Editing Ghost Hunt:Volume4 Chapter5 (section)

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In the end all of us followed the two of them to the small shrine.

I jumped in shock.

It was exactly the same as what I had seen in my dream…

The wooden Torii that was going black. The unmoving Inari Kami with flags stuck on it. The small main hall with slopping tiled roof. Only… the thick fog was missing…

Lin-san walked straight up to the Inari Kami. He walked around the small memorial hall investigating something.

Stones were stacked into a pedestal, and a small wooden memorial hall was placed on top. Even the donation box placed in front of the memorial hall was so small it was pathetic.

Lin-san said, after walking around and looking at the memorial hall, “It is not here.”

After that grumble, this time he walked towards the Main Hall. Lin-san studied the floor which was higher than many other temples, and said, “Brown-san.”

He shouted for John.

“I’m sorry, I am unable to crawl in. Please crawl under this floor and take a look.”

To prevent cats and dogs from going under the floor, it was surrounded by a wire mesh. There was a small hole in a dark corner of the front steps. It was a small hole that the nearly 190cm Lin-san could never have crawled into.

John nodded and climbed in. He would definitely get dirt all over him, poor dear.

“Is there anything inside?”

John replied to Lin-san’s words.

“There is a bit of paper.”

“Just a piece will do, please take it out.”

John quickly crawled back out. He coughed a few times gently, and handed the piece of paper to Lin-san.

“This is it.”

Lin-san spread out the paper which had been crumpled into a ball, then said, “As expected.”

Grumbling softly, Lin-san passed the paper to us. The paper was already soiled. It had the symbol in the center, and the fifty sounds.

“…This is!”

“Is this the paper used to play Worikiri-sama?”

The Monk and I nodded. Yasuhara too, firmly said, “There’s no mistake about this. That… this is…”

Why would it be buried in this type of place?

Lin-san’s profile was expressionless.

“If you wish for madness, bury it the crossing of paths…”

“Ai?”

“If you wish to kill, bury it beneath the palace.”

What?!

Lin-san looked straight ahead.

“This is the seal of the curse. If it is buried beneath a shrine, it can become a killing curse.”

… … … …

My ears started to ring.

What was that? Killing curse?

We hurried back to school to look for Naru. We found him when we went back to the Meeting Room. Naru looked like he had had a serious talk with the principal, but that was not the situation or the problem we wanted to discuss. The problem was that piece of paper.

“Curse Seal?”

Lin-san nodded to Naru’s words.

“Yes. If this is buried at a junction it can make someone else go crazy, if it is buried beneath a shrine it can kill someone.”

Naru was deep in thought, his finger knocking repeatedly on the table. Lin-san continued speaking to his profile.

“Somebody… called this curse seal a Kokkuri prop and spread it around… The ignorant students unconsciously became accessories to murder.”

Naru’s low, clear voice: “Is it confirmed?”

“Yes. Fortunately the ones who made and activated the curse are only outsiders. If it were me, this single piece would have been enough to kill a person.”

… … tsk… … 

“If it is like this.”

Naru took the paper from my hands.

“The completely ignorant students, unaware of the consequences, created these curse seals and performed the ritual for a killing curse every day. Incidentally this was used supposedly as a summoning prop; spirits were gathered together… and in the end it became a situation of mutually devouring spirits, it became a Kodoku…”

“Yes, I think it is like this.”

“What will happen when the Kodoku is complete?”

“This person will die.”

Who is it? The target of the killing curse is?

“Matsuyama Hideharu.”

Matsuyama?

“Matsuyama?!” I howled loudly.

It was exactly at that moment. As though in reply to my voice, Matsuyama appeared in the Meeting Room.