It was a normal Friday, almost a week after Haruto had told everyone about his trip to an unknown dimension. The days that followed had been strange. Haruto played countless pranks. He pretended to drop his pen—or whatever he was holding—and then just sat or stood still. Sometimes, out of nowhere, he’d say, “It’s calling me again.” And then he’d laugh when they panicked, calling his name.

He never denied it. He never admitted it, either. The truth was, he was scared—scared of waking up and finding himself there again. Cold. Dark. Lonely.

And somehow, his friends had noticed. They always walked him home. They never parted ways until he was safely inside his house. They kept their phones on, just in case he felt strange again. They could get to him instantly.

He had always thought he should be the one protecting Risa. Now, he was the one being protected. He remembered how it felt in that altered world. Scared. Alone. Helpless. So now—even if his pride bristled against it—he preferred being watched over to recalling what he had seen when he hallucinated.

“I hate gym class when I’m on my period,” Risa said, casually, to her friends.

It was lunchtime. They sat on the basketball court, the sun glaring off the asphalt.

“Do you really have to say stuff about your period?” Reiji said, eyebrows raised.

“And I thought we cared about transparency,” Risa said, laughing.

“Guys, I kinda want to go home alone today,” Haruto said, fixing his hair. Santo and Riku, in the middle of a game of basketball, froze mid-dribble.

“Why? We like walking you home. Gives us extra time to bond and laugh,” Karu said.

“No, it’s just… my house is out of the way,” he said. “Plus, it’s not safe for Risa to go home late at night. Who knows what might happen?”

“It’s safer this way,” Risa said.

“Please?”

“Okay. But the moment we separate, you’re calling us. No buts,” Kenji said. Haruto smiled.

“Anyway… can we hang out at your house again this weekend? I miss your mom’s cooking,” Risa said, leaning back.

“Fine. You want to hang at my place now because the cursed radio isn’t there anymore?” Haruto said, rolling his eyes, laughing.

》》》》》》》》》》

Kenji had always walked home ever since the day he was almost lost in the woods. Today, he took longer than usual. When they parted ways with Haruto, he pretended he needed to buy something, letting his friends go ahead. Once they were out of sight, he lingered by the path leading to Haruto’s house. He stood there, cigarette in hand, smoke curling into the late afternoon air. When Haruto sent a message to the group chat saying he was home, Kenji finally moved.

From a distance, he saw flashing lights—ambulance, police cars. Near Old Man Saburō’s house. Panic hit him, cold and sudden. He ran toward the commotion. Several hikers were being questioned. They were lost.

Tourists from the city, they said. They’d gone to the top of Mount Yomotsu and followed Shizume Trail. The trail was for beginners. No one was ever reported missing unless they strayed onto a different path.

The hikers said they were headed for Kuwasake Hill Camp, on the far side of the mountain. Somehow, they ended up somewhere unfamiliar. They spoke of an old building not on the map—the same building where Kenji had gotten lost the other day.

“We noticed the map didn’t match our surroundings,” one hiker said. “So we followed our compass. But it led us to that old, burned building.”

“What’s your name? I just need it for the police report,” Officer Shunji Morita asked. Young, fresh from a transfer.

“I’m Naoya Fujimoto. Tourist from Osaka,” he replied.

“Kenji! What are you doing here?” Inspector Tomoya Shibata said, spotting Kenji among the hikers. Shibata had a complicated history with him.

During last summer’s break, Kenji had been caught in a number of riot fights. Shibata was always there when he was detained. But he always made sure Kenji had eaten and had a mattress to sleep on before his parents arrived. He always told Kenji he hoped never to see him in there again.

“I live not far from here, right?” Kenji said, a little smug. “I saw the commotion. Thought something happened to Mr. Saburō.”

“You’re friends with him?”

“He’s—” A cane struck Kenji from behind. He didn’t finish.

“Why are you here? Fetching news to gossip with your friends?” Old Man Saburō demanded, gripping Kenji’s arms.

“You know this kid?” Shibata asked.

“He’s my grandson,” Saburō said.

“Grandson?” The inspector raised an eyebrow, facing Kenji. “I didn’t know you had any other relatives besides your parents.”

“That’s none of your business,” Kenji muttered.

“Now that you’re here, I want to ask a few questions. Have you noticed anything strange lately? Suspicious people, vehicles?”

“None,” Kenji said. “Let’s go home, grandpa.”

“One last question. Old man, did you call to tip us about the lost hikers?” Shibata asked.

“Wasn’t me. I don’t even have a telephone,” Saburō answered.

Kenji helped him back inside. When the door locked, Saburō knocked his fist against Kenji’s head.

“Ow! What was that about?”

“Have you gone mad? What business do you have eavesdropping on their conversation?” Saburō said, struggling into his rocking chair.

“Why lie about me being your grandson?” Kenji asked.

“I don’t know. It was sudden. I didn’t want them to keep you longer. Asking questions as if you hijacked their compasses.” He looked at Kenji. “Now tell me, what were you doing there?”

“I panicked. I thought… I thought something happened to you,” Kenji said, staring at his shoes.

Saburō muttered under his breath. Then he stood and made Kenji something to eat. The house smelled of stew and coffee, warm and heavy.

“Tell your parents to pick you up here on their way home. I’m not letting you walk alone. If they don’t, you’re sleeping here,” Saburō said.

Kenji smiled.

An hour later, his dad pulled up outside Saburō’s house. He apologized for the intrusion and thanked the old man for keeping an eye on Kenji. On the ride home, he asked why Kenji had been there. Kenji said he helped move furniture.

“Haru, are you sleeping? I need you to do something, and I hope it’s done by tomorrow. Good night,” Kenji texted Haruto as soon as he got home.

》》》》》》》》》》

“What’s all of this? You made me search for something right before bedtime. Did you know I spent forever looking for all this information?” Haruto said, handing Kenji a stack of printed sheets inside a white folder.

“Want me to pay you?” Kenji said, flipping through the pages without really reading them. “You actually found more than I asked for. Good job.”

“Money doesn’t solve everything, you know? I had, like, two hours of sleep.”

“And that’s not my fault. You did a full research project in one night, you nerd.”

“Fair enough.”

“Hey, my house later. We need to talk about something,” Kenji said to his friends. They all nodded.

Later at Kenji’s house, Riku was the last to arrive. His mom had asked him to pay the electricity bill. He apologized for being late.

“It’s okay, we haven’t started yet,” Kenji said, pointing at the seat next to Risa. Riku slid in.

“So… what’s all of this?” Risa asked.

“Remember when I told you I was almost lost? The day we had a sleepover without Haru?” Everyone nodded. Haruto rolled his eyes.

“Look at this,” Kenji said, pulling a compass from his pocket. “I always follow my compass home whenever I pass through the woods. My house is north. That day, I followed north. And yet… I ended up in front of an old, burned building instead of my house.”

“So we came here to talk about your almost-disappearing story?” Haruto said, raising an eyebrow.

“No, not entirely. Do you know Mr. Saburō? He lives in that gray stone house on the way here. I always greet him when I pass by on my bike. That day, I didn’t see him. But he said he saw me pass by and called after me,” Kenji said.

“Yesterday, on my way home, there were cops and an ambulance near Mr. Saburō’s house.”

“Oh my… he didn’t die, did he?” Risa gasped.

“No, something else happened. A group of hikers got lost on Shizume Trail. That’s the easiest trail to follow. They said they followed their compass, and it led them near the building—the same building where Mr. Saburō found me,” Kenji explained.

“What was Mr. Saburō doing in the woods?” Reiji asked, frowning.

“He said he followed me when I didn’t respond. He lives near the building,” Kenji answered. He set the folder Haruto had given him on the table.

“That building wasn’t just any old building. I sensed something was wrong when the compass incident happened twice. I made Haruto search for this last night.”

“What exactly are we looking at?” Santo asked, flipping through the papers.

“Aokigahara Institute. It operated from 1995 until it burned in 2008. People in this town had no idea that building even existed. This whole stretch—from where Kenji lives to Old Man Saburō’s house—used to be a vast forest before houses and roads. Perfect hideout for a secret facility,” Haruto added.

“What exactly did this facility make? Was it a factory?” Riku asked.

“That, I couldn’t find. No reports, no leaked documents. But several news articles from 2008 mentioned two missing kids, ages seven and five. Townspeople said a group of men in lab gowns asked if they’d seen the children. People died in that fire. One body was assumed to be the head of the facility: Dr. Aoi Kurosaki. His burnt corpse was found in the control room. A few lab reports were found, but only the top parts with names were legible. The sections containing the topic of the report were destroyed. Just names. Another doctor was listed, but only by a code—A14I,” Haruto said.

“Wait… if compasses go crazy around the lab, could it mean the people who died there are haunting us? Their souls can’t accept their fate,” Karu said, voice tight with unease.

They speculated loudly, voices overlapping, building tension in the cramped room. Risa stayed quiet, seated, absorbing every detail. And then, suddenly, she slammed her fist onto the table.

“IT WAS ME! I BURNED THE BUILDING YEARS AGO!” she screamed.

Everyone froze. Eyes wide. Hearts pounding. The room went silent, except for the echo of her words.