On the moving train, the scenery outside the window drifted slowly past. Qian Xiaoyi glanced at the message from Inuyama Heita and typed back, "Got it. Be careful," before returning his attention to the direction shown by the small compass in his hand. A cheap jade pendant was bound to the center of the compass with red thread in an unusual manner. If Inuyama Heita had been there, he would have recognized it immediately: it was the very pendant used to seal the little ghost kidnapped from the Lucky Mutual Aid Society.
Today, Qian Xiaoyi wore a loose jacket and a baseball cap, with a shoulder bag slung over him. His new style made him look like one of the fashionable young people often seen around Shibuya. With his head lowered, he watched the compass needle tremble faintly in the direction the train was traveling, as though the motion of the train were affecting it.
When the needle showed no sign of moving, Qian Xiaoyi sent President Oiwa a text, asking whether he was busy with work today and if he had time to go out for a drink that evening. The other man replied that they could head straight to their usual spot and start drinking right now. Qian Xiaoyi couldn't bring himself to keep deceiving the straightforward older man, so he laughed it off and put his phone away.
After confirming that Matsui hadn't told President Oiwa about the gathering, Qian Xiaoyi's lips curled slightly into a strange smile. He turned his attention back to the compass and waited quietly.
At last, after several more stops, the compass's direction changed noticeably. As the train moved, the needle gradually began pointing somewhere else. Qian Xiaoyi stood up and got off at the next station.
"Tsk... It still feels pretty far." Looking at where the compass pointed, Qian Xiaoyi couldn't help complaining. "If only I had my own car..."
Complaining was one thing, but there was no way he'd take a taxi. They were far too expensive; unless it was an emergency, a few rides would bankrupt him. So Qian Xiaoyi followed the needle on foot, heading in the direction indicated by the compass. Half an hour later, he stopped outside a building.
Qian Xiaoyi was now in a rather remote area, some distance from the city center. Low-rise buildings stood scattered around, and the area near Tokyo Bay was home to many factories, forming a vast industrial district. Before him stood a two-story building. The compass needle had finally pointed to somewhere inside.
"A personal storage facility?" Qian Xiaoyi glanced at the sign outside, then went into the building.
Behind the counter by the entrance to the first-floor lobby, the storage facility attendant was watching videos on his phone. When someone came in, he put his phone away and asked, "Are you here to pick something up?"
"I'd like to rent a storage unit. Could you show me around first?" Qian Xiaoyi said. The entrance to the facility was firmly shut, and it looked like he would need a key to get in.
"You're here to rent a unit? I see. We have several price ranges available. Which one are you looking for?" The attendant rose from his chair. A ring of keys hung from his waist as he turned and unlocked the door behind him. The storage units in the building were rented to individuals. Their doors were old-fashioned roll-up shutters, and there didn't seem to be any security cameras by the entrance.
Qian Xiaoyi followed him inside, still holding the compass and glancing around as they walked. The attendant leading the way asked curiously, "What's that you've got there?"
"Oh, I'm just checking the feng shui." Qian Xiaoyi waved a hand. "Don't mind me... Just show me the units inside."
The attendant was at a loss. How could he not be concerned about such strange behavior? Still, the man wasn't doing anything out of line; he was just wandering around with that compass, so the attendant couldn't very well say anything.
When they passed one of the storage units in the corridor, Qian Xiaoyi paused briefly and glanced at its number. He memorized it, then continued following the attendant. After looking at several units, Qian Xiaoyi said he'd need to think it over and had the attendant show him out.
"Sir, these are already the most affordable personal storage units in the area." As he locked the door behind them, the attendant continued trying to make a sale, his back to Qian Xiaoyi. "We absolutely guarantee our customers' privacy. There's always someone on duty, nothing gets stolen, and it's very safe..."
"No, it's not that I'm unhappy with the place." Qian Xiaoyi's voice came from behind him, growing more distant as he walked away. "The reason I'm not satisfied is that the feng shui here is bad... Haven't you heard any rumors while working here? Like the sound of children, for instance..."
"Children? Come on, sir. There aren't any children here..." The attendant turned around, only to find that Qian Xiaoyi had already left without a trace.
The yellowish sunlight streamed in through the entrance, stretching the shadows of everything inside. All was silent, as if time itself had frozen in the dusk.
"Feng shui..." The attendant repeated the word, feeling a chill creep over him. That customer had kept his head down the entire time, staring at the compass in his hand. His black baseball cap had hidden his expression, making it impossible to see his face.
He shuddered, then loudly tried to reassure himself. "Ha! Feng shui? What a joke. And children? I've never heard of anything like that. Was that guy just here to cause trouble...?" Grumbling, he sat back down. After fretfully watching videos for a while, he couldn't resist opening his messaging app. He found a coworker who worked the night shift and sent him a message.
Sakamoto, have you heard any rumors about children's voices in our storage facility?
Less than a minute later, the other man replied.
You heard that voice too? I knew I wasn't imagining it!
The attendant's back went cold, and goosebumps popped up all over his arms—his coworker's reply had scared him.
He immediately typed: Hey! Don't scare me! Is that really true?! It took me forever to find this job.
But after he sent the message, the chat window just kept spinning. Finally, a red exclamation mark appeared, showing that the message hadn't gone through. Just as he was about to send it again, a figure flashed past the corner of his eye.
"Who's there?!" The attendant jerked his head up, but there was no one in sight. Just as he thought it had been a false alarm, a faint breeze blew from behind him. He turned—and broke out in a cold sweat.
The iron door leading to the storage corridor, which had been locked earlier, was now standing half open. The breeze was coming from inside.
"Did I not lock it just now?" the attendant muttered, his body stiffening. He went over to close the door, but the instant he touched the handle, he heard footsteps and the laughter of a child coming from within.
"Hee-hee-hee~~"
The attendant swallowed and stammered, "...No way." His scalp prickled. He wanted to turn and run, but if a child really had wandered in and he did nothing, he could lose his job. After weighing his options for a moment, he finally gritted his teeth, pushed the door open, and stepped inside.
He failed to notice that, at some point, a jade pendant had been slipped into the back pocket of his pants.
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