As the free period for gym class began, the students naturally drifted into their own social circles.
The conversations ranged from trivial gossip to more somber topics, eventually settling on the matter of Ito Makoto.
Finally, something useful, Kawashima Toya thought, a thin smile playing on his lips.
He caught the tail end of a conversation between a group of girls. According to them, in the seven days leading up to his death, Ito had been an absolute wreck.
He had seemed perpetually on edge, as if something invisible were stalking him. His mental state had deteriorated so rapidly that by his final day at school, he barely looked like the same person.
That afternoon, he had gone home as usual. By nightfall, news of his death had spread through the city.
When the body was found, it was mummified, yet his face was frozen in a disturbing, blissful smile—as if he had just witnessed something truly wonderful.
Dying with a smile after being mummified? Toya's expression turned solemn. Is it a vengeful spirit? But what kind of entity takes seven days to kill a target while subjecting them to that much psychological agony?
Ito had endured a week of torture, his body wasting away under extreme stress, only to die with a look of pure contentment on the seventh day.
A ghost? Probably not. It feels like something else entirely.
Toya scanned the athletic field. Across the vast, open space, he could see a few low-level spirits wandering aimlessly.
These were the most common types of apparitions, posing no threat to those who couldn't see them. Even if someone did possess the "sight," these spirits would typically strike immediately rather than dragging out a kill over an entire week.
He couldn't rule out a supernatural culprit, however. The world was full of anomalies with unique rules for their victims.
"Sensei..." a soft, flat voice called out.
Toya snapped out of his thoughts and looked at the girl standing before him. She was petite with short hair, and her face remained entirely void of emotion, almost like a mask.
If he remembered correctly, this was Kiyoura Setsuna, the closest friend of Saionji Sekai.
Setsuna stared at him with dull eyes and spoke tonelessly. "Kawashima-sensei, please leave this academy as soon as possible."
"Leave? Why is that?" Toya asked, appearing genuinely curious.
"Don't ask questions. Just go. Leave the city... leave the country if you have to," Setsuna added coldly before turning on her heel to walk away.
Toya watched her retreat, his interest piqued. It looks like you know exactly what's going on here.
Setsuna might have seemed blunt, but Toya could sense a flicker of genuine urgency in her voice. She was clearly worried that if he stayed, something terrible would happen to him as well.
Something is definitely happening at Sakano Academy, and it isn't just a simple haunting. Why would a mere ghost warrant fleeing the country? Toya mused.
While he was still largely in the dark, he finally had a lead. The gym class eventually came to an end. After dismissing the students, Toya made his way back to the main building.
.....
Infirmary
Upon entering the room, Toya immediately noticed a pink envelope sitting on his desk. It was adorned with a small, hand-drawn heart.
To: Kawashima Toya-sensei.
A love letter? Toya felt a brief moment of amusement, which quickly faded. Actually, maybe not.
At first glance, it looked like a confession from a student, but it lacked the warmth of a young girl's feelings. Instead, the paper radiated a heavy scent of decay—as if it had been written by a walking corpse.
It's not a love letter; it's a death warrant. Well, it's addressed to me, so I might as well see what it says.
Just as he reached for the envelope, Kiyoura Setsuna appeared in the doorway.
"Sensei, do not open that letter. It's dangerous."
Toya picked up the envelope anyway. "Kiyoura-san, care to tell me why?"
"I can't..." Setsuna shook her head, her voice trembling slightly with uncharacteristic panic. "You just can't open it. You shouldn't even be touching it."
She's really spooked. For the normally stoic Setsuna to show this much distress, the situation had to be dire. Toya knew it wasn't a threat to him personally, but for a normal human, this was likely a death sentence.
Setsuna walked over and grabbed an alcohol lamp from the medical supplies, clearly intending to burn the letter on the spot.
"Wait, don't burn it yet. I'm curious," Toya said. Before she could stop him, he tore the envelope open.
"Sensei...!" Setsuna's face flushed with anger and fear. "I told you not to touch it! Why are you so stubborn?"
"Pure curiosity," Toya replied calmly. "I've never received a love letter before. I couldn't resist."
That was a lie, obviously. He simply wanted to see what kind of curse was hidden inside. He pulled out the stationery, which was a matching shade of soft pink.
Dear Kawashima-sensei...
The letter read like a typical confession from a shy girl, asking him to meet her at the school's athletic field at 9:00 PM tonight so she could tell him her feelings in person. Toya scanned the text and sighed.
"The sender must be quite young. The grammar is terrible, and the phrasing is all over the place. This won't do. I have to go tonight and explain to this girl that her studies should come first. Romance can wait until her grades improve."
He intentionally spoke as if he were taking the letter seriously, hoping to bait more information out of Setsuna. He could see right through the ruse.
The letter had been written with stiff, robotic precision. Every word was a calculated attempt to mimic the innocent feelings of a high school girl, but it felt hollow. It was nauseating.
Setsuna began to tremble. "Kawashima-sensei... if you go, you'll end up exactly like Ito-kun. It's a trap. You cannot go. You need to leave this school right now. Leave the city."
Toya kept his face neutral. "I'll consider staying home, but you have to tell me why. As a teacher, I have a responsibility to guide a student who might be straying from the right path."
He was making one last attempt to get her to talk. If she wouldn't, he'd have to investigate the source of the letter himself.
"Sensei, I really can't say," Setsuna whispered, her expression pained. "Please, just trust me. Don't go. You'll die. If you're only going because you've never had a girl confess to you... then I'll write you a letter myself."
Toya blinked, then gave a dismissive wave. "Fine, fine. I won't go. If my student is this worried about me, then going would be a betrayal of that trust. Don't worry about it, Kiyoura-san. I was just joking."
Setsuna seemed to buy the lie, but as she left the infirmary, she looked back one last time to remind him to leave the academy as soon as possible.
Toya watched her go, his gaze lingering on the pink paper.
I wonder what's waiting on that field at 9:00 PM.