"We'll look into that. But regardless of whether Miss Zheng's situation is a paranormal incident, she should receive counseling."
"I-I understand... I'll talk to her parents..."
December 21, 2013. A search was conducted inside the school. A bird's nest and a damaged amulet were found, but nothing unusual was discovered.
December 22, 2013. The school's surveillance footage was obtained. Nothing abnormal was found.
January 13, 2014. The client's whereabouts for nearly six months before the incident were investigated. The client was contacted. Audio file 07820140113.wav.
"It's been a while, Miss Zheng. How have you been feeling lately?"
"I'm fine now, thank you. The amulet helped a lot. And the psychologist... The psychologist talked with me. I might have been affected by horror movies. Anyway, thank you for the amulet. I... could I buy a few more? I was thinking... thinking I should keep some as spares... The doctor also said it would help if I had something to rely on."
"Of course. But before that, let's discuss something else. We asked you here because we have a few questions."
"Oh, go ahead."
"In October 2013, you and Miss Duan attended the tourism festival here in People's Celebration City, right?"
"Yeah, that's right. We watched the parade of floats, and we went to the exhibition hall during the day."
"Was something wrong with that? We didn't do anything that day."
"Whether something was wrong is something we'll determine from what we discuss next. When we first met, we told you that you might have done something without realizing it, which could have led to those strange events."
"W-wasn't it because I watched horror movies?"
"Please don't be nervous, Miss Zheng. According to our investigation, the most notable unusual activity in the past six months was your attendance at the tourism festival."
"What could be unusual about going to a tourism festival? It was organized by the government, wasn't it? The foreign visitors were organized by their governments too! Are you saying they..."
"Little sister, it's been a while. Have you forgotten what I told you again?"
"I... I think the psychologist was right. It was because I dragged Xiaorui into watching horror movies that she ended up like that."
"Since you both attended the tourism festival, you should know that the exhibitions during the festival didn't just showcase the scenery of different countries. They also introduced and offered experiences of local customs. That included each country's religious culture. We currently suspect that the two of you did something during that time and attracted the attention of an evil spirit from another country."
"We did the same things that day. There's no reason Xiaorui should have gone through something like that while I was fine."
"We called you both here today to rule out that possibility. Please tell us in detail what happened during that time."
"I... Shishi..."
"I'll tell you."
"Please."
"We went to the exhibition hall on Saturday morning. I remember visiting the pavilions for Country A, Country B, and Country I that day. As for religion... we watched a 360-degree film about the Milan Cathedral in Country I. Afterward, the staff gave everyone souvenirs: a fridge magnet and a postcard of the cathedral. Everyone got them, and they were all the same. Other than that, nothing much happened. We spent most of the time waiting in line. We didn't talk to anyone; we watched videos together on our phones. In the evening, we watched the parade of floats. There were some religious things on the floats, but there were too many people around to see them clearly."
"What about the second day?"
"What?"
"We checked your spending records. You visited the exhibition on the first day of the weekend, and you went somewhere the second day too, didn't you?"
"..."
"What's wrong? Is there a problem?"
"The second day... On the second day, we..."
"I can't remember. Did you really find our spending records?"
"Yes. The records show that you bought tickets for the nighttime festival at the Country J pavilion on the second day."
"Ah!"
"I-I don't remember. You found our spending records? Are you sure they're ours? How did you get them?"
Rustling...
"These are the online booking records. The names and phone numbers listed are yours, and the advance tickets were picked up."
"How is that possible... I... I don't remember any of it..."
"..."
"Miss Zheng, you really like Country J's culture, don't you? Your backpack, keychain, and bedroom decorations are covered with things related to Country J celebrities. Your favorite celebrity was a special guest at the festival that day. Given your finances and free time, it's very likely you went."
"I... But I... don't remember any of it..."
"It seems that what happened to you is connected to that festival."
"...Th-then what do we do?"
"First, we need to figure out what you did that day."
"Little sister, you don't look so good. Do you remember something?"
"Ah..."
"It's better not to hold anything back. If we're misled or delayed, that won't be good for your friend."
"Shishi... Shishi, do you remember what happened that day?"
"Seeing this... brought some things back to me..."
"Tell us whatever you remember."
"That night, we went to the festival. It looked just like this poster: a long road lined with lots of lanterns. It was beautiful, and the shrine was at the end. I remember... I remember taking pictures at the torii gate, buying candy apples, and scooping goldfish... We also bought ema at the shrine. They came as a pair, the kind meant to bless a friendship that would last forever..."
"W-was there something wrong with those?"
"Is that all you remember?"
"Mm... Oh, right, the kimonos! We changed into kimonos! There was a shop near the festival entrance where you could rent or buy them. The two of us... I can't remember whether we rented or bought them, but we changed clothes and wore wooden sandals. Xiaorui wasn't used to them and nearly fell. I linked arms with her, and we laughed... laughed and said something... After that... There was a performance at the end. It was a dance like the kind performed by geisha in Country J... Xiaorui's favorite celebrity performed, and lots of fans were shouting..."
"Was there anything related to the festival in your homes?"
"No. If you hadn't brought it up, I wouldn't even have remembered it."
"I don't have anything either... The festival ended so long ago, and they've taken down everything at the shrine too. Does that mean... Is there no hope for me?"
"Because the event was organized by the governments of both countries, the private businesses that participated in the festival would also have been registered. It won't be difficult to find those people from Country J. Don't worry, Miss Zheng. If necessary, we'll go to Country J to deal with this."
"However, based on what we've found so far, the shrine and the vendors were all properly vetted. The shrine in particular was a replica of a famous shrine in Country J, and two priests and a shrine maiden were brought over from there. So we think the problem may have come from something you bought or did. It's even possible that the festival had nothing to do with it, and that you encountered something on your way there or back."
"Th-then what should we do?"
"First, go home and look for anything that might have appeared or gone missing."
"Okay. Xiaorui..."
"Miss Zheng, there's no need to be afraid. The amulet has been working, hasn't it?"
"Yes..."
"Then it'll keep protecting you. In the meantime, we'll find the source of the problem and deal with it. You'll be all right."
"That's right, Xiaorui. You'll be fine!"
"Mm. I... I wish I hadn't gone to the festival..."
"Xiaorui..."
"Miss Zheng, even if you hadn't gone to the festival, you might not have been safe."