A comic book, but a librarian

Uesugi Cheng knew what happened next without thinking, but he still said nothing.

"Well, I think you can probably guess what happened afterwards. That day I had to tell them I was leaving in advance because of something at home. Everyone was fine at that time. They even comforted me and said it was okay. Afterwards, they told me what they had done... and the result was..."

The principal let out a long sigh.

"There are six of us, and I'm the only one sitting here telling you this. I don't know what happened, but if you've looked up information, they disappeared one by one... Before they disappeared, their expressions and tones of voice were clearly not like those of normal people, but I still..."

Whether it was because he lacked the courage or the keen sense, in any case, Murakami Seiichiro witnessed a tragedy. However, because of the upcoming entrance examination, the tragedy was hastily concluded and completely silenced, and no one discussed it anymore.

"I don't know what happened, but fifty years later, today, after I returned to Unification, this tragedy has caught up with me again... Uesugi-san, this is probably my last request. Please help those who don't want to miss the opportunity again and have regretted their whole life."

The old principal held Uesugi Sumika's hands with both hands. It seemed that there were tears in the corners of his eyes. Uesugi Sumika nodded silently and then spoke.

"I will do my best. So, Principal, I need help, whether it's information or some convenience. I need you to help me do something."

When Murakami Seiichiro heard Uesugi Sumire's promise, he seemed to be relieved, as if he had finally waited for hope, and he spoke seriously.

"I will try to help you as long as you need me to, but I have only one request... At least you, or anyone else who helps you, can't have any more victims. Protecting yourselves is your top priority."

Then Uesugi Sumira parted ways with the old principal. He walked towards home, while the old principal sat on a bench, looking at the teaching building, as if recalling something.

The moon finally rose above the sky, and Uesugi Sumiko returned to the apartment carrying his schoolbag. He had originally planned to use the ingredients stored in the refrigerator to temporarily feed his sister and his own stomach. However, he did not expect that his sister would bring her own dinner and prepare his portion for her when she visited.

"I want to talk to you about something in your school." Uesugi Saki said with a serious expression.

Chapter 55: The Forgotten Disappearance

"I know, I know. Don't go near the back mountain, okay?" Uesugi Saki interrupted her sister seemingly casually, but Uesugi Saki didn't seem to intend to stop.

"If that's all, I wouldn't be here... Ah Cheng, the appearance of the Police History Compilation Office only means one thing. This matter is definitely not something that ordinary people can get involved in, so... I want you to go home and stay for a few days, just a few days. I can help you take these days off."

Uesugi Saki didn't know why he was so afraid of this case, but Uesugi Cheng knew that he would never agree to this statement. Not to mention that his fists would unconsciously harden when he returned home and faced the old man's sour face, even if he was asked to escape now and abandon the assistant he had worked so hard to make friends with and train, he could not accept it.

"When?"

"If possible, how about taking a leave starting tomorrow?"

There was a hint of pleading unconsciously in Uesugi Saki's tone, and Uesugi Sumiko could feel that his sister's emotions seemed a little abnormal.

"Sister, have a drink of water first, this matter..."

Uesugi Saki's tone slowed down, and [Quenching and Extinguishing] started to work again. Uesugi Saki's expression became a little confused after a while. Uesugi Saki felt that she seemed to have not had a good sleep in the past few days, so he simply pushed her gently and let her lie on the sofa in the apartment, then took out spare pillows and quilts from his room and let his sister lie comfortably on the bed.

"You should have a good sleep first, and we'll talk about this when we get up tomorrow."

Under the influence of soul-based grief, Uesugi Sumika's words quickly calmed his sister down. He looked at the lock screen of his sister's phone, confirmed that she had set the alarm, then placed the phone on the table next to her and gently closed the curtains.

"There's no way we can keep putting it off until tomorrow. It looks like we need to do something first."

Uesugi Cheng returned to the Silent Bookstore and picked up the bottle of black ink that was on the cabinet in Iliopoli's study. Although it sounds strange, the ink in the bookstore basically has special powers, such as the ink he took from Iliopoli's study.

[Deep Dream Ink]: It will bind to the name written with it. A secondary power ink. (2 Scales 2 Hearts 2 Lamps 1 Winter)

"And then there are... their names. I never thought that I would end up using this ritual that most often appears in ghost stories and horror stories..."

No, what Uesugi Cheng had to do was to perform a ritual similar to the Ouija board to try to summon those students who disappeared fifty years ago. Although this incident caused a sensation at the time, Uesugi Cheng never found out the real names of those missing students in the subsequent investigation. It seemed that in order to protect their final privacy, even the special memorial website used pseudonyms. It was not until this afternoon when the old principal read out each person's name to him during the chat that he finally gathered all the elements of the ritual.

"Ito Ame, Andou Yui, Terui Tatsuya, Shimoda Yuzo, Tazawa Yasushi. If any of you still have a little bit of consciousness, please respond. I don't want to make a wasted trip in the middle of the night."

At this moment, Uesugi Sumire came to the building where the evil spirit had been eliminated. The sign he sprayed with paint was still there intact. It seemed that Feng Hai Jun had not discovered its function. Perhaps he had not even come in to take a look.

Uesugi Sumiko stayed in the hall. The security guard outside seemed to have fallen asleep early. He effortlessly returned to the building which was no longer dangerous. At the moment, he was sitting in the middle of the ceremony, writing on the yellow paper with great sorrow and seriousness. He began to fill in the correct names one by one with special ink. Two incarnations of consciousness stood up independently and began to use the power of their souls to stick some prepared defensive talismans on the surrounding walls.

Finally, the seemingly very eloquent [Bianwen] took control of Uesugi Cheng's body and sat down facing [Sorrow]. The following conversation with the spirit would be dominated by its power. It was the first time that Uesugi Cheng experienced such a wonderful feeling outside the bookstore, dividing himself into several parts with completely different natures, each performing a certain task.

After completing the environment arrangement, the two Mingshi disappeared back into Uesugi Cheng's body almost instantly. After completing all the preparations, grief disappeared like a wisp of smoke.

"Then let's get started."

Uesugi Cheng began to silently recite the name of the first person, and the blood dripping from the cut finger skin fell on the talisman with the name written on it. What he gained in that small town was not only the help of the sisters and the bracelet that symbolized the fate with the mountain god, but also some ancient methods to establish connections with certain things.

To Uesugi Cheng's surprise, he established a connection with the soul named Ito Ame at once. Since books related to the integrated school fifty years ago were placed in the ceremony, he was sure that the guidance of the ceremony would not be wrong.

But then, Ito Ame, who was supposed to descend as a spirit, unexpectedly did not move. If the contact had not been established, Uesugi Sumiya would probably have thought that this unlucky guy had died.

"Hehehe, hello!"

The sound went directly into Uesugi Cheng's ears. He widened his eyes. The talismans around him did not react. Uesugi Cheng frowned, ready to cut off his consciousness at any time.

"Come and play, will you? Come and play, will you? Come and see me, will you?" The voice was like a dream, carrying with it unbearable loneliness, solitude and expectation, and with the power to make the listener unconsciously follow its actions.

"Ito Yu, where is he?"

"Would you like to play? Come find me!" The other party did not respond, and sounded as if he was still expecting his answer. Uesugi Sumiya would naturally not be stupid enough to reply to this question. He silently cut off the connection. The piece of paper with Ito Ame's name on it suddenly burned with white flames. The temperatureless flame seemed to have taken away the name. Uesugi Sumiya remained silent and looked at the remaining pieces of paper.

Unsurprisingly, all the rituals that attempted to connect to the souls of the dead were successful, but the subsequent results all pointed to that mysterious voice. Uesugi Cheng found that the other party was completely unable to sense his specific existence, and seemed to be just looking for a partner in vain and empty over and over again. No matter what questions were asked, he only had a few words trying to play with him.

Chapter 56 Yotsuya Miko has made up her mind

"...Does that count as the mastermind?"

Unable to communicate, it seemed as if he was repeating a lesson, but Uesugi Cheng could feel the disturbing desire beneath the hollow skin, as if a monster in disguise was luring its prey into a trap.

"Whatever it is... the way to contact him directly has been cut off. The next thing is to get everyone's help to do it."

Uesugi Sumiko sighed. If possible, he would try not to let his assistants participate in such dangerous things. His damaged soul could be repaired in the bookstore, but if he died, there would be nothing left. But now Uesugi Sumiko knew that his own strength was not enough if he wanted to find the book mentioned by the old principal Murakami Seiichiro.

"Then it's time to go back." Uesugi Cheng lit up all the talisman papers around him, and after they were burned out, the remaining ashes fell to the ground. There was clearly a fire on the second floor of the building, but people outside the building seemed to be unaware of it.

"Ah, what will happen late at night... It seems that Tokyo is not much better than that remote town." Uesugi Cheng's eyes seemed to be burning with flames. The terrifying aura made many spirits hiding in the dark tremble, and they wanted to get away from this area immediately, but there was still a strange spirit moving within Uesugi Cheng's perception.

"Come with us! Come with us!!" Countless chaotic voices rang out. Uesugi Cheng opened his eyes and saw an extremely twisted thing swaggering on the street at night.

Those were puppets made up of countless black hair tangled together, some of them looked exquisite and some looked crudely made, but they were all tied up by hair that extended from nowhere to form a huge slime-like monster. Countless puppet arms stretched out from the slime, and a nauseating smell was emitted along with the spreading black hair. But surprisingly, in addition to the big monster, Uesugi Cheng also saw a person.

"Huh...ha...what on earth is this..."

The embarrassed Feng Haichun was also running away, and the huge puppet monster behind him was slowly closing the distance between them, as if it was leisurely teasing its prey.

Uesugi Sumiya would not sit idly by and watch Jun'ya Kazeumi die, because if this unlucky policeman died here, then as someone who had contact with Jun'ya Kazeumi, he would definitely be subject to several rounds of investigation by the police. It would not be difficult to clear the suspicion, but this would undoubtedly waste a lot of time and might even make him miss the best time period to resolve the incident.

Tug's purification technique was attached to the sharp knife he carried with him. Uesugi Cheng was waiting for Feng Hai Junye's arrival at the corner. Feng Hai Junye, who was running away and even looked a little panicked, had never expected that there would be someone hiding in the shadows waiting for him at the corner. He was knocked to the ground by a punch in the face. Feeling that everything was over, he tried to look at the attacker's face, but before his vision became clear, his consciousness fell into darkness.

Uesugi Cheng waved his hands. He controlled the strength of that punch just right. Even if Feng Haijun woke up the next day, he would at most think that he had hit a telephone pole. After all, there happened to be a ready-made telephone pole next to where he fell.

"Come with us, you feel so lonely, so lonely, so lonely!!!" The huge puppet monster hesitated because of the deterrent effect brought by the purification technique. Uesugi Cheng smiled, held the knife tightly and walked over.

The next day, Uesugi Saki woke up from a peaceful sleep. She didn't know how long it had been, but she didn't hear the alarm clock and slept until she woke up naturally.

Uesugi Saki rubbed her eyes, picked up her cell phone and took a look, then instinctively stretched, and then subconsciously planned to take off her pajamas and get up to rush to work. When she touched her clothes, she suddenly woke up.

"Asumi?!!" Uesugi Saki shouted out without any manner, and climbed up from the bed that was made into a makeshift sofa. She looked around in panic.

"It's 6:15 in the morning now. Even the students who live in the dormitory of Unified High School are still sleeping... So you got up so early because you wanted to wake me up..."

Before Uesugi Cheng could finish his words, Uesugi Saki hugged him tightly and patted his back continuously.

"As long as it's okay, it'll be okay..."

"Are you having a nightmare?" Uesugi Saki sighed and just let his sister hug him. The mental pressure on Uesugi Saki was much greater than he imagined. Perhaps it was because of this constant pressure on herself that she was able to perform beyond her normal level and integrate into the procuratorate so quickly and become its 'rising star'.

"Well... I had a terrible nightmare. I dreamed of the Uesugi family without you and my brother..."

A few tears flowed from the corners of Uesugi Saki's eyes. She leaned on Uesugi Sumiya in a disheveled manner, not noticing that the clothes on Uesugi Sumiya did not seem to be pajamas.

"It's okay, it's okay... Go back and lie down for a while, I'll wake you up for breakfast later."

Under Uesugi Saki's almost sleep-inducing soothing words, Uesugi Saki closed her eyes again and collapsed in his arms.

After putting his sister back on the sofa and covering her with a blanket, Uesugi Cheng moved his shoulders. Last night's battle made him a little tired, and coupled with the lack of sleep, he looked a little sleepy now.

After leaving a note and breakfast for his sister, Uesugi Cheng took his schoolbag and left the apartment first. He could not agree to his sister's request for leave, nor did he need her to continue to coax him, so he simply decided not to chat with her.

"Good morning, Uesugi-san!"

Unexpectedly, Uesugi Sumiko met Yotsuya Miko. She was still holding the notebook in her hand. Her golden eyes were filled with inexplicable emotions. The moment she saw Uesugi Sumiko, she waved to him happily and then trotted over.

"Where is your good friend, Yurikawa Hana?" Uesugi Sumire was a little curious why Yurikawa Hana, who was usually inseparable from Yotsuya Miko, was not with her at the moment.

"Ahua seemed to have overslept today. She didn't respond when I called her, so I came first."

Yotsuya Miko held her notebook and spoke very seriously.

"Acheng, if possible... can you teach me more about spiritualism? It's the knowledge called [Silent Technique] that you mentioned. I... I don't want to just watch things happen and be powerless to do anything."

Yotsuya Miko bowed deeply to Uesugi Sumire while holding her notebook. In his eyes, Yotsuya Miko's personality seemed to have changed again.

[Assistant-Yotani Miko]: She has made up her mind. (3 lights 2 winter)

"If that's the case, of course it's no problem, but what I need to do first is... Jianzi, can you help me find something?"

Yotsuya Miko nodded without hesitation.

Chapter 57 Library investigation is an essential part of solving the incident

"Last time it was newspapers, this time it's all folklore books...After this is over, I feel like I can take your place as the librarian."

Hikigaya Hachiman put the book in his hand on the table. Today, all the police suddenly withdrew. It was said that they defined this incident as "missing". The parents of the missing were naturally dissatisfied with the police's indifference, especially since the father of one of the missing girls was a senior official of the Education Bureau. But no matter what, at least today, the unified junior high school is still on holiday, while their high school still has to go to class.

"By the way, Hikigaya, is it really okay for you to come here during physical education class? Don't Yukinoshita Yukino and Totsuka Ayaka need your help?" Uesugi Sumire shifted his gaze from the book to Hikigaya. The old principal did not give up on his pursuit of the truth over the years. He collected a large number of papers and books on folk customs and supernatural phenomena and placed them in the library. It was today that the old principal told Uesugi Sumire the location of these books as if he was passing on his own treasures, so he appeared here with his friends after disappearing from physical education class.

"It doesn't matter. If we don't solve this problem now, don't even think about physical education class. I couldn't concentrate on class and I almost got punished by Jing... They may not feel anything, but I do have a younger sister who is studying in junior high school. God knows if she will be the next target of seduction..."

Yotsuya Miko nodded in empathy. The gods and monsters in this world will not let you go just because of your ignorance. Rather, ignorance will only make it easier for you to fall into their traps.

"Among these legends... there are quite a few cases of disappearances, but I think most of them are just excuses made by the police because they are incompetent and simply don't want to investigate. Uesugi-san, you said you would try to look up folklore and supernatural materials around Tokyo... I will leave this preliminary classification to you now."

The students who were taking physical education class outside the library seemed to have forgotten the uneasy atmosphere of yesterday and were exercising happily, but inside the library, there was a feeling of busy work. Kawasaki Saki handed a stack of books and printing paper to Uesugi Cheng. The thickness of the books was a bit dizzying, but everyone in the library had no objection to reading the materials carefully, because perhaps the way to redeem this incident was in them.

【? ? ? Event】: Fifty years ago, a missing case that shocked Tokyo had no follow-up progress, and now this missing case, whose full details are unknown, has happened again, but this time, your choice will affect the outcome. (Unlock the event name after obtaining enough information)

"Hikigaya-san, although it is a good thing that you love studying, I don't think the teacher would allow you to skip classes, right? Or is there some special book hidden in this library that you love so much?"

A slightly cold voice sounded, but no one present looked up, except for Hikigaya who stood up and spoke helplessly.

"Yukinoshita, I'm busy right now. Really busy. This time we're dealing with serious matters. Can we talk about the Service Club and Ayaka's training next time when we're free?"

Hikigaya's attitude of refusing to communicate made Yukinoshita Yukino frown. She vaguely felt the depressing atmosphere in the library. She came here because of Hikigaya's absence from the physical education class, but what she didn't expect was that the number of people skipping classes seemed to be more than she thought.

"As the club leader, I have the responsibility to care about the lives of my members, especially people like you, Hikigaya-kun, who could go down the wrong path at any time, so can you tell me what happened?"

"Let me ask you, do you believe that there are ghosts in this world?" Hikigaya felt a sense of fatigue rising in his heart. He even thought about getting beaten up by Hiratsuka Shizuka and quitting the Service Club, but he dispelled the idea before it even took shape. Instead, he asked Yukinoshita a question.

"Based on my personal experience, this kind of topic is mostly said by people who want to attract attention or seek comfort for doing something wrong. Hikigaya-kun, are you......"

Before he could finish his words, Hikigaya simply waved his hands, no longer bothered to listen to Yukinoshita's somewhat sharp comments about him.

"Then there's nothing more to say. Please go back, Yukinoshita-san. If the teacher asks me about this, just tell the truth. I will go and explain to the teacher."

These words, which were faintly filled with impatience and alienation, stunned Yukinoshita Yukino. She did not expect Hikigaya to show such a side of her, and a look of worry appeared on her face.

"What happened...was it the missing person case from yesterday? But that's clearly the job of the police, isn't it?"

"I'm sorry, nosy Yukinoshita-san, the police have already defined this incident as a disappearance... So since you don't believe in ghosts and gods, staying here will not only waste your time, but also ours..."

Saki Kawasaki added something that silenced Yukinoshita Yukino. She looked at these people who were concentrating on browsing the information, and then she saw the piles of books on the table. She obviously had many questions, but in the end she could only ask one question.

"In the end what happened?"

"In short...the disappearance of those two people is likely related to supernatural phenomena. Since you don't believe it, we can't force you to change your opinion, so I hope we can both take a step back and not bother each other."

Uesugi Cheng spoke. He had seen some information that might be related and planned to share it with a few partners, so before that he had to let Yukinoshita leave first to avoid any complications.

"If there is evidence that this kind of thing really exists, I am willing to believe you."

Looking at those people who were acting so serious, Yukinoshita thought for a moment and said this.

"Unfortunately, these things are only speculations at present. We cannot provide you with the evidence you need. Please take a look at this article..."

Several people's eyes fell on the printed paper in Uesugi Sumiya's hand. It was an article about the folk legend of Musashino City next to Tokyo.

"Investigation Report on Missing Persons in the Onori River. Almost all the missing persons disappeared while trying to swim upstream. What does this have to do with this incident?"

Hikigaya frowned as he read every word carefully, trying to find what Uesugi Cheng wanted them to understand.

"In these folk tales...the missing are described as having gone to a world that symbolizes spirits and death..."

What was originally just a conventional plot in folklore and mythology seemed to be covered with a mysterious and strange veil in the eyes of several people at this moment. If this world really existed...

Chapter 58: The disappearance of the next generation priest