"It all started last year. Counting the number of mysterious holes appearing in the sky, it was manageable at first—once every two weeks. But later, it seemed to become normal, happening every three days on average."
Slurp, slurp~
"It all began with an unidentified void in the sky in June last year. At that time, Shibuya in Tokyo had continuous heavy rain. The void appeared just north of the NHK Broadcasting Center, near Yoyogi Kaikan."
Slurp, slurp~
"Looks like we really should check it out..."
Slurp, slurp~
"Here, take this napkin and wipe your mouth."
"Ah, thanks~"
Fujiwara took the napkin from Rinji and wiped the soup from the corner of her mouth.
After leaving the agency, the two of them went to a nearby ramen shop for lunch.
Of course, only Fujiwara was eating. She was slurping noodles while Rinji sat beside her sorting through the information he had collected.
"Aren't you going to eat, Rinji-kun?"
Fujiwara pointed at the bowl of ramen in front of Rinji.
"If you wait too long, the noodles will get soggy."
"I'll eat in a bit. Let me finish going through this first."
"Hmm… I feel like you've been acting weird since today."
"Hmm?"
"Well, it's just that you've been doing things I didn't expect from you," she said with a smile. "At school, you never seemed interested in anything outside of work—no student council games or events. You always felt a little out of place with us."
"I'm just not interested in the things you guys do."
"But after I found out you were investigating urban legends, I felt like I was seeing a different side of you."
Fujiwara smiled cheerfully.
"Based on what I know about you, I didn't think you'd take this sort of thing so seriously."
"So you're following me around because I did something unexpected?"
"Well, I am interested in urban legends too~"
Fujiwara leaned on the table, her long pink hair falling over her shoulders, her eyes seemingly sparkling.
"I just want to understand you better, Rinji-kun."
"Don't try to understand things you shouldn't."
"But you're part of the student council, you know?" Fujiwara said quietly. "Kaguya used to be cold, the president always forces himself too hard, Ishigami is a bit reclusive, and Miko is too rigid. None of them were ever perfect, but they're all essential parts of the student council. I understand them, and I know they'll overcome their issues eventually. So I never worry about them."
She paused for a moment before continuing.
"But you, Rinji-kun… I worry about you more than anyone. You seem like you've blended into the council, but it feels like you're drifting further and further away from us."
"Sometimes I really admire you, Secretary Fujiwara," Rinji said with a smile. "You always notice things others miss."
He picked up his chopsticks and quickly finished the noodles in his bowl.
After wiping his mouth with a napkin, Rinji spoke.
"I remember I told you before. The reason you feel that way about me is tied to my past. It took me half a year to get used to life in the student council. You don't need to understand me too deeply, and you shouldn't try to probe further. Some things really aren't meant for you to see."
"Eh… why are you so intent on hiding things, Rinji-kun?"
"I'm not hiding anything on purpose. And I advise you not to dig too deeply either. If you one day stumble upon a side of me by accident, that's just your bad luck."
With that, Rinji stood up, went to the register to pay, and left the ramen shop.
Fujiwara followed him.
On the rainy street, she opened her umbrella and looked at him.
"Then, is it okay if I keep investigating with you?"
"If you want to come, I don't mind."
"Oh~"
———————————————————————————————
Yoyogi Kaikan was a very old building.
As they climbed the stairs on the side of the building, the rusted metal creaked under their feet.
It was already deemed a dangerous building, and no one really lived there anymore. It was reportedly scheduled for demolition soon.
Rinji and Fujiwara carefully climbed the rickety stairs to the rooftop.
"…This is the place?"
Standing on the rooftop, Rinji looked up at the sky.
The clouds were still heavy, and rain kept falling.
"This is really strange."
Fujiwara stared at the scene before her in awe.
"What is it?"
"There's a torii gate up here."
Fujiwara pointed ahead. In the corner of the small rooftop stood a red torii gate.
"Normally, torii gates aren't placed on rooftops. And this one is way smaller than the ones you'd find at shrines."
Torii gates are traditional Japanese shrine structures marking the entrance to a sacred space, separating the divine realm from the secular world.
They're meant to remind visitors that they're entering a sacred space, where all actions should be taken seriously.
Usually, torii are found at shrine entrances or in mountains, and they're big enough for crowds to pass through.
But this one wasn't just small—it was oddly placed on a rooftop with no shrine around, and barely wide enough for one person.
Rinji narrowed his eyes at the small torii in front of him.
Actually, small torii aren't unusual in Japan. Shintoism speaks of "eight million gods," which refers not to a literal number, but the idea that everything has a spirit.
So theoretically, even a used tissue could be deified under the right circumstances.
But that wasn't what concerned Rinji.
What concerned him was that this torii was located exactly where the first void appeared.
"So this is where Hina gained the ability to control the weather?"
Thinking that, he began walking toward the torii.
Just then, the clouds overhead began to churn, and flashes of lightning rolled across the sky.
The sudden gust of wind made Fujiwara squint, her eyes stinging. When she opened them again, she saw something bizarre.
"This…"
The rainwater on the rooftop began to float, twisting into the shape of fish that swam through the air.
"Rinji-kun! Look over here!"
"Huh?"
BOOM!!!!!
A bolt of lightning struck down at the exact moment Fujiwara finished speaking, landing squarely on Rinji.