"Mochi, let's begin with a small field test," Haruka slipped into "teacher mode." "Try to sense the flow of Ether before we take another step."
"Understood, Haruka-sensei! I'll get right on it," Mochi replied with a playful smile, desperately trying to ease the tension she felt from her first assignment.
Mochi walked toward the mouth of the tunnel and closed her eyes, recalling the lessons from earlier that day. She took a deep breath, letting the cold mountain air fill her lungs. After a minute of silence, she began to perceive that familiar sensation—the air grew thick, charged with an invisible energy.
Ether flowed from the depths of the tunnel like roots twisting through the ground. But it wasn't just pure energy. Mixed within the flow, she detected bursts of something more: hatred, fear, and a desperation that made her hair stand on end.
"There's something in there…" she murmured, slowly opening her eyes.
"Very good, Mochi. Your perception has improved," Haruka nodded seriously. "There is definitely an Anomaly inside… and it already knows we're here. Get ready. I'll take the lead; stay close and make sure to follow every order I give you without hesitation."
Without wasting a second, Haruka slid her crystal fan from within her left sleeve. Mochi, following her example, slipped her hands into her pockets and pulled out the knuckle dusters. As she put them on, she felt a satisfying metallic click—they fit her hands perfectly. She was eager, ready to test her weapons, to find that thing… and hit it with everything she had.
Once prepared, they stepped into the dark tunnel. Mochi stayed right behind Haruka, almost stepping on her heels; she had seen enough horror movies to know that splitting up in a place like this was a perfect recipe for disaster.
The darkness inside was absolute. Catsith had excellent night vision, so Mochi should have been able to see without any problem, but this darkness was unnatural—no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't see a thing. They had to turn on the flashlights on their phones to find their way. Mochi let out a small sigh as she glanced at her screen; she had been forced to spend her savings on a new phone after losing the previous one during that chase the other night.
Their progress through the tunnel was agonizingly slow. The silence was oppressive. Nothing happened, but that very calmness made Mochi uneasy. She was absolutely certain that someone—or something—was setting a trap for them.
Every few minutes, Haruka would raise a hand to stop.
"Focus, Mochi. What do you feel?" she would whisper, never lowering her guard.
Mochi would close her eyes and concentrate on sensing the flow of Ether around her. The sensation was always the same: they were surrounded. The anomaly seemed to be everywhere at once, yet nowhere could they find it.
As a faint light began to filter in from the far end of the tunnel, the tension reached its peak. Mochi clenched her fists, wondering if the Anomaly was simply waiting for them to lower their guard at the sight of the exit… only to strike a fatal blow from behind.
"Haruka, we're almost out," Mochi said, forcing a smile. "Looks like that Anomaly didn't show up after all… Guess it got scared of me and decided not to face me."
"That's most likely the case," Haruka replied with complete seriousness.
"Huh?" Mochi blinked, confused. "I was just saying that to lighten the mood, Haruka… Do you really think it's afraid of us? I didn't think these things were that cautious or intelligent."
"Anomalies, over time, can become extremely intelligent. Some can even pass as ordinary people. They walk among us, dress like us, and live in our cities without being detected."
Haruka paused for a second before stepping toward the exit, her crystal fan gleaming faintly under the moonlight beginning to appear.
"Then…" Mochi swallowed, glancing back at the darkness behind them. "If it's smart enough to hide from us… does that also mean it's incredibly powerful?"
"Not necessarily," Haruka replied, keeping her eyes fixed on the tunnel's exit. "There are many weak Anomalies that survive precisely because of their cunning. They compensate for their lack of brute strength with deception and patience. As for the one inhabiting this place… I can sense that it's powerful, though not on the level of the cat anomaly that attacked you. Still, it belongs to a particularly troublesome… or rather, annoying type to deal with."
"GYAAAAAAA!"
A piercing scream filled with terror echoed off the concrete walls, cutting Haruka's explanation short.
Mochi jumped. The fright was so sudden that, without thinking, she lunged forward and wrapped her arms tightly around Haruka's waist from behind.
"Mochi, let go of me!" Haruka protested, struggling slightly. "I can't move!"
"S-sorry!" Mochi immediately released her and dropped into a combat stance.
The sound of erratic footsteps and ragged breathing approached rapidly from the tunnel exit.
"Hide your weapon, Mochi. Quickly," Haruka ordered in a low voice. "It's not the Anomaly… they're humans."
With astonishing agility, Haruka made her crystal fan disappear into her sleeve. Mochi clumsily imitated her, slipping the knuckle dusters into the inner pockets of her coat.
Haruka stepped forward, positioning herself protectively in front of Mochi. Moments later, two figures burst out of the darkness. It was a boy with glasses, stumbling over his own feet, and a girl with jet-black hair disheveled from running.
Both were drenched in sweat, their eyes wide with terror, their breathing so heavy it seemed their lungs might burst. They stopped abruptly upon seeing the two girls, gasping desperately.
"It's chasing us! That thing is chasing us!" shrieked the boy with glasses. His lenses were crooked on a face drained of all color.
"We—we have to get out…" the girl stammered.
Her legs, which had kept her standing through sheer adrenaline moments ago, suddenly gave out. She collapsed to her knees beside Mochi, her eyes filling with tears that streamed freely down her cheeks.
"Calm down, listen," Haruka said. "I need you to relax and come with us to the exit. You're safe now, but I need you to tell us exactly where the incident happened. We're going to protect you."
"Protect us?!" the boy shouted, backing away with a crazed look, as if Haruka herself were another threat. "That damn ghost made Daichi explode like a balloon! I don't want to die! I'm not staying one second longer in this cursed place!"
"It's dangerous for you to go on your own. Stay with us. I'm serious—don't go alone."
"No! No! I'm not going to die here!"
Haruka tried to grab him, but the boy let out a scream and bolted. Blinded by fear, he ran deeper into the tunnel—the same way Mochi and Haruka had come from. His frantic footsteps quickly vanished beyond the reach of their flashlight beams.
"Hey! Stop, you idiot!" Haruka shouted.
Before she could decide whether to chase him, the girl who had stayed behind threw herself toward Mochi. She clung tightly to her coat, burying her face in Mochi's shoulder as a broken sob shook her entire body.
"No… please, don't leave me… don't leave me alone…"
Mochi felt the girl's fear. She knew that if they left her now, she would completely break down. She looked at Haruka over the girl's head.
"Go, Haruka!" Mochi exclaimed, returning the hug to try to give the girl some warmth. "He's too shaken—he won't stop until he crashes into something! I'll take care of her and get her out of the tunnel! Don't worry about us!"
Haruka held Mochi's gaze for a few seconds that felt like an eternity. Finally, she nodded with determination.
"Mochi, listen carefully. If something appears, don't try to be a hero. Your priority is to get out. If the Anomaly shows up, run immediately. Understood?"
Without waiting for an answer, Haruka dashed into the depths of the tunnel, following the path the boy had taken, leaving Mochi alone with the girl trembling against her chest.
"Everything will be alright," Mochi whispered, gently squeezing the stranger's shoulder. "We'll get out of here together… I'll guide you."
Mochi pulled back just enough to look her in the eyes and forced a warm smile.
"By the way, my name is Noa," she added softly, "but you can call me Mochi."
She took the girl's hand firmly, and they began walking toward the faint light of the exit.
* * *
The girl introduced herself as Noa, but with a sweet smile she told me I could call her Mochi. She took my hand so naturally, as if she already knew me, and without letting go began guiding me through the tunnel.
Her hand was warm—warmer than I expected. I suppose, after everything I had gone through, I needed a bit of warmth. She gave off a calm, soothing energy. As if her mere presence was enough to push away all the fear I had felt just moments before.
On the way back, I couldn't help but glance at her again and again. Her pink hair swayed gently with each step, soft and light like cotton candy… but not the loud, artificial kind—rather a delicate shade that made you want to touch it. Her ears—small, covered in short fur—moved subtly with every sound, and her tail… it swayed back and forth with a calming rhythm.
Cute. I don't know why, but it was the first thing that crossed my mind.
I realized I hadn't introduced myself yet, so I swallowed and murmured:
"Miyu… Tachibana. My name is Miyu Tachibana."
"Nice to meet you, Miyu," she replied with a gentle smile, without stopping, squeezing my hand a little tighter.
Finally, we exited the tunnel. The cool night air hit me all at once, and I paused for a second to take a deep breath.
And then I saw it—the phone booth. It stood a few meters away, exactly where… everything had happened.
But it was clean. Impossibly clean. Not a single drop of blood. Not a stain. No trace of what had occurred inside. The glass looked spotless, almost gleaming under the faint streetlights.
A chill ran down my spine.
"That's… that's where…" I couldn't finish the sentence. I just tightened my grip on Mochi's hand.
She nodded slowly, understanding without me needing to say anything else.
She took a step toward the booth.
"W-wait…" I whispered, not letting go. I didn't want to get closer. I didn't want to see that place again. But I didn't want to let go of her either. So, silently, I walked beside her, gripping her hand more tightly.
Mochi observed the booth from different angles. Nothing happened. It looked like an ordinary booth again.
After checking it, we decided to move away from it for safety.
We stayed there, standing still, looking toward the tunnel, waiting for the elf girl to return after going to look for Shunji.
Suddenly, a sound startled both of us.
Riiiing… Riiiing…
I slowly turned toward the booth… and what I saw took my breath away. This time, something was different.
There was something inside the booth.
It looked like a human figure… but distorted, blurred. Its body had no defined edges, only fragments of dark mist that trembled and slowly slid along the glass walls. It was like smoke trapped in a shape trying to be human… but failing.
It had no face. Nothing. Just an opaque void within that living fog. And yet, I could feel its gaze. Fixed. Unmoving. As if it were piercing through me from the other side of the glass.
Riiing… Riiing…
The phone kept ringing, right beside that thing.
It didn't move. Not even an inch.
And yet, I felt like it was calling me.