Chapter 53

Translator: Elisia

Editor/Proofreader: TempWane

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Come to think of it, I had done something extremely dangerous.

Of course, it wasn’t likely, but if a criminal happened to be wandering around in the mountains at this time of night, I, passed out on the cliff, could have been kidnapped.

I hate to say this about myself, but I really did have a face pretty enough to make me wonder if I might actually be a heroine. If someone had ill intentions, my appearance would certainly be tempting.

And in fact, someone had already coveted me before. I’m not sure what happened to them now, though.

Well, at least no one like that approached me while I was unconscious.

“……”

When I opened my eyes, I was in some room.

It was a room that seemed vaguely familiar, but upon further thought, I realized it wasn’t a specific room I had seen before. Rather, it looked exactly like an interrogation room from a detective drama or movie, which was why it felt familiar.

I started to lift my body off the steel desk, only to feel something strange, so I looked down.

My body was bound. Specifically, I was wearing a white restraint suit, the kind they put on mental patients at risk of self-harm.

Both my arms were crossed under my chest, with my hands under the opposite elbows, and the long sleeves of the suit were fastened behind my back.

For a moment, I thought it was a rather smart move.

If someone wants to create a wound and spill blood, they don’t necessarily need a cutter. They could bite themselves or scratch with their nails… Someone would probably come in and stop me before too much blood came out, but still, the possibility of success wasn’t zero.

Hmm…

I briefly wondered if, even without blood, Nirlass might pop out and help me in this situation.

But then again, even if it helped, I wasn’t sure it would help in the way I wanted. It always twisted its words when speaking and demanded all sorts of things when it helped me, doing whatever suited itself.

[Kurosawa Kotone.]

A voice echoed in the room.

There was a speaker installed in the corner of the ceiling.

As I had thought earlier, like in a movie or drama’s interrogation room, a large mirror was mounted on the wall. It was likely a one-way mirror—unseen from this side but visible from the other side.

[Have you heard the prophecy?]

“…”

Hearing such a thing right after waking up felt a bit absurd.

“Where’s Yuuki?”

I instinctively asked that question.

She must have been extremely worried about me. Whether they found me before she did or took me after she found me—I wasn’t sure.

Considering that Yuuki’s family was connected to high-ranking people in this country, they might have taken me here institutionally rather than forcibly.

[Answer the question.]

Hmm.

I hesitated for a moment.

Should I tell them about the prophecy I heard, or should I keep my mouth shut?

But then I thought again, and the prophecy wasn’t all that detailed. It only said I would die, so it was something that would happen before my life ended. Even assuming a lifespan of 70 years, I still had more than 50 years left.

If the expiration date was 50 years, the people of this generation wouldn’t even care.

The government might worry, but most high-ranking officials probably wouldn’t. How many of those currently serving as members of parliament would still be alive 50 years from now?

…Was 50 years pushing it too far?

Considering that the original story was a light novel, I doubted it would drag on that long. Though I didn’t read to the end, I believed the story ended before the characters graduated from high school.

So it’s probably something that would happen within the next two years.

I made up my mind quickly.

“If you answer my question first.”

[…]

Would they torture me if I pissed them off?

I wondered how much pain I could endure.

I thought I was pretty good at holding my breath. I could handle heat fairly well too. Sure, I’d probably scream if my body caught fire, though.

It wouldn’t be easy to threaten me by bringing my friends. Even 20 years ago, they couldn’t just harm civilians. Although this world was 20 years behind mine, civilians would be off-limits.

These people must have some inkling about the cult backing Yamashita, right?

And if that was the case, it meant that Kagami’s performance had worked. They must have concluded that, with how Kagami treated me like an outcast, they could afford to kidnap me.

Japan had already experienced turmoil due to cults in the past. In reality, since the opponent was framed as a “religion,” unless they caused a social issue, it was difficult to disband or suppress them openly. But this world is a fantasy, isn’t it?

Even if they were planning a careful extermination, I wouldn’t be surprised.

As no response came from the speaker for a long time, I went ahead and asked.

“What’s today’s date?”

[…It’s July 28.]

Hmm, then I could afford to relax a little.

I relaxed my body and leaned back in the chair.

I looked at the mirror. Was someone on the other side watching me?

“Yuuki?”

I asked again since they hadn’t answered.

[She’s nearby. Waiting for you.]

I nodded.

So Yuuki knew I was here. That was a relief. If we had been separated without seeing each other, she would’ve been worried sick.

Groups like this have an odd way of being persistently unkind, refusing to share crucial information, leaving people reading between the lines in frustration.

[Now, it’s our turn to ask. Tell us about the prophecy.]

“…Three years from today, the leader of a foreign nation visiting this country will be assassinated.”

I answered casually.

I had prepared that response ever since they first asked me about the prophecy.

Of course, I wasn’t planning to tell the truth, so I made sure to sound as natural as possible, careful not to stammer.

[…]

I heard some murmuring on the other side.

It seemed that I had successfully attracted their attention by mentioning a high-ranking official. Did I act well?

I wasn’t too knowledgeable about such things in this world, but could it be that the names of high-ranking officials here coincided with real people?

Considering the atmosphere, I recalled that such figures had appeared in the later parts of the novel. If their names matched those of real people, it might be problematic. Japan had defamation laws, after all.

Anyway.

[Any more details?]

“…I don’t know anything beyond that.”

There was another pause after my words.

[Are you sure?]

“I have nothing to gain by lying.”

Honestly, if they really wanted to hear more, locking me up like this wasn’t the way to go. I was the only one who had this information, so what would they do if I refused to tell them?

There was no response for a while, but it seemed like they accepted that my words weren’t too strange.

A disaster, I think, doesn’t just refer to natural events like earthquakes or typhoons. The prophecy I heard was about my own death, after all.

If my death were to bring about great calamity in this country, that would certainly qualify as a disaster.

Moreover, “think again” could be interpreted in a way similar to “reconsider.”

If it were a natural disaster, there’d be very little humans could do. They might build levees to block waves, but there’s no way to prevent an earthquake. And you can’t stop a real natural disaster by reconsidering.

This disaster would be a man-made one, and with proper preparation, it could be prevented.

I think I came up with a pretty convincing excuse.

And I didn’t even need to say who it was. As long as they kept in mind any foreign heads of state visiting around July 28, three years from now, they could figure it out.

They could choose not to invite that person or conduct thorough investigations to prevent the assassination. That was their job to figure out.

In any case, it was three years from now, so I didn’t have to worry about it for the time being—at least until I graduated from high school.

[…]

It seemed they were either discussing something or momentarily at a loss for words because there was no response for quite a while.

As I sat there, staring blankly at the mirror, I finally heard the sound of the door unlocking.

I turned my head and saw the door handle turning.

And—

“……”

The person who entered was someone I never expected to see here.

“Kurosawa-san.”

The person who spoke as they entered—

“We’ve met once before, haven’t we? Do you remember me?”

“……”

I quietly scrutinized their face again.

I wasn’t mistaken. While the face didn’t stand out with any unique features, the overall atmosphere was unforgettable.

“Miura’s father…”

“Yes. I’m glad you remember. Let me introduce myself again—Miura Masao.”

Speaking to me in a soft voice, Miura-san was dressed neatly in a suit.

“Are you with the police?”

“Not the police…though I could be, if I wanted.”

Miura-san responded ambiguously and approached me, stopping about five steps away, though not my steps—his.

“You have plans with Mako tomorrow, right?”

“Yes.”

“Mako seems pretty excited about it. She’s looking forward to it.”

“……”

“What do you think of Mako?”

His face didn’t reveal any particular expression when he asked. If anything, he was smiling, but it was the kind of smile people show out of politeness rather than joy. Like the one you give when saying, ‘Oh, you’re here to visit my daughter?’

It didn’t scare me.

But it made him seem even more dangerous.

“…I think of her as a friend.”

“I see. Mako thinks the same.”

Although the room was lit, the overall lighting was dim. The light from the hallway cast a long shadow from Miura-san toward me, making him look like the mastermind behind some conspiracy.

In this situation, I was probably the one closest to being a mastermind.

It was frustrating, though, because I hadn’t plotted anything at all.

“So, don’t lie about this. I…we think you’re different from the group behind you.”

He was probably referring to the cult.

And I agreed. We had a very ambiguous cooperative relationship. While I seemed to hold an important position within that group, I didn’t consider myself the same as them.

Of course, Miura-san’s idea of ‘different’ and mine were probably not the same.

“I’d like you to tell me again if what you said is true. If that prophecy brings calamity, we must prevent it.”

I stared at Miura-san’s face.

There wasn’t any visible tension. Was he trying not to make me afraid?

But at the same time, considering he mentioned his daughter, it seemed like he was serious.

…What had happened in the original story?

If Miura had died, what would’ve happened to this man? Would he have gone mad with grief? It was hard to know now.

“What I told you is everything. It wasn’t a long prophecy.”

“…”

Miura-san silently stared at me as if to assess my words.

Then, he nodded.

“I see. Understood.”

He walked toward me.

Moving behind me, he slightly pulled the sleeves connected to my arms and unlocked the restraints.

Looking closely, the restraint mechanism resembled a belt buckle. It was an actual straitjacket, like the kind used in mental hospitals.

…Or maybe it was more like something used on prisoners. Looking around the room again, the latter seemed more fitting.

“How did you get here…?”

I asked Miura-san.

“By helicopter.”

He answered simply.

Ah, I see.

That’s a straightforward way.

…Then again, even searching for the Kudan by helicopter from the start wouldn’t have been easy. In the middle of the forest at night, they wouldn’t have been able to see through the trees, and the Kudan would’ve run away at the sound of the helicopter.

I stood up from my seat.

“Your clothes are outside.”

Were my clothes not soaked in blood?

I tilted my head in confusion and walked out of the room, surprised.

…It just looked like an ordinary building.

I had expected something like a police station or a hospital, but it resembled a typical commercial building you’d find in the streets. The lower floors might have a convenience store or restaurant, and the upper floors would house small offices.

Looking out the corridor window, I saw the street below. People were walking around as usual.

Had I been unconscious for that long? The sun was already high in the sky.

And—

“…Yuuki.”

In the corridor ahead, there was a row of chairs that looked like the kind placed in front of a surgery room. Yuuki was sitting there, asleep.

Had she stayed up all night waiting for me?

Guilt washed over me.

And on Yuuki’s lap were a pair of neatly folded pants and a T-shirt. She seemed to have fallen asleep with her hand resting on top of them.

The sword she usually carried was nowhere to be seen.

“……”

“She’s been waiting here ever since we brought you.”

“What about her grandfather?”

“Yuuki-san has a lot of work to do.”

“……”

I paused for a moment, then asked the last thing I hadn’t forgotten to ask.

“How did the church members get there first? They arrived before us.”

“……”

Miura-san silently stared at me.

Was he worried about a confrontation?

“Sorry, but I can’t tell you that.”

“…Which organization are you part of, Miura-san?”

“Sorry, that’s hard to explain too. Even Mako doesn’t know.”

I suppose that couldn’t be helped.

In this era’s style, it was probably a group referred to simply as ‘the organization,’ ‘the agency,’ or ‘the foundation,’ without a specific name.

At least I could tell they were people who investigated supernatural phenomena in this country.

Miura-san closed and locked the door.

Aside from Miura-san…ah, the other people were probably in the room across from me.

After locking the door, Miura-san silently looked at me.

Was that his way of saying I could leave now that I’d taken care of my business?

……

Were they letting me go, hoping that, if they set me free, I would continue to solve problems and bring back information? After all, Kagami had seen me last time.

“…Yuuki.”

Feeling a bit guilty, I gently shook Yuuki’s shoulder to wake her up.

I thought she wouldn’t wake easily since she seemed deeply asleep, but Yuuki suddenly jumped up in surprise.

“Kotone!?”

It didn’t seem like she had called my name because she saw me, but rather because she had been dreaming about something similar, or because she had been worrying about me right up until she fell asleep.

“Kurosawa!”

Her way of addressing me changed again.

Was she calling me by my name in her head?

Come to think of it, Fukuda already called me by my name. Well, she was the type who would naturally start using names once some time passed after meeting someone.

“Are you okay!?”

She placed her hands on my shoulders.

The clothes she was still holding brushed against my face. Yuuki, realizing this, said, “Ah, sorry,” and awkwardly pulled her hands back.

“I’m fine.”

“She had an emergency blood transfusion, so she should be okay.”

At Miura-san’s words, both Yuuki and I turned to look at him simultaneously.

Was my condition that serious?

…Well, it had always been like this whenever I used my powers.

Yuuki seemed like she wanted to say something but closed her mouth and bowed slightly toward Miura-san. Miura-san returned a small bow to Yuuki.

I did the same. In turn, Miura-san graciously bowed to me as well.

“For now, let’s get changed.”

“There’s an empty room nearby. You can change there. Leave the straitjacket behind.”

“……”

Yuuki glanced back at Miura-san, then took my wrist and gently tugged me along.

As we headed to the next room, Yuuki spoke to me softly.

“…I’m sorry.”

“……”

I’m the one who should be apologizing.

Could Yuuki be feeling guilty for causing me to cut my wrist?

But seeing the clothes Yuuki held, it was clear that I had been the one to receive her help. I had received so much help that I now found it difficult to break free from it.

I shook my head.

“I’m the one who should be sorry.”

“……”

But even after I said that, it didn’t seem like Yuuki’s mood had improved much.

“…Do you want to watch the fireworks together?”

I didn’t know what else to say, so I hesitated before finally speaking. Yuuki smiled faintly at that.

“You have plans with your friends, right?”

“…It’s just one more person.”

“It’s okay. Honestly, it’d feel a bit awkward.”

Really?

She was probably being considerate of me.

“I’m going with my grandfather and father. I was thinking of inviting you, but since you already had plans, I suppose it’s just as well.”

…Had she been planning a surprise?

“We might run into each other nearby, don’t you think?”

“Yeah.”

Seeing Yuuki’s mood lift a little made me feel slightly lighter as well.