A girl was sitting in a dark room in front of the laptop, talking to someone.
Cult leader: "Meet us tonight in the Aokigahara forest."
Mirra: "Okay…"
But as she spoke, someone was tied up beside her, struggling.
He started screaming through the gag: "Mmm—!"
Mirra glanced at him calmly.
Cult leader:..."What was that?"
Mirra: "It's nothing… just my dog. He's hungry."
The cult leader in red paused for a moment.
Cult leader: "...Fine. See you all tonight."
The call ended.
Mirra looked at the man tied up beside her.
Mirra: "You almost exposed me there, buddy."
She pulled the cloth off his mouth.
Tied man: "You won't get away with this! I promise you—we will find you and kill you! You won't make it out alive! They will burn you! Offer your body to the dead god—where you will suffer for eternity!"
Mirra: "You talk too much."
She shoved the cloth back into his mouth.
Mirra: "Okay… where is it… oh, there it is."
She grabbed the white cloak.
Mirra: "Alright. I'm taking this."
She glanced around the room casually.
Mirra: "And don't worry… there won't be any police."
She struck a match.
Mirra: "I'm burning the house."
She lit the fire and stepped back.
Mirra: "Bye bye…"
She turned away.
Mirra: "See you in hell, sir."
As Mirra stepped outside, she took a deep breath and calmly got into a taxi.
"The taxi ride was silent, with Mirra lost in thought the whole way."
As Mirra arrived at the forest, she reached a small security house where a man dressed in black was waiting.
He stepped forward.
Man in black: "Stop."
He paused, then looked at her more closely.
Man in black: "Oh… you're one of us."
He stepped aside and gestured toward the building.
Man in black: "Go in."
Mirra walked into the forest clearing where three people were already standing.
She stayed back, leaning against a tree, watching silently as more people began to arrive.
Her eyes drifted across the group—until they landed on someone tied to a tree.
She froze.
"…Yamabosi?"
She recognized him instantly.
He went to her school.
Yamabosi was known at her school as one of the trouble students—always disobeying teachers, causing problems, and bullying others.
But Mirra didn't focus on that for long.
Her attention shifted as the atmosphere in the forest changed.
Footsteps.
A presence.
She looked up.
The Cult Leader in red had arrived.
He stopped at the center and looked around at the cloaked figures.
"…Now we will begin."
His voice carried easily through the forest.
"…We are here to give this student up."
"…He has done bad things."
The surrounding figures stayed still.
Watching.
The cult leader turned his head slightly toward the student.
"…You know what happens to children like him, right?"
"…They get punished."
"…Let us give him up."
"…To the god of death."
Then—
They all start Chanting together—
"…They're all saying the same thing," he muttered.
The cult leader stepped forward.
In his hands—
fire.
He knelt near the base of the tree.
Then placed the fire beneath yamabosi.
The fire grow.
Wood crackled.
Heat rose into the air.
"…We bring you death."
"…We bring you life."
The chant from the cloaked figures grew slightly louder.
Mirra watched as Yamabosi's body burned.
The flames rose higher beneath the tree, crackling through the forest as the heat filled the air.
A man in black stepped forward and leaned close to the Cult Leader.
He spoke quietly.
Man in black: "There's an impostor… and they burned Rinka to death."
The Cult Leader didn't react immediately.
He stood still, silent.
"…There is a snake among us
His voice stayed calm.
But the meaning wasn't.
"…Someone that should not be here."
The cloaked figures shifted slightly.
Confused.
The Cult Leader turned to the man in black.
Cult Leader: "Find the impostor."
The man in black began walking through the crowd, inspecting everyone one by one.
He slowly approached Mirra.
Each step made her heart beat faster.
He got closer… closer—
Mirra started to panic.
Then—
A flash went off.
Someone took a picture.
Cult Leader: "…Who did that?"
A figure turned and ran into the forest.
Cult Leader: "Go get him!"
The group scattered in pursuit.
Mirra exhaled sharply, stepping back into the shadows.
Mirra: "That was close… they almost found me."
Mirra joined the search for the person who took the picture. She had seen him clearly.
She quickly slipped behind a tree, staying out of sight.
From her hiding spot, she watched as the figure came closer… then stopped near her position.
He took off his cloak and turned away.
Then he ran.
Mirra stayed perfectly still, watching him disappear into the forest.
But she had seen his face.
She knew exactly what he looked like.
To be continued...