Suga appeared to realize something.

“I hope we can find just one car that can start; maybe it will really help us later.”

Nellson nodded. Suga closed the car door and walked away from here; Nellson then flew after him.

Suga walked while watching the strange sky’ condition that was dark, covered in thick black smoke, and vast white cracks glowed dimly in several parts of the sky. Nellson flew after Suga. Suga opened his smartphone, looked at the Kagohara village map that he had previously photographed and checked the nearest place to his position that caught his attention.

“It won’t be long before we arrive at the nearest Gasokami shrine.”

Nellson landed on the ground and watched Suga curiously.

“Do you think Gasokami’s painting is really there?”

Suga nodded.

“We will prove it soon.”

Suga’s attention was drawn to the smartphone in his hand, and realized something.

“This village is vast enough for us to check it.”

Nellson nodded.

“I don’t know whether we’ll be able to continue the investigation or not.”

Suga nodded with a slightly bothered expression.

“We can only keep going.”

Nellson nodded, waiting for Suga to walk past him, then flew after Suga.

After walking for some time, they came to a T-junction with a straight sign saying Kagohara village and to the right saying “Gasokami Shrine”. Suga and Nellson were surprised to read this sign. Suga’s attention was immediately drawn to the road leading to the right, with concrete stairs that were not too steep with Shinto gates lined up above it. At the end of the stairs above, there was the silhouette of a building roof. Suga walked up the stairs while assisted by the flashlight in his right hand; Nellson flew after him. Arrived at the top; in front of them was a fairly large one-story shrine in a classic Japanese-style building with a tiled roof, a short staircase leading to the wooden double-door shrine entrance, a place for praying and a wooden coin box, with a grate for the top cover used to collect offerings (saisen) before the entrance, and a balcony with wooden railing that surrounded the shrine.

Near the shrine, there is an L-shaped group of houses that extends from the right side of the shrine to the back of the shrine. These buildings look abandoned, with their walls dull and vines growing in many parts of the house buildings. Suga illuminates the surroundings using his flashlight.

“There are other buildings in this place.”

Nellson landed near Suga.

“Those buildings probably belong to the shrine caretaker's family.”

Suga nodded. Suga walked towards the shrine, walked up the short stairs before the shrine and arrived in front of the shrine’s entrance wooden double door. Suga checked this door and tried to open it, only to find it locked.

“The door is locked.”

Nellson landed on the shrine’s wooden balcony railing.

“Should we find the key or...”

Suga answered.

“It would be quicker if it was broken into. Can you return to your large form and break down this door, Nellson?”

Nellson shook his head.

“I’m starting to get used to the heavy air of this village and can fix my shortness of breath, but I still can’t return to my large form.”

Suga nodded.

“It’s okay, Nellson. I’ll try to break it in myself.”

Suga looked towards this entrance and watched it with a curious expression.

“Forgive me if I was rude, Gasokami.”

Suga then tried to break down the door using his body several times, but the door almost didn’t budge because it was sturdy and thick. Suga felt a little pain in his body.

“No way, the door is too sturdy. They built this shrine well.”

Nellson watched Suga curiously.

“Is there another way in?”

Suga also looked aware of this possibility.

“We’ll try to find it.”

Suga circled the shrine building while looking for another entrance, passing through the wooden balcony floor, which was broken in several parts, but still couldn’t find another entrance. Without Suga realizing it, a black figure passed by in one part of one of the houses. Suga’s attention was immediately drawn to the building behind the shrine, but Suga didn’t find anything as he pointed his flashlight in several directions. Suga thought.

“I thought I saw something. Is it just my imagination?”

Suga’s attention turned to Nellson.

“Try checking the roof of this shrine, Nellson. To see if there is another entrance.”

Nellson nodded.

“Leave it to me.”

Nellson then flew to the shrine's roof.

Nellson landed on the roof of this shrine which was filled with dry leaves from the trees around the shrine. Nellson checked several parts of the roof but couldn’t find any other entrance. Nellson flew back down and landed near Suga.

“I didn’t find any other entrance to this shrine.”

Suga nodded; he then looked around him, and his attention was drawn to the houses in this shrine area. Suga then pointed to one of the houses here.

“Let’s try to check the house.”

Nellson nodded.

Suga walked to the front of one of the house buildings, which had an open corridor with rows of wooden pillars, a classic Japanese tiled roof, and wooden floors. Suga climbed up this corridor and opened one of the shoji sliding doors before him, which led to a room with several pieces of furniture, such as cupboards and shelves, which were dusty and looked like they had been abandoned, and several other pieces of furniture were scattered on the floor like flower vases. Suga walked through this room and opened the wooden sliding double door leading inside the house.

The atmosphere inside the house was quite dark; Suga walked along the corridor of the house. Suga illuminates the surroundings using the flashlight in his left hand. Suga’s expression turned confused.

“Damn, it looks like it’s going to take quite a while to find the shrine key.”

Suga opened the wooden sliding door closest to him. This room is a bedroom, which has a chest of drawers, a cupboard, short tables, and a traditional Japanese bedroll (futon) in the middle of the room. Suga’s attention was drawn to one of the short tables here, which had several books on it. Suga walked over to the short table, then opened the book and examined it.

“I found a notebook here written by a boy who lived here before.”

Nellson walked closer to Suga with a curious expression.

“Maybe we can find a clue?”

Suga nodded and started reading this book while still standing, making Nellson, who was standing on the floor, look up at Suga curiously. Nellson flew and landed on one of the chests of drawers near Suga. Suga read this book with Nellson, then found several parts that caught their attention.

 

“May 26, 19xx

Today, my friends and I planned to steal the key that the Shinto priest chief always carries, which he always wears around his neck, to protect the key. We will prove whether Gasokami painting is inside the shrine! Preparations complete, time to sneak into the Shinto priest chief’s office to get that key. When I checked the room, my friends would be watching the surroundings because there would be times when the Shinto priest chief would remove the key from his neck and put it somewhere, and that place was his office. We know this information after one of my friends accidentally saw the Shinto priest chief put the key into his desk drawer. Tomorrow, the Shinto priest chief will do some business; we hope there is one chance he will take off the key. We are so excited to do this!”

 

Suga read the next page.

 

“May 27, 19xx

It didn’t go according to plan; we failed to find the key in Shinto priest chief’s office, even though he went in and out of his office several times. Damn, maybe another time.”

 

Suga then closed the book.

“This boy said someone had seen the Shinto priest chief put the shrine key in a drawer in his office.”

Nellson nodded.

“Do you think the key is still there?”

Suga looked doubtful.

“Let’s try to look there.”

Nellson nodded. Suga walked out of the room; Nellson then flew after him. When they arrived at the door, they were surprised by the sound of objects falling and breaking inside the house, as well as the sound of objects being dragged for a moment. Suga turned to Nellson and said in a whispered tone.

“What’s that? Is there anyone here?”

Nellson shook his head slowly.

“I’ve been thinking the missing persons who ferociously attacked us before might appear in this village, and we have to deal with them.”

Suga’s expression turned serious.

“You’re right; we should be more careful.”

Nellson nodded and looked at Suga curiously.

Suga explored the dark corridor with the help of his flashlight. This corridor had dull, cracked walls and paint peeling in many parts. The wooden floor is dull and broken in several parts. On Suga’s right and left are the walls of a room or a sliding double door leading to a room, Nellson flew after him. Finally, Suga arrived at a single wooden door with a board above it that said “Shinto priest chief’s office”, Nellson then landed near Suga.