Not too far before Ishikari, her missing female friend, stood among the crowd, wearing her shabby school uniform. Because of the fireworks show and people’s enthusiasm, the people around Ishikari's missing friend didn’t pay much attention to her. Realizing the whereabouts of her missing friend shocked Ishikari. People walked one after another around Ishikari’s missing friend until she couldn’t be seen. When these people finished passing by, Ishikari’s friend was no longer standing in her place as if she had suddenly vanished, making Ishikari surprised and confused. Ishikari looked around her with a frightened expression.

“Where is she? Is it just my imagination....”

Suga finally noticed Ishikari’s unusual behavior.

“What’s wrong, Ishikari?”

Ishikari turned to Suga, then smiled awkwardly.

“It’s nothing, Suga.”

Suga looked at Ishikari in surprise. Ishikari then looked back at the sky to see the fireworks show.

The time is 9:00 pm. Suga and Ishikari walked together among the food and game stalls; Nellson walked on the ground and left behind not far behind them. The festival visitors started to leave the shrine area, and the atmosphere was getting quieter. Ishikari appeared to remember something.

“There’s still the second day of the festival tomorrow. Are you coming?”

Suga appeared to realize something.

“Tomorrow? If there are no urgent investigative activities, I will come again.”

Ishikari smiled and nodded.

“I’m going home with my friends. Do you want to come with us?”

Suga smiled.

“I still want to visit some stalls.”

Ishikari smiled and nodded.

“Then see you tomorrow.”

Suga smiled and nodded. Not long after, Nellson, who had previously been a little behind, walked up to the two of them. Ishikari’s attention was focused on Nellson; Ishikari kneeled, then patted Nellson’s head momentarily.

“See you later, Nellson.”

Nellson looked at Ishikari curiously. Ishikari stood up and then walked away from here.

Suga walked back between these stalls while looking around him curiously. Nellson walked on the ground near Suga.

“Is there still something you want, Suga?”

Suga turned to Nellson.

“Yeah, there are still some foods I want to try.”

Nellson nodded.

In another place in the shrine area where the festival is held. Isihikari was walking with a female friend while talking to each other with cheerful expressions. Not long after, they saw a woman in her 30s wearing a kimono and long hair running quickly past them and into the forest beside them, surprising them both. Ishikari’s friend said.

“Why did that woman run in such a hurry into the forest?”

Ishikari’s expression turned disturbed.

“I don’t know either, but I have a bad feeling....”

Not long after, a ball drawn with a pattern rolled from the direction the woman had run into the forest, and this ball stopped in front of Ishikari and her friend. Ishikari’s friend curiously walked closer to this ball, as did Ishikari with a slightly frightened expression. Ishikari’s friend picked up the ball on the ground and examined it in surprise. Not long after, they were surprised by a woman’s voice from inside the forest beside them.

“Can you give me the ball back?”

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Ishikari and her friend turned towards the forest and found the woman running in front of them before standing among the shady forest trees. The dim atmosphere of the forest made it impossible to see the woman’s face clearly. Faintly, Ishikari and her friend noticed that this woman's kimono looked shabby.

Seeing this woman, Ishikari and her friend’s expressions turned frightened. Ishikari’s friend replied.

“Why are you standing in the middle of the forest like that?”

The woman in the forest answered.

“I was looking for one of the missing victims when I seemed to see someone while attending the festival today. You can come and help me look for them.”

Ishikari and her friends looked increasingly frightened. Ishikari’s friend spoke to Ishikari in a hushed tone.

“Shall we help the woman?”

Ishikari shook her head slowly.

“It’s not that I don’t want to help, but it’s better if we also invite other people first.”

Ishikari’s friend nodded worriedly, then looked back at the woman in the forest.

“We will ask for help from police and townspeople first.”

The woman in the forest didn’t appear to react much.

“Okay, but first, can you give me the ball back?”

Ishikari’s friend nodded, her expression turned doubtful.

“Of course.”

Ishikari’s friend walked towards the forest, but after only walking a few steps and not yet entering the forest area, Ishikari then forcibly grabbed the ball in her friend’s hands then threw it at the woman in the forest. This ball landed on the ground near the woman in a kimono in the forest, rolled a little, and stopped not far from the woman. Ishikari’s expression turned serious.

“We already give you your ball back; we’ll excuse ourselves.”

Ishikari and her friend turned around and then walked away from here. But after walking a few steps, they stopped again because they heard a familiar voice.

“This woman managed to find me.”

Ishikari and her friends immediately turned into the forest. A female classmate from Ishikari’s school, wearing a shabby school uniform like before and one of the missing victims, stood beside the woman wearing a kimono in the forest.

“How? Do you believe what I say now? I have indeed found one of the missing victims.”

Seeing their classmate, one of the missing victims, shocked Ishikari and her female friend.

“How can that be... we must help our friend, Ishikari.”

Ishikari's friend beside Ishikari ran towards the forest, surprising Ishikari.

“Wait a minute!”

Ishikari was too late to stop her friend, who ran into the forest. Ishikari immediately chased after her friend.

Only a few meters into the forest, Ishikari managed to stop her friend by holding her arm. Ishikari looked worried.

“Wait a minute, don’t approach them.”

Ishikari’s friend's expression, wearing a yukata, changed to surprise.

“What are you talking about? She was clearly our classmate who disappeared.”

Ishikari was silent, with a worried and scared expression. A woman wearing a kimono was standing near them without them realizing it. Unbeknownst to Ishikari, their school friend had stood next to her and gripped Ishikari’s arm so tightly that it made her a little in pain.

“Finally, you have come, Ishikari. I have been waiting for you....”

Ishikari’s expression turned shocked; she immediately grabbed her friend close to her, then pushed her hard with one hand, and she fell backward out of the forest. Ishikari shouted.

“Run!”

Ishikari’s friend sat in her place, looking at Ishikari in surprise. Ishikari was then embraced from behind by a woman wearing a kimono; then it was as if a force made the woman in the shabby kimono, and Ishikari’s school friend’s body was thrown backward towards the forest and took Ishikari with them, then disappeared into the forest’s darkness. What just happened shocked Ishikari’s friend; she immediately stood up and ran away from here.

In another place, Suga walked between the stalls in the shrine area, where the atmosphere was increasingly quiet, and the stallkeepers began to pack up their goods and prepare to close. Suga had just finished his activities and was carrying various items he won from today’s festival, such as a key chain, stuffed toy, hand fan, patterned origami papers, statue, mask, etc., some of which were put in the tote bag he also got from winning one of the festival game stalls. Nellson flew ahead of Suga and then landed on the ground. Suga walked past Nellson, who then said.

“You won a lot of things, Suga.”

Suga smiled.

“It’s nothing yet, we’ll see tomorrow.”

Nellson looked at Suga curiously, then walked after him.

Not long after, Suga stopped in his tracks because he saw something unusual happening before him. The female friend who was with Ishikari ran towards a male police officer with a frightened expression while trying to explain something to the policeman. Suga was surprised and had a bad feeling. Nellson walked over to Suga.

“Isn’t that the girl Ishikari was with earlier?”

Suga’s expression turned serious.

“It seems something is wrong; let’s go, Nellson.”

Suga ran towards the police, and Ishikari’s friend, Nellson, then flew after Suga. Ishikari’s female friend, wearing a yukata, tried to explain what just happened with a panicked expression.

“You have to help my friend immediately; unknown people just took her.”

The male police officer tried to calm Ishikari’s friend.

“Okay, try to calm down first. I will, of course, help you.”

Nellson flew ahead of Suga and landed near the policeman and Ishikari’s female friend, surprising them a little. Not long after, Suga arrived near the policeman, who happened to be the policeman he met when visiting the police station before. Suga’s expression turned curious.

“What’s wrong, sir?”

The policeman, who was familiar with Suga, was a little surprised when he saw Suga.

“Oh, Hisoka san? What a coincidence. Someone was kidnapped near the forest; we must help her immediately.”

Suga was surprised and immediately realized something, then looked at Ishikari’s friend.

“The person who was kidnapped was Ishikari?”

Ishikari’s friend looked gloomy; she then nodded. Suga was shocked.

“Okay, show me where it is.”