Chapter 124
Chapter 124
1. The God of Hot Spring Cures (Investigators: "Kirima Renjiro", Umemura Mamoru, Eri Junichi)
The early morning hot spring town was wrapped in a thin veil of steam.
The inn's sign with fading calligraphy, the steamer basket puffing out steam buns, and the wet bath towels fluttering on the drying rack—all of it looked like illusions in a mirage.
I thought, 'Thank goodness.' If it had been a lively and joyful scene, I would've wanted to strangle myself.
Kirima and Reizei should've had the kind of happiness where they could go on a family trip. They were robbed of that natural opportunity. I'm the only one still alive, so there's no way I should be enjoying this.
As I absentmindedly looked down, Umemura beside me poked my back.
"Uyuu, watch where you're walking. You're not gonna find any spare change on the ground."
"I'm not looking for any. And stop calling me that name."
"Yeah, yeah, Kirima-san. Not like anyone here doesn't know who you used to be anyway."
Walking a bit behind us, Esato silently averted their gaze.
Not long ago, I couldn't even imagine becoming comrades with these people, let alone going on an investigation together.
It's been half a year since the special investigation division was launched. Investigators have gathered, and the structure is gradually taking shape, but there are still many gaps.
That's why the three of us founders have to go on field investigations ourselves.
"Still, are there really Territorial Divine Offenses even in tourist spots like this?"
We're in a rundown hot spring town.
Narrow slopes are lined with signs in old-fashioned fonts advertising day-trip baths and seiro soba, and above our heads, unlit lanterns sway.
Inns that look like they've been around since before the war crowd the area, and perhaps due to poor sunlight or the constant bursts of steam from various spots, the whole town feels damp.
"They called us because there are."
"Would've been fine if there weren't. I was about to get crushed under work without even being able to take paid leave, so this is a good vacation."
Umemura intentionally spoke in a cheerful tone. We were practically enemies when we first met, so his light tone used to irritate me, but now I appreciated it.
His frivolousness is probably his own way of making sure neither he nor others get crushed by everything.
Umemura slowed his pace and looked back.
"You think so too, right, Esato-san?"
"Not really... My family ran a fishing business. We didn't have paid leave."
"Fishing and office work are totally different, though."
"Yeah, I guess. I'm not used to suits."
Esato touched the tie tightening their slender neck with annoyance. Drops of sweat trickled from their unruly black hair.
Just half a year ago, they were a fisherman, stuck in a gloomy village ruled by a terrible god. Just like when I was invited to the countermeasure headquarters, I could tell they were probably wondering why they were here. And probably suppressing that question with resignation.
Umemura whispered to me.
"I'm kinda bad with Esato-san. Feels like there's distance, like they hate me or something."
"They probably don't like or dislike anyone."
"You think? The other day, I asked what they do on their days off, and they just said 'nothing.'"
"They really do nothing. Esato walks to the fishing pond, doesn't fish, doesn't talk to the customers, just feeds and pets the local cats and goes home."
"Spends a whole day doing something that takes twenty minutes?"
"Yeah. Heard it from them directly before."
"People say 'herbivore type' these days, but Esato-san goes beyond that. They're basically a plant."
Just as Umemura's idle chatter started to feel more annoying than welcome, the slope leveled out.
I clapped my hands and turned to face the two of them.
"Even if this is a tourist spot, we're here to work. Let's get started on the case."
My profile reflected in the souvenir shop's display window. My posture and expression—once again, I was unconsciously imitating Kirima.
"Our objective this time is the miraculous hot spring somewhere in this area that supposedly cures all illnesses."
Umemura shrugged his shoulders.
"Sounds like a dime-a-dozen sales pitch."
"If it were just a sales pitch, we wouldn't be here. According to reports, it's cured everything from severe illnesses like cancer and leukemia to congenital disorders and even missing limbs. The higher-ups suspect Territorial Divine Offenses are involved."
"But we don't know where that spring is, right?"
"We'll start by asking around. You too, Esato."
Hiding behind Umemura's shadow, Esato clicked their tongue softly.
It was the time when guests started coming out from the hot spring inns.
Passing through indigo noren curtains or frosted glass decorated with snowflake motifs, people emerged with radiant faces and smiles. Despite it being winter, some couples wore only thin yukata with a haori over it.
Umemura looked around and said,
"Still, it's hard to tell tourists from locals like this."
"Tourists wear thick clothes and carry lots of luggage. Locals are mostly empty-handed and not dressed up. Simple, right?"
"Spoken like a true scammer. You really notice the details."
Ignoring Umemura's sarcasm, I approached an elderly man holding a yellow plastic bucket.
I relaxed the facial muscles stiffened during my time in Tokyo and tried to muster the most frivolous smile I could.
"Excuse me, do you have a moment?"
When I called out, the old man, steam rising from his bald head, responded cheerfully.
"Wearing a suit to a hot spring this early in the morning?"
"It's for work. We're from a publishing company making travel guidebooks. Came from Tokyo."
"From Tokyo? Amazing you found a place like this."
Umemura, who had somehow ended up standing beside me, joined in smoothly.
"Yeah, we'd love to finish up the interviews quickly and take a nice bath ourselves. Got any recommendations?"
The old man rubbed his head with a damp towel.
"If you want a famous inn, there's Kounkaku or Ginrensou... but if you're after a hidden gem, it's Tengu's Spring."
"Tengu's Spring?"
"Everyone around here says it. Soaking in it cures any illness or injury—it's like paradise."
Umemura and I exchanged glances.
"...Where is it?"
"Well, I just moved here after retiring, so I don't know the details. But the old lady at a place called Suishun Inn knows a lot. Try asking her."
After the old man left, we started walking to find the inn he mentioned.
Every time the lanterns tangled around the utility poles swayed, they creaked ominously, conjuring images of hanging corpses.
As we walked along the wet stone pavement, a rustic inn appeared, decorated at the entrance with a bamboo fence and a tengu mask. The faded sign read Suishun.
An old woman in an indigo-dyed kimono appeared from the sliding door and hung a wooden sign with the character 'nu' at the entrance.
"'Nu'...?"
As I furrowed my brow, Esato muttered like talking to themself.
"It's a common sign at public baths. 'Nu' means the water's been drained, so it's closed. 'Wa' means the water's ready, so it's open."
"So 'nu' for drained? That's a pun?"
The old woman noticed us and gave a polite bow. I hurriedly called out to her and began asking questions.
"A secret spring that cures all illnesses...?"
She responded with a courteous smile, but her attitude had a wall typical of someone wary of outsiders. It was clear she was hiding something.
I pulled Esato closer and showed off their arm, which looked like a withered branch—hard to believe they used to be a fisherman.
"We just want to cure this person. Look how thin they are."
Esato glared at me with a look like the end of the world. The old woman stared intently at them and let out a soft sigh.
"As for Tengu's Spring, the time and location aren't fixed."
"What do you mean?"
"There's a pipe system that connects the hot springs across the inns in this area. One of those pipes is usually connected to a hidden spring deep in the mountains, and sometimes the water flows out to one of the inns."
"So even if we want to bathe in it, we might not be able to?"
"That's right. There's an inn called Tengu-an that monopolized that particular pipe. These days, even clueless tourists head there... It's disgraceful, using something meant for everyone just to make money."
Her elegant smile carried a faint hint of contempt and anger. Umemura cut in with a cheerful voice.
"Have you ever bathed in Tengu's Spring, ma'am?"
"Yes, a long time ago."
"No wonder you're still so young and beautiful."
"Oh my, you flatter me. But I've got nothing to give you in return."
The old woman softened her gloomy expression and smiled. I elbowed Umemura in the stomach.
Still glaring intensely, Esato said,
"If I bathe in Tengu's Spring, will my illness be cured too?"
As I avoided their piercing stare, the innkeeper nodded serenely.
"You might think it's just superstition, but I healed from a terrible injury too. I lost feeling in my left hand in a car accident. But after bathing in Tengu's Spring, the nerves miraculously recovered. Thanks to that, I've been able to run this inn for thirty years."
We all gasped at the same time.
As the innkeeper returned to closing up shop, Umemura and I exchanged words.
"The nerves in her hand, huh..."
"I can't say if it's true or not, but let's investigate while heading to Tengu-an. Hey, Esato. I'm sorry, so cheer up already."
Esato kept glaring at the bamboo fence. I assumed she was angry, but she just shook her head suspiciously.
"You two really didn't notice?"
"Notice what?"
"That old woman's left arm was a prosthetic."
I felt the blood drain from my cheeks, which had been warmed by the steam filling the stone-paved path.