.i.+, bringing up the matter at hand.

s.h.i.+noda had his arms crossed and looked displeased, perhaps still holding the earlier altercation in his mind. He made no move to speak.

Onodera smiled wryly at s.h.i.+noda and then said, 'Rather than explaining, it would be better if you took a look – ’

Onodera pointed at the traffic light.

'What’s that?’ asked Gotou without thinking.

He hadn’t noticed because of his argument with s.h.i.+noda, but the area around the light was on was in a terrible state.

It was dyed red, as if – it had been dyed with blood.

'Eek!’ shrieked Is.h.i.+ as he leapt back.

'Don’t make a fuss!’ Gotou hit Is.h.i.+’s head and bent down to look.

'This blood?’ asked Gotou.

Onodera shook his head. 'Forensics sent a report earlier. It appears to be oil-based paint.’

'I see,’ said Gotou. When this was discovered, people had probably thought it was blood. There was no sign of an accident, so there was a possibility that there was a case somewhere.

But this wasn’t blood – it was just paint. This was just an ill-natured prank then.

And the Unsolved Cases Special Investigation department had been dragged into this.

– Don’t screw with me!

Just as Gotou was about to complain, s.h.i.+noda and Onodera left the scene.

7

Haruka, who had stopped in front of the clock tower, looked up at it towering over her.

It was made of brick. The square tower had a red triangular roof. The clock on top was stopped at eleven fifty-five.

Perhaps it looked more unsettling than usual because of Kanae’s story.

'What are you s.p.a.cing out for?’

Yak.u.mo didn’t seem anxious at all even though they were about to go towards a clock tower rumoured to have ghosts.

However, now that Haruka thought about it, Yak.u.mo saw ghosts every day. This was probably nothing to him.

At the same time, a question came to Haruka.

'Hey, Yak.u.mo-kun, have you ever seen a ghost in the clock tower before?’

If the rumour was true, it wouldn’t be strange if Yak.u.mo had seen a ghost there in the past.

'Never.’

An immediate reply.

'So the ghost thing must be just a rumour?’

'You really are hasty.’

Yak.u.mo shook his head in exasperation.

'Hasty… You’ve never seen a ghost there, so there aren’t any there, right?’

'Sorry, but I’ve never gone up the clock tower.’

The university campus was fairly large. There were many places you would never go if you had no need to. The top of the clock tower wasn’t a place you would just pa.s.s by.

But –

'There’s a window.’

Haruka pointed at the window at the top of the clock tower.

It wouldn’t be strange if you saw somebody’s figure from there.

'I can’t see anything with the window low that,’ said Yak.u.mo, still exasperated.

It was true that the window Haruka had pointed at was cloudy with dirt.

'You’re right…’

Yak.u.mo had already started walking towards the clock tower while Haruka was still talking. Haruka ran after him as if she were being dragged along.

In front of the clock tower, there was a large wooden gate. The double doors had rusty handles.

Yak.u.mo reached towards one of them.

Haruka felt nervous, hands sweaty with the prospect of entering the tower imminent.

'What are you doing?’

Haruka leapt at the sudden voice.

She turned around and saw a uniformed university security guard.

He was probably in his mid-twenties, young for a guard. He had hollow cheeks and was very thin.

'We just thought we’d take a look inside,’ Yak.u.mo said calmly, in contrast to Haruka who was at a loss for words.

'Entry is prohibited because an accident occurred there previously,’ declared the guard in a very businesslike voice.

'An accident?’

'I only came recently so I don’t know the details either, but it seems a female student fell to her death – ’

Haruka felt a jolt upon hearing the guard’s words.

Perhaps the ghost of the tower was the women who had fallen.

'That’s too bad. I just wanted to explore a bit…’ said Yak.u.mo with a smile.

'In any case, the gate is locked, so you can’t go in.’

The guard said just that and turned on his heels to leave.

A woman had fallen to her death here – they had received this new information, but they couldn’t go in if it was locked.

'What are we going to do?’ Haruka asked Yak.u.mo.

'Go in, of course.’

'But it’s locked…’

'Did you forget? Your friend still went inside despite that.’

That was right. Kanae had gone inside the clock tower. But from where?

Before Haruka could ask, Yak.u.mo began to walk around the tower.

Though Haruka didn’t understand, she followed Yak.u.mo anyway.

Haruka hadn’t noticed at a distance, but up close, she could see that the walls of the clock tower had an emergency ladder built in.

'Are you going to climb this?’

Yak.u.mo sighed.

'I wouldn’t do something so troublesome.’

'Then what are you going to do?’

They had reached the back of the tower. There was a small steel door there.

A chain and padlock were at the foot of the door.

Somebody might have forced it open. Kanae had probably gone in this way.

'Let’s go.’

Yak.u.mo said just that and slowly opened the door.

There was the unpleasant sound of rusted metal grating.

'Are you really going to go?’

Yak.u.mo ignored Haruka’s question and went inside.

Haruka hesitantly followed.

She felt the urge to cough immediately.

The air was stagnant. It was like they had stepped into a different world.

She could barely see anything with just the faint light from the door.

'It’s pitch black.’

'I know that without your saying it.’

Yak.u.mo took a pen light out of his pocket and turned it on.

Though it wasn’t much help, it was better than nothing.

Haruka could see stairs in the gloom.

'Be careful,’ said Yak.u.mo, turning around.

Haruka felt happy that Yak.u.mo, who was always so brusque, was being considerate.

'Ah, OK.’

After Haruka replied, Yak.u.mo started climbing the stairs. Haruka followed him.

There were no windows to light the way. Even though it was day, Haruka wouldn’t have been able to see her feet without the pen light.

Step by step, it grew harder to breathe.

'Why did they build a clock tower anyway?’ asked Haruka as she paused for breath.

'To see the time, of course,’ Yak.u.mo replied flatly.

Though Haruka could only see his back, she was sure that his expression was mocking.

'I know that, but you don’t need to go and make a tower, do you?’

'Do you know how many years ago this tower was made?’

Even though Haruka was the one who’d asked a question, a question came right back to her.

'I heard it was when the university was founded…’

'Correct. This university was founded about eighty years ago. Do you understand what I’m saying?’

'No.’

'Eighty years ago, people didn’t have a way to tell the time easily – ’

'Oh!’

Finally, Haruka understood what Yak.u.mo was saying.

Now, everyone had a wrist.w.a.tch or mobile phone to check the time, but that hadn’t been the case in the past.

That was why they needed a tall clock tower that people could see from a distance.

'Without anyone noticing, we’ve stopped looking far away… It’s kind of sad.’

Yak.u.mo stopped in his tracks.

'That’s unusually philosophical for you.’

When Yak.u.mo turned around, his expression was blatantly scornful.

'That’s not what I…’

Haruka felt embarra.s.sed, as if she had said something cheesy, and looked down.

Yak.u.mo went back to climbing the stairs.

'Honestly,’ muttered Haruka with a sigh before she went after Yak.u.mo.

Finally, they reached the end of the stairs and arrived at the room at the top.

There were windows on three of the four walls, so it was fairly bright. When Haruka looked up, she saw a ceiling with naked beams and a hanging light bulb.

There were desks and chairs in the corner of the room with other mysterious clutter.

'It’s a bit of a letdown,’ said Haruka.

Yak.u.mo looked disgruntled.

'Letdown?’

'I mean… I thought it would be more frightening since a ghost was supposed to be here…’

'What is your standard for frightening?’

'Standard? Well, dark and gloomy… anyway, that sort of atmosphere.’

Yak.u.mo glared at her.

'What do you think ghosts are?’

'Dead people…’

'Yes. The spirits of people who’ve died. In short, ghosts aren’t monsters.’

Haruka could understand what Yak.u.mo was displeased by now.

Thinking that ghosts came out in dark and gloomy places was the same as treating them like monsters.

Yak.u.mo, who could see the spirits of the dead, didn’t treat them that way.

Though the living and the dead were different, they were both human – that was what Yak.u.mo thought. Haruka felt ashamed of what she had said, which had been close to prejudice.

'Sorry…’

Though Haruka gave an honest apology, Yak.u.mo didn’t reply. He just looked at the mirror against the wall with no windows.

It was an old mirror, with an ivy decoration entwining the frame.

It was dirty and dusty, so their reflection looked like it was in fog.

'This is the mirror connected to the underworld then,’ said Haruka, which made Yak.u.mo sigh dramatically.

'You still believe that joke?’

'That’s not it. It’s just kind of creepy…’

Though Haruka didn’t believe the door, in an unsettling atmosphere like this, she could understand why a rumour about the underworld would come about.

'In the past, people thought that mirrors didn’t reflect but rather showed another world.’

'Really?’

'That was why they would be put on altars or used in rites. Rumours like this one about a connection to the underworld have been around for millennia.’

'Oh?’

Haruka looked at the mirror again.

It was strange how the mirror looked almost divine after hearing what Yak.u.mo said.

'So could you see anything?’ asked Haruka as she stared at the mirror.

'No, nothing…’

'Then there’s no ghost here?’

'Why do you rush to conclusions?’

'But…’

'I just don’t see any now. It might be different at a different time.’

'That’s true.’

It was just as Yak.u.mo said.

Ghosts didn’t always stay in the same place.

'Furthermore – the ghost may have possessed a student that has been acting strange.’

Haruka felt a chill run down her spine.

If that was the case, they had to hurry or that student would be in trouble, just as Kanae feared.

When Haruka told Yak.u.mo that, he ran a hand through his hair in irritation.

'First, we need to go meet that man – ’

'Right.’

'Bring him to my room.’

After Yak.u.mo said that, he started walking towards the stairs.

Haruka could probably bring the student if she talked to Kanae again, but –

'Yak.u.mo-kun, what are you going to do?’

Yak.u.mo could just go with her to make this less complicated.

'I’m going to investigate from a different angle.’

'Different angle?’

'Yeah. If there really was a ghost here, then perhaps…’

Yak.u.mo turned around and looked at the mirror again.

Though it was just for a moment, Haruka thought that she saw a dark shadow move inside the mirror.

8

'Who on earth did this…’ murmured Is.h.i.+ as he looked at the splattered red paint.

The traffic light covered in red paint looked unsettling, aided perhaps by the sunset.

The cars on the road continued, either unconscious of the paint or ignoring it.

'Some random guy,’ Gotou said carelessly. It looked like he had lost his interest in the case.

He took a cigarette case out of his jacket pocket and took out just one cigarette.

'It’s illegal to smoke on the road,’ said Is.h.i.+.

'I know that,’ Gotou replied with a click of his tongue. He just held the unlit cigarette in his mouth.

'I wonder why they did this.’

Is.h.i.+ looked at the red paint on the traffic light pole.

Though he often heard of people drawing or writing with spray paint, what was the meaning of just splas.h.i.+ng paint like this?

Is.h.i.+ just couldn’t think of a reason.

'Is this…’

Gotou’s mobile phone rang, interrupting Is.h.i.+.

'Who is it?’

Gotou answered the phone without checking the display.

It wasn’t that he was in a bad mood – this was how he always answered the phone.

'What? Shut up! You can’t say anything about other people either!’

From the tone of Gotou’s voice, he was probably talking to Saitou Yak.u.mo.

Even though they argued like that, they still relied on each other. It was strange.

Is.h.i.+’s eyes wandered to the intersection.

There was a woman standing there.

As she was turned away from him, he couldn’t see her face, but she was slender and tall.

She didn’t cross the intersection. She just stood there.

– What is she doing?

While Is.h.i.+ was pondering this, the light turned from green to yellow.

Still, the woman didn’t move. If she didn’t hurry, the light would change.

'It’s dangerous!’ Is.h.i.+ called out.

The woman didn’t move at all, as if she hadn’t heard Is.h.i.+’s voice.

The light turned red.

Soon, the lights for the road in the other direction would turn green.

Though there were no cars waiting there, it wouldn’t be strange if she got hit standing in a place like that.

'Please cross already!’ shouted Is.h.i.+.

Still, the woman didn’t move.

– Why?

Is.h.i.+ anxiously looked left and right.

He saw a large truck coming.

The truck didn’t slow down, as if the driver hadn’t noticed the woman standing there.

– This is bad!

Is.h.i.+ reflexively ran towards the woman.

He tried to grab the woman’s arm and pull her back to the side of the road, but –

Is.h.i.+’s hand went straight through the woman.

'Eh?’

The woman had disappeared.

– What on earth just happened?

Is.h.i.+ heard a horn going off in his confusion.

When he looked up, he saw the truck coming near him.

'Eek!’

Is.h.i.+ ran back. In his rush, he lost his footing and tumbled on the asphalt.

He heard the sound of screeching brakes and tires.

– I’m going to die!

Is.h.i.+ was sure of it.

He didn’t know what happened, but he found himself curled up on the side of the road.

'Idiot! What are you doing!?’ yelled the truck driver, before driving away.

Is.h.i.+ was still in shock as he watched the truck go.

What on earth had just happened? There had definitely been a woman in the intersection, but she had disappeared. Had it been an illusion?

As if to respond to Is.h.i.+’s question, he suddenly felt a warm breath on his ear.

A chill ran down his spine. He turned around.

Standing there –

The woman from earlier.

'Ah…’

Is.h.i.+ was so frightened he couldn’t breathe.

He hadn’t seen it when she was turned around, but –

The woman’s face was half crushed, with an incredible amount of blood pouring out.

Drip, drip, drip –

Dark red blood fell from her chin.

<…>

The woman said something in a thick voice.

It was like a damaged CD, choppy and impossible to make out.

Still, Is.h.i.+ could understand the feeling behind it.

'Aaaahhh!’

Is.h.i.+ covered his ears and shut his eyes as he screamed as loud as he could.

He felt like the woman in front of him would draw him into a deep and growing darkness if he didn’t do that.

Thump –

Suddenly, a dull pain ran through Is.h.i.+’s head.

'Ow!’

He opened his eyes. Gotou was standing right in front of him.

'Eh? Detective Gotou…’

'Don’t just say “Eh”!’

Gotou hit Is.h.i.+’s head again.

'Er, um…’

'What are you doing? You suddenly ran into the middle of the rood. You were about to be run over.’

'No, that’s not it. Just earlier, a woman was…’

'There’s n.o.body there!’

Another fist came down.

Is.h.i.+ hurriedly looked around. Just as Gotou said, there was n.o.body there.

'But I’m sure…’

'Stop babbling nonsense!’ said Gotou with a click of his tongue.

This made no sense. Is.h.i.+ had seen her. Perhaps she had been –

'Let’s get going already.’

Gotou said just that and started walking.

'Going? Where to?’

Is.h.i.+ hurried after Gotou.

'Request from Yak.u.mo.’

'From Yak.u.mo-s.h.i.+?’

If Yak.u.mo was asking, it was probably something to do with spiritual phenomena.

'His usual “Check if anybody died here” thing.’

'That’s fine, but what about this case?’

'After, after – ’

Gotou waved a hand as if brus.h.i.+ng away a fly and walked off.

'But…’ Is.h.i.+ was hesitant and stopped walking, but then the woman from earlier came across his mind.

He definitely didn’t want to stay here alone.

'Please wait!’

Is.h.i.+ hurriedly ran after Gotou.

– He fell.

9

'h.e.l.lo – ’

Makoto visited the Movie Research Circle room.

She had made an appointment beforehand, so the person she was looking for was in his usual seat.

'Come in,’ Yak.u.mo said casually.

Though he had beautiful features, he always looked like he had just woken up. With his distant att.i.tude, it was hard to guess what he was thinking.

Makoto usually came to this room when Haruka or Gotou and Is.h.i.+ were here.

Being here one on one with Yak.u.mo made her feel strangely nervous.

'Sorry for coming so suddenly…’ said Makoto.

She had met Yak.u.mo because of a certain case.

During that case. Makoto had the unusual experience of being possessed by a ghost. She could have died then, but Yak.u.mo had saved her.

Ever since then, she often met up with Yak.u.mo, helping out with cases Yak.u.mo was investigating or discussing spiritual phenomena.

'Please sit down,’ urged Yak.u.mo, so Makoto sat opposite him.

'I wanted to ask your opinion about something.’

'It is a request from none other than you, Makoto-san. If my opinions are acceptable, I will listen to anything you have to ask,’ Yak.u.mo replied politely.

Since he said it so flatly, Makoto couldn’t tell if he meant it or not, but she would just feel awkward if she left without saying anything now.

'Actually,’ Makoto began, 'this just happened earlier, but I was interviewing an author.’

'Is that so?’

'The author is still new with only one book, so you might not recognise the name. Sakurai Itsuki.’

After Makoto said that, Yak.u.mo slowly stood up and moved to the corner of the room to take a book from the top of the refrigerator.

'This is the book in question then – ’

Yak.u.mo placed Sakurai Itsuki’s The Ghost of the Clock Tower on the table.

Things would go quickly if he had already read the book.

'What did you think of the book?’ asked Makoto, which made a difficult expression appear on Yak.u.mo’s face.

'Do my feelings have something to do with the matter?’

Though they weren’t directly related, Makoto wanted to discuss the work’s author today. She wanted to know what Yak.u.mo felt before she gave him any preconceptions.

After Makoto told Yak.u.mo that, Yak.u.mo thought for a moment before saying, 'This is just my opinion, but – it is a very interesting idea. Though it’s rough, the prose is detailed and sucks you in. However…’

'What is it?’

Makoto leant forward slightly.

'Something bothers me.’

What is it?’

'I’m rereading the book because I can’t explain it well,’ said Yak.u.mo with a shake of his head.

To be honest, that was how Makoto felt as well. Something bothered her – she had thought that the interview would explain it, but now she had a new question.

'So what is it about this novel that brought you here?’ asked Yak.u.mo.

She didn’t come to review the book. Makoto opened her mouth once more.

'The author of this book is a university student. A fourth-year in the literature circle.’

'Is that so…’

Yak.u.mo opened the book to the back of the cover with the author profile.

'Are there no rumours on campus?’

'There are very few people now that are interested in books. There wouldn’t be a rumour unless the author went around declaring it.’

'That’s true…’

Just as Yak.u.mo commented, it was a simple fact that nowadays many young people were not interested in books.

Furthermore, though there were many students at university, if y