Editing Ghost Hunt:Volume 7 Chapter 5 (section)

===6===

We first went to the second floor where Lin-san and Ayako disappeared.

“The bodies may be in a place where we cannot see, but we do not have a clue about where we should start looking. At this point we can only look for any places that feel strange, or look at whether the planks of the stairs can be dismantled; besides that count the footprints left in the dust, and see if there are any other things left behind.”

We would pay special attention to the classrooms where blood was found when Lin-san disappeared, and where the nasty message of ‘Congratulations, Ayako-san!’ was found. 

Lastly, after prying up each plank of wood to check, we found nothing unusual.

The rain outside the window had started to ease; the weak light passing through the thick clouds was practically useless. Furthermore since we were really about to enter dusk, it’d have been impossible to investigate.

The worry in my heart increased yet another degree. Entering the classroom nearest to me, it was filled with worthless things.

“There isn’t anything at all!”

We crawled on the ground to search for anything that might have dropped on the dust, and to check if there were any suspicious places on the floor boards.

“Ayako – answer me!”

“Annoying! You’re always shouting loudly like this – be a little stronger in this type of situation!”

“—Mai!”

Masako called me, as though to criticize.

“Yeah—if I didn’t say anything then I’d get demoralized.”

Masako only gave an it-can’t-be-helped smile, and didn’t say anything.


I moved a box that was in the way onto a table that was by the side. After that I noticed a few pieces of ceiling board that had very large stains on them, and felt the distance between the boards were abnormally large; and the joints between the boards also had severe dirty grey stains, which looked like they were still expanding; it also felt like it was shaking mildly.

“What is that?”

While everyone lifted their heads to look up, I peeled my eyes and noticed a small flying black object: a black, small object was flying near to the ceiling boards.

– an insect.

Thinking about it brought a wave of nausea.

“—Mai, that is –”

“Stop!”

Masako and I grasped each other.

– How disgusting, it really made me want to vomit.

The ceiling boards of the second floor were all stained. Perhaps the rain from the outside had soaped in; the filth from above soaked up water and dripped down.

But the color of the filth here was completely different; it was so dark that it was almost a burnt brown. And the insects – those insects fully filled the joint between the ceiling boards.

Bou-san climbed onto the tabletop, reached out and gently tapped the ceiling. Suddenly hearing the buzzing of moving wings, I couldn’t help shirking and clamping my hands over my ears. All at once, black insects were flying all around me.

“Good fellow! – this is getting really interesting, -- John, take care of Mai and Masako and go to the corridor; young man (Yasuhara), you too.”

“Yes!”

John shielded us and let us to the corridor. When we walked through the door I couldn’t help lifting my head to look at the ceiling; the ceiling of the corridor and that of the classroom were not too different.

“Naru, do you have a stick or something?”

Naru, who was standing by the side of the table, took a long broomstick and handed it to Bou-san; we grasped each other’s hands tightly and stood at the door.

“Bou-san – don’t.”

My voice was shaking a little.

“That won’t do!”

Saying that, he used the stick to push the corner of the ceiling board gently upwards.

“Normally it should be a large movable wooden board. – This piece?”

The piece of ceiling board next to the blackboard and the windows moved. All at once we saw countless black insects swarming out. Bou-san fanned them away, then stood on the table to push the approximately 4 meter square board. All of a sudden, a gust of wind brought forth a terrible stench.

“—Gross!”

Crap, I really wanted to vomit. I hurriedly covered my face with my handkerchief, but such an object completely could not block that wave of smell. Bou-san had also jumped down from the table due to the stench; he glared at the ceiling with a deep frown.

“It looks like it’s up there—”

Naru merely wrinkled his brow before nodding.

“What should we do, Naru?”

“It looks like we have to confirm it – although I don’t think it will be up there.”

Did he mean Lin-san and Ayako? I suddenly felt a bout of dizziness. A conscious human being, or even an unconscious person – I don’t think one could stay in that stench-filled sort of space.

“As expected, then… then am I the one to go?”

“If you’re scared, I can go instead.”

“Bou-san! Don’t go!”

I called back Bou-san. – This – I knew we needed to confirm it, but—but—

Bou-san moved the table to the corner of the classroom.

“Let’s do it like this: I’ll go take a look!”

“Just a look, OK?!”

“If I were to climb up, the ceiling will collapse!”

Naru took down a piece of glass that was facing the corridor, and placed it slanting by Bou-san’s feet, who was standing on the table and chair, to reflect the weak sunlight from outside above the ceiling.

“As expected, it won’t work unless I use a lighter!”

“I think it’ll be safer not to use that thing, – and it’s better not to breath the air inside there.”

Bou-san’s face turned serious, then he used one hand to support the ceiling board before sticking his head into the ceiling. After a while he quietly withdrew from the ceiling and bent his body.

“Bou-san—?”

After replacing the ceiling board, Bou-san heaved a sigh of relief before sitting down on the floor.

“It doesn’t work – I practically cannot see a thing!”

“What about Ayako and Lin-san?”

Just as I was asking,

Suddenly clattering sounds came from inside the ceiling – the small sound of some things chasing each other. Looking up at the ceiling, shocked, the ceiling board appeared to be shaking.

No! It wasn’t merely shaking: the center of the whole ceiling board was moving violently.

The shaking rapidly spread horizontally, then suddenly a black hole split through the ceiling, and something from inside slid out.

With just a moment’s glance at the object, I immediately cried tragically and shut my eyes tightly!

“—No!”

It was the wet sound of a hard object dropping down.





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