In the hotel suite, the quiet air carried a hint of lingering intimacy, mixed with a persistent chill from that cursed left hand.
Natsume's blue eyes held an unprecedented gravity, like stars piercing through time itself. He gazed steadily at Eiko, waiting for her answer.
Under that intense stare, she felt like every secret she had was laid bare. With no more room for hiding, she smiled bitterly and began recounting the nightmare she had buried deep inside, one she never wanted to revisit.
"It happened a year ago."
Her voice sounded distant, as if she were recalling another lifetime.
"I was still in my high school kyudo club back then. I'd just placed well in the national tournament, so my teammates suggested a trip to Izu in Shizuoka to celebrate.
"Izu in summer was beautiful. Sunlight, beaches, the deep blue ocean… it felt like a perfect vacation. We spent the whole day playing around and forgot all about practice. Until the accident."
Eiko's voice started to tremble uncontrollably.
"It was my best friend, Kako, who got into trouble. She was a strong swimmer. That afternoon, she said it was too hot and wanted to go for a quick dip alone. We didn't think much of it and stayed on the beach to rest. But soon after, we heard her scream from the water."
"We rushed to the shore and saw her struggling not far out, like something invisible had wrapped around her legs. Something was dragging her underwater. She yelled in terror, 'Something's pulling me!' But the sea around her was perfectly calm, without a single ripple.
"I didn't hesitate. I was the strongest swimmer in the club, so I dove in and swam to her. When I grabbed her right hand to pull her back, I felt it clearly, an icy, powerful grip from below, fighting me for her."
A lingering fear crossed Eiko's face.
"In the end, I won. I used every bit of strength I had and dragged her back to shore. She wasn't physically hurt, but she kept saying a 'god in the water' tried to take her as a servant.
"We all figured it was just a hallucination from nearly drowning and didn't take it seriously. But after that day, things went wrong."
"Kako's right hand, the one I'd grabbed, started showing those same eerie white threads you see now. She complained of constant pain, like needles stabbing her, and she wasted away in days. We took her to hospital after hospital, but no one could find anything wrong."
"Then, three days after we got back to Tokyo, Kako... she died."
Eiko's voice sank to a whisper, each word heavy with pain and guilt.
"She passed in her sleep. The official cause of death was sudden heart failure. But when her family found her, her entire right arm was covered in those white threads, shriveled like dead wood. The strangest part was that same night, I dreamed of her. In the dream, she looked peaceful, dressed in a pure white fox miko outfit, her face glowing with a sacred, blissful smile. She told me she hadn't died but had truly become the water god's attendant, and it was the highest honor."
"Then she reached out with that withered hand and gently took my left one. She said to me, 'Eiko, the water god says the next one is you.'"
At that point, Eiko couldn't hold back anymore. She buried her face in Natsume's chest, her body shaking violently as muffled sobs filled the room.
He said nothing, just held her close and patted her back gently.
But inside, a storm raged in his mind.
It all made sense now.
The curse started there… which means that's where it ends.
That so-called 'water god' in Izu was undoubtedly a powerful, bizarre curse spirit. It had taken kako as a sacrifice, then used the dream to pass the curse onto Eiko, who had the most direct physical contact with her.