The Sea of Trees

Morning at the school campus was dampened by a thin, drizzling rain falling from the sky, soaking the ground into a dark, wet mess. Because of the gloomy weather, even though it was recess, not a single student headed for the sports field; instead, the classrooms were filled with a chaotic bustle. Miketsu sat in her seat, playing a dress-up mobile game. She was carefully accessorizing a cute, well-behaved girl on the screen with fox-ear accessories.

As Miketsu seriously admired the miniskirt miko outfit designed by the game developers, wondering if she should promote a revolution for miko outfits in Inari, a familiar voice rang out behind her.

"Hey, hey... Inaba!"

Hearing this, Miketsu put down her phone and turned her head toward the back. She saw Hayakawa Rin's face leaning slightly forward.

"What is it now?" Miketsu asked her classmate sitting behind her.

Hayakawa Rin answered directly, "...Well, it's nothing big. I just wanted to ask, have you finished reading that magazine by Akiko Shikaku I gave you last time?"

"Oh, the one about urban legends. I've finished it. Why? Did Akiko Shikaku ask for it back?" Miketsu inquired.

Hayakawa Rin shook her head. "No, it's not that she asked for it back. For some reason, Akiko Shikaku is now extremely resistant to anything related to ghosts, yokai, or the supernatural. Even if I personally took the book back to her, she wouldn't want it."

"I see. Then take it back." Hearing Hayakawa Rin's words, Miketsu reached directly into her bag and handed over the magazine, Urban Legend Secrets Revealed, which Hayakawa Rin had lent her.

"Oh! Thanks... By the way, what did you think of the urban legends in there? Were they scary enough?" Taking the magazine, Hayakawa Rin looked at Miketsu.

Miketsu thought for a moment before replying, "...They felt rather average. Basically, there was no level of difficulty. To be honest, I was a bit disappointed."

Hearing Miketsu's words, Hayakawa Rin couldn't help but freeze, then complained inwardly.

'No difficulty? I was asking if they were scary, weren't I? Aren't you answering the wrong question?'

Thinking this, Hayakawa Rin prepared to say more, but she noticed Miketsu had already turned back around, so she kept silent. Seeing this, Hayakawa Rin didn't press further. She spread the returned magazine out on her desk to continue reading. However, as she flipped open the pages, she was startled.

"This is..."

On the pages of the magazine before Hayakawa Rin's eyes, next to every urban legend, there were numerous notes written in pencil. These notes were exceptionally scribbled, but some characters were legible: 'Hmm... Passed A... Passed... Passed... Passed A...'

Looking at the strange notes next to each legend on the page, Hayakawa Rin's brow furrowed slightly. Confused, she asked Miketsu in front of her.

"Um... Inaba... what are these things you wrote on here?"

"Huh? Those? Those are just scores I jotted down. It's nothing special, you can just wipe them off with an eraser..." Miketsu replied without even looking back. Though Hayakawa Rin was still somewhat bewildered, she didn't ask any more questions.

'Scores? Is she tutoring a younger relative or something?' Thinking this, Hayakawa Rin picked up an eraser and began to rub away the pencil marks from the magazine. Finally, her gaze was caught by one particular legend.

While the other legends had letters and characters next to them, this specific one had nothing beside it. Instead, it was circled entirely. Reading the title of that legend, Hayakawa Rin murmured to herself.

At the same time, in front of Hayakawa Rin, Miketsu finally finished dressing up her 2D character. After admiring it with satisfaction, she took a few screenshots and sent them to Tsuruha.

Afterward, Miketsu exited the dress-up game and swiped her phone a few times before clicking an icon of a five-pointed star. After verifying her account password and fingerprint, Miketsu connected to the Onmyo Agency database through her phone. After some navigation, she opened the option labeled "Sealed Lands." She then selected one from the many categories that popped up, and a series of photos and information immediately appeared.

Sealed Land Name: Aokigahara Sea of Trees.

Threat Category: Curses, Possession, Suicide Induction, Flesh Consumption.

True Identity of Threat: Large-scale collection of evil spirits, grouped Changguai.

Losses Incurred: Civilian casualties unquantifiable. Within the past ten years, Onmyo Agency losses: eleven Rank 3, five Rank 2, and one Rank 1. (No living being can approach the source of the curse.)

Threat Level: S+

Current Status: Joint Disposal in Progress.

Somewhere at the foot of Mount Fuji, there was a vast, lush expanse of forest. Tall, flourishing trees were joined together to form an ancient, wide, and distant secret forest. Beneath that infinite canopy lay a deep, sedimentary darkness.

Aokigahara Sea of Trees—a suicide hotspot known nationwide. Countless despondent people had lost their lives within this deep, dark forest. Even after the government banned entry, there was still a steady stream of people flocking here from all over the country to bury their lives beneath the gnarled roots of the ancient trees; their souls were becoming nourishment for the darkness beneath the forest.

The dense canopy blocked the sunlight from the sky; only pinpricks of light managed to spill through the gaps between leaves onto the fallen foliage and soil. Deep, profound shadows diffused between the tall trees wrapped in vines.

Amidst these towering trees, a burly figure walked briskly over the dead branches and leaves. He wore a helmet, and the tactical gear he donned could not hide his robust, powerful physique. A fluffy long tail swayed behind him, and beneath the helmet, sharp and serious eyes were visible on his fox-like face.

"Beep, beep, beep, beep!!"

Suddenly, the rhythm of the reading device in Godake's hand sped up, as if sounding an alarm. Amidst this warning sound, Godake stopped in his tracks and looked at the ever-increasing values on the display.

"It seems this is the limit. Moving any further, the curse intensity will become unbearable..." Looking at the exaggerated numbers on the reader, Godake murmured to himself. He then turned his gaze toward the sky.

"I'll mark the coordinates for now... It's time to scout other areas. I need to move faster..."

As he spoke, Godake took out other instruments to record his coordinates and the current curse value before packing everything away to set off again.

Suddenly, the ground beneath Godake's feet began to soften. His entire body started to be pulled underground by ghostly hands. Facing this scene, Godake showed no panic or desire to dodge. He simply watched as the creatures beneath him grabbed him and tried their best to drag him down.

In an instant, the countless ghost hands beneath Godake were actually unable to drag his body down. They could not budge his iron-like shoulders.

"Hmph... such weak strength..."

With a cold snort, Godake reached out with his other massive hand and grabbed all the ghost hands reaching up for him at once. Then, with a tight grip and a sharp pull, a whole cluster of ugly creatures from underground was yanked out by Godake as if he were pulling radishes.

Raising the bunch of creatures in his hand, Godake's sharp eyes met the panicked gazes of the ghosts. For a moment, they just stared at each other, eye to eye.