Work Text:
Before the Incident
“I’ll take this case, but on one condition.” Mai held the file tightly against her chest, her expression unusually serious. She stood in the dimly lit office, her figure framed by the golden hues of the setting sun pouring through the window.
The client, a middle-aged man with thinning hair and a nervous demeanor, fidgeted with the edge of his sleeve. "Condition?" he repeated.
Mai nodded. "Yes. You are not to reveal my information to anyone, not even your family. Should I fail to cleanse the spirit, you must never disclose my real identity. I’ll be known only as ‘The Spiritualist.’ If necessary, I can draft an NDA for you to sign."
The man stared at her, a mixture of disbelief and desperation flashing across his face. "If that’s what you want... you have my word. Just... please help me. My family can’t live in that house anymore."
Mai exhaled softly, her grip on the file loosening. "I’ll do everything I can. But remember, if the situation escalates beyond my control, you’re to leave immediately. No questions, no hesitation."
The man nodded vigorously, his eyes glistening with unshed tears. "Thank you... thank you so much."
Two Years After SPR Disbanded
“Big boss! Welcome back!” Yasuhara’s voice rang out as he approached Naru with his usual boyish enthusiasm. He grabbed Naru’s luggage and stuffed it into the back of a waiting van.
"Is everyone here?" Naru asked, his tone as cold and commanding as ever.
"Almost," Yasuhara replied. "I’ve contacted all the irregulars for a reunion. They’re excited to get back to work."
"What about Taniyama-san?" Lin asked from the passenger seat, his sharp gaze turning toward Yasuhara.
Yasuhara’s cheerful expression faltered. "I couldn’t get in touch with her. Honestly, none of us have heard from Mai in the past two years. She’s completely MIA."
Naru’s eyes darkened, but he said nothing. Instead, he slid into the van, his usual mask of indifference firmly in place. However, as Yasuhara continued to chatter, Naru’s thoughts drifted to the missing assistant, the silence she’d left behind weighing heavier than he cared to admit.
The SPR office, though freshly reopened, still held the essence of its past. The faint scent of old books and freshly polished wood lingered in the air, a nostalgic reminder of their previous cases. Naru sat at his desk, flipping through files as Lin adjusted the monitors. The atmosphere was calm yet charged, as though the air itself buzzed with the anticipation of something stirring.
A hesitant knock on the door broke the quiet.
“Come in,” Naru called, his tone clipped yet inviting.
The door creaked open to reveal a man in his late forties, his frail frame hunched as though carrying an invisible weight. His tired eyes darted nervously around the room before settling on Naru. In his hands was a folder, its edges crumpled from his tight grip.
“Are you... the Shibuya Psychic Research team?” he asked, his voice trembling.
“Yes,” Naru replied. “Please, have a seat. What brings you here?”
The man hesitated before stepping fully into the room, the shadows under his eyes deepening as he took a seat. "My name is Yamada Saburo," he began, gripping the folder as if it might disappear. "I’ve come to ask for your help. My home... it’s haunted. My family refuses to return, and I—I can’t stay there anymore, either. It’s unbearable.”
Lin, standing nearby with a clipboard in hand, gestured for him to continue. "Start from the beginning. Tell us everything."
Yamada nodded, his breath hitching. "It started years ago. Strange noises at night, shadows moving in places where there shouldn’t be shadows, and... we constantly felt on alert, like something was going to jump at us. My wife said she heard whispers coming from empty rooms. My children refused to sleep in their own beds. As time passed, activity grew… more violent. More physical."
Ayako entered the room, leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed. "And you’ve tried dealing with this before?"
"Yes," Yamada said, his voice thick with desperation. "We called priests, mediums, exorcists—anyone who would listen. Then two years ago, I found someone who seemed... different. She called herself ‘The Spiritualist.’ She promised she’d cleanse the house and refused to take any payment. She said helping people was all that mattered.”
“And did she succeed?” Naru asked, his piercing gaze fixed on the man.
Yamada hesitated, his hands trembling. "At first, yes. The noises stopped, and the shadows disappeared. The house felt... still. But then, something changed. She—she vanished. And now..." He faltered, his shoulders slumping.
"Now what?" Lin pressed, his tone calm but firm.
"It’s like the house is alive," Yamada whispered, a shiver running through him. "It’s quiet, but in a peaceful way. Though, it feels like someone is always there, just out of sight. Walking through the halls. Watching. My family refuses to return, and I can't even stay for long without feeling... Anyways I don’t know what’s worse: the chaos before, or this eerie silence now."
Yasuhara frowned, his usual cheer absent. "And what happened to the Spiritualist?"
"She disappeared," Yamada said, his voice breaking. "She told me the job will be done within a week, and I believed her. But when I tried to contact her later, she was... gone. No one knows where she is."
He placed the folder on the desk and slid it toward Naru. "This is everything she left behind—notes, sketches, records of what she encountered in the house. She did the job, but I don’t know what went wrong, so please... help me. I can’t live like this anymore."
Naru picked up the folder, flipping through its contents. The handwriting was precise, the notes thorough, yet something about them felt deeply unsettling. His gaze caught on the name signed at the bottom of each page: The Spiritualist.
“We’ll take the case,” Naru said after a moment. “You’ll need to grant us full access to the property, and we may have questions for you during the investigation.”
Yamada exhaled shakily, relief washing over him. "Thank you... thank you so much."
Lin stood, his expression calm but resolute. "We’ll arrive at the site tomorrow. Prepare yourself; this may take some time."
As Yamada left the office, Yasuhara glanced at the folder. "The Spiritualist, huh? Sounds like someone who knew what she was doing."
Ayako nodded, her arms still crossed. "She must’ve been skilled to quiet the activity. But if she really succeeded, why does the house feel... haunted still? And why did she leave all her case notes behind?"
“That’s what we’re going to find out,” Naru said, closing the folder. Though he didn’t voice it, an uneasy feeling settled in his chest. Something about this case felt disturbingly personal, as though the shadows of the past were creeping closer than ever before.
Day One: Arrival at the House
The Yamada residence stood like a hollow shell of its former glory. The once-pristine exterior was marred by peeling paint, overgrown vines crawling up the sides like veins on aging skin. The air around it was cold, unnaturally so, and the faint scent of mildew and decay lingered in the breeze.
As the team stepped out of the van, Masako clutched her sleeve to her face. "The energy here is overwhelming," she murmured, her voice trembling. "Even standing outside, I can feel it."
The group exchanged uneasy glances before making their way to the front door. Yamada Saburo, the client, greeted them with a shaky bow. His clothes hung loosely on his frame, as though the stress had eaten away at him over time.
"Thank you for coming," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "Please do what you need to do, I have to return to my family. Goodbye.” Yamada scurried away into his vehicle and drove off.
The house seemed to breathe as the team moved through it, the creaking of the floorboards echoing in the silence. Each room told a story of abandonment—dusty furniture, forgotten belongings, and walls stained with watermarks from years of neglect.
Monk, John, and Ayako took the west wing while Yasuhara and Lin focused on setting up equipment in the central hallway. Masako lingered near the staircase, her gaze fixed on something unseen.
"Monk," Ayako said, breaking the silence. "This place gives me the creeps. It feels like something’s watching us."
"Yeah," Monk replied, his voice low. "But it’s not angry. It’s... sad."
In the dining room, John examined faint scorch marks on the floor. "These could be remnants of an earlier ritual. Perhaps from the Spiritualist?"
"Maybe," Monk said. "But why would someone leave without finishing the job?"
In the east wing, Masako paused near a cracked mirror, her reflection distorted. "There’s something here," she whispered, her hand brushing the frame. "It’s trying to reach out... but it’s hesitant."
When the team reconvened in the master bedroom, Lin was reviewing footage from the cameras. "Activity spikes seem to occur when we enter specific rooms," he noted. "But it’s inconsistent."
Naru glanced at the folder Yamada had provided. "We need more information on the Spiritualist. Yasuhara, contact the client. Find out everything you can about her involvement."
Day Three: The Truth Unveiled
On the second day the team spent the day scouring all their findings but were no closer to identifying the lingering medium as the client refused to divulge information on the freelancer.
By day three the team, instead, set up their seance in the dining room, the most active area.
As Lin’s shiki swirled through the air, a figure began to materialize—a young woman with soft brown eyes and a familiar warmth. The team froze as the realization hit them like a tidal wave.
"Mai?" Ayako whispered, her voice breaking.
Mai’s figure shimmered, her expression tinged with sorrow. She didn’t speak, but her presence filled the room with an overwhelming sense of love and regret.
"No..." Monk staggered back, his sutras falling from his hands. "No, this can’t be real. You’re supposed to be alive!"
Yasuhara dropped to his knees, his hands gripping the floor. "I searched for you... I tried to find you. And you were here all along?"
John’s tears fell freely as he whispered a prayer. "Mai... why didn’t you let us help you?"
Naru’s stoic facade cracked. He stepped forward, his voice trembling. "You stayed behind to protect them. Even after death, you..." His voice broke, and he clenched his fists.
Mai’s form began to fade, her eyes glistening with unspoken words. She raised a hand, her ethereal glow enveloping the room one last time.
"Don’t go!" Ayako cried, reaching out as if she could hold onto her. "Stay with us!"
Masako wiped her tears, her voice barely audible. "She can’t. She’s finally at peace."
As Mai’s spirit vanished, the oppressive weight lifted, leaving the team in a heavy silence.
Aftermath
The ride back to the office was quiet, each member lost in their thoughts.
"She gave everything," John said softly, breaking the silence.
"And we didn’t even realize she was gone," Ayako murmured, tears streaming down her face.
Naru stared out the window, his reflection in the glass a mask of grief. "We’ll make sure her sacrifice wasn’t in vain," he said quietly.
The team left that house, each carrying the weight of their failure to realize the truth sooner. Though the case was solved, the cost was far greater than they ever anticipated.