Part 27: Chapter 4, Part 4

Background Sound: Rain



Sure is...cold... Where the hell did Ms. Yui and Kishinuma go, anyway?!



Maybe I...should try going back...to room 1-A...



...

Ayumi turns around and heads into the main building.

Background Sound: None

Sound Effect: Laughter



Stop it! Just stop it already!



Huh?!

Sound Effect: Tone



A ghost suddenly appears in front of Ayumi, but it turns around and leaves immediately.



...That was...the girl who wasn't involved in Suzumoto's death... She seemed different from the others...lonelier...but why?



And now we're in control of Ayumi. We start by checking out that body and the nearby note.



Seiko Tanaka Age: 13
Aizome Junior High School, Class I-2

Possessed while passing to second wing; suffered mental collapse.



If you're alive now, trust that you'll still be alive then. If I recall, it's Tachibana's turn for day duty tomorrow... I want to go back to class. I hate the idea that I might not be able to ever again. I swear I'll take my schoolwork more seriously from now on.



Best head back to 1-A before going any farther. Just to check in.

We can't access the second wing, so we follow Ayumi's plan and head for 1-A.

Music: Chapter 4's Theme



Along the way, we pass this ghost.



Never give up.

I like to think this is the ghost of some turbo nerd who thinks of everything in video game terms.



I've got no attention span, so I immediately stop caring about going to 1-A and start exploring the first floor. It's more or less the same as it was in chapter 2 (we're in the same closed space, after all.) but there are new corpses lying around.



Yuma Misaki Age: 17
Misato Municipal Brotherhood High, Class 2-4

Neck slit from behind.



Well, Yuma, guess this is as far as you go. Exhaustion has set in, so it looks like it's the end of the road. My classmate Tomoe Mizuki climbed the fence around the outdoor walkway and slipped into the woods outside the school. It's been three days now, and she still hasn't come back.

All the while, I've been stuck here getting chased around by the ghost of a girl with nothing above her jawline. And I've not only twisted my ankle, but also got glass cuts all over my wrists, so I'm in no condition to keep running. I keep hearing this snip, snip, snip sound of scissors, everywhere I go. I can't tell if it's real, or if it's just a ringing in my ears.

I wish I'd just die already -- get it over with, so I can finally rest. Maybe I can have my head cut off at the jaw like that li



After reading that note, a name tag is added to our list.

Tomoe Mizuki Death Unconfirmed
Misato Municipal Brotherhood High, Class 2-4

Last seen entering woods outside school building; whereabouts unknown.



We continue north and meet another ghost.



Even in death...it still hurts... Now...and always...



There's nothing notable to the east or west, just the sealed door that's always off to the west and the locked custodian's closet to the east. We head back south, toward 1-A. Along the way, we see a note on the wall.



We'll be anxiously awaiting your death. And once everyone's dead, that's when we'll all be able to meet again.

And then, the conquest begins!



We continue west from the note and find another body.



Yohsuke Maebana Age: 15
Hakuro #3 Junior High School, Class III-5

Starved to death while searching for friends.



There's nothing else of interest on the first floor, so we head upstairs.



Wasn't this full of yellow fluid the last time Ayumi and Yoshiki had access to it?

Well, I'm sure it's not important. We head into the classroom.



There isn't much on the south end of the room, aside from a note:

There's a crumpled-up note on the floor.

There's one thing I've learned from all of this: The children are victims too. They're not at fault here. they're not the ones we should hate. Their murderer is the one who created this cycle of resentment and cruelty. Their murderer is our true enemy.



After reading the note, we loop around to the north side of the room.



No one's responded yet. I wonder if anyone's even seen it... My message...

The note on the wall is a repeat of an old one. It's a printout warning Heavenly Host students to take caution due to the recent kidnappings.

After checking out the teacher's desk, we head into the secret room we opened in chapter 2.



There's quite a bit of new stuff in here.



We'll set off on this journey together, holding hands forevermore. There's nothing to be scared of as long as we have each other. We know there was meaning in our lives, because we were fortunate enough to find our soulmates...to find one another amongst all the fish in the sea. To our mothers and our fathers, take heart: we died happy, and wanted for nothing.

And when we finally pass over to the other side, our hunger pains will be gone. We'll fly up to heaven, and be joyous forevermore. Our only regret is the pain our deaths will cause you. But one day, we'll meet again, up in the golden realm of the ever-after.

Lexern Senior High School
Class 3-2, [Hotaru Kanzaki]
Class 2-4, [Nayuto Minatogawa]





It appears they died hand-in-hand, and their bleached white bones are still holding hands even now.

Hotaru Kanzaki Age: 17
Lexern Senior High School, Class 3-2

Gave up on escaping and committed suicide with beloved.

Nayuto Minatogawa Age: 16
Lexern Senior High School, Class 2-4

Gave up on escaping and committed suicide with beloved.

Hotaru is the corpse on the right, Nayuto is on the left.



There does seem to be space for it to go down one more notch, but the mechanism is locked. There's a tiny, peculiarly-shaped keyhole in its base.

Keeping that crank in mind, we head out of the classroom and head north.



Ack!



Oww...

Ayumi's hands landed squarely in the middle of a sea of broken glass from a fallen light fixture. The skin between the index finger and thumb on her right hand was cut wide open.



(Just found out I'm anemic yesterday, too. Great timing, huh... Starting to get dizzy now... Not good. I need to sit down or something...) *sigh*



Despite suggesting to herself that she sit down for a bit, Ayumi immediately stands up and resumes her exploration. We can't go up the stairs (an invisible barrier stops us) so we won't be trying.



We already tried everything we could to get out. We exhausted every possibility. You might live another few days -- maybe even a week or two, if you tough it out. But can you stand to live that long with nothing to eat? Nothing to drink? No change of clothes? Dying is just a whole lot easier.

So come on, join us. We're all waiting for you. It might even be fun. There are so many ways to die! Just imagine the possibilities! But don't tarry. We're waiting, after all. Waiting to welcome you...



Shut up! Shut up shut up shut UP!

After reading the note, we head into classroom 2-A.

Music: None



It's pretty empty, aside from one notable thing.



One book is sticking out farther than the others, as if begging to be perused: [Circumnavigating the Ancient World]. Read it?

Yes
No



Beginning with the Rat affixed at due north, the twelve signs of the Chinese zodiac shall be labeled clockwise around this timepiece compass. Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Ram, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig, then back to Rat.

For ease of remembrance, it's best to equate each direction with both its zodiac sign and its hour on the clock. North, then, is both the Rat and 12:00. East is the Rabbit, and east by southeast is the Dragon. This is the basis of circumnavigation within the ancient world.

I've already forgotten all of those instructions. Let's leave.

Music: Chapter 4's Theme



There's still nothing over here to the east of 2-A. We head back downstairs.



On the first floor, we continue east and head back upstairs.



And we head into the infirmary.

Music: None



Oh, that thing is still here.



Yes
No



Might as well carry it with us. Maybe it'll help use get another one of our friends killed.

As we usually do in a new room, we continue looking around.



Don't read it
Read it

[Tenjin Public Relations]
The Light and the Dark Sides of Heavenly Host Elementary's Principal Takamine Yanagahori.

Ground was broken for Tenjin's municipal "Heavenly Host" elementary school building in 1952. It quickly became a source of pride for the town, as no elementary school had stood within Tenjin's borders at all prior to its construction. Primary schoolers had previously been commuting to neighboring towns for class, so for them in particular, Heavenly Host was a godsend.

The coveted position of principal for this new learning institution was awarded to a man named Takamine Yanagahori. Yanagahori quickly became popular amongst the townsfolk for his charismatic personality, his work ethic and his firm but fair school policies. Registration and attendance soared well beyond the school's capacity, necessitating frequent desk and chair reorders and even general building expansion. Essentially, due to Yanagahori's unwavering dedication, Heavenly Host became a cornerstone of life within the humble town of Tenjin.

But all that began to change on the dawn of one fateful day, with an incident that would set the stage for Heavenly Host's rapid fall from grace...



(The newspaper is torn at this point. The bottom half of the article is missing.)



I'm sure I left it outside, in the hallway. Did someone move it?



Cut the tongue with a pair of big scissors. It's so thick and warm! But how will you know whose tongue it is later, when you have a bunch more? Simple: Label it with a name tag! The tongue is very tender and squishy, so stick the safety pin in deep, to keep the label from slipping away.

After reading the note, we approach the beds.





Back away slowly...



There's no danger here. The boy just sits on the bed, and won't bother you unless you talk to him or walk around and look into his eyes.

We're done in the infirmary now, so we head out and continue exploring.