It had been a sad and dreary day at a local cemetery in Kyoto. Recently, a local high schooler had committed suicide by hanging, and her family and friends mourned her loss. Her family happened to have a crypt at the cemetery, instead of a traditional Japanese grave, that contained many of their ancestors from long ago.

After the funeral was over, three girls, one with short pink hair in two small pigtails, one with long purple hair, and one with long brown hair in a ponytail, talked to each other before they noticed that their friend, a young man with dark brown hair, was talking to a man that looked a few years older than them. He had light brown hair, and he seemed concerned. The pink-haired one asked the other two, "I wonder who Kiyoteru-kun is talking to."

The brown-haired one seemed worried about his presence, but didn't express it to the other two girls. Meanwhile, Kiyoteru, the younger of the two men, kept talking to the slightly older of the two men, who told him as he handed him a business card, "Give me a call when you can, okay? It is important."

Kiyoteru, looking slightly annoyed, replied, "Fine. I will." The other man then walked away.

The purple-haired one walked up to him and asked him, "Kiyoteru, who was that?"

"Some guy who is concerned about Sayori for some reason," he replied, annoyed by the other man's presence. "He sounded pretty weird, Yuri."

"I wouldn't worry about it," Yuri replied to him. "It's nothing to lose sleep over."

Meanwhile, the brown-haired girl of the bunch thought to herself, "This isn't good. He can't get in the way of my plan. Monika, you need to take out Yuri next."


5 days later

"Yuri," Kiyoteru told her as they stood in an empty classroom together after school. "Please, stop hurting yourself."

"What do you mean?" Yuri by now had gone insane, and she had cutting marks all along her arms. "I feel fine! The only thing I need to do is show how much you mean to me." She then handed Kiyoteru a bloody piece of scrap paper with a poem scribbled on it. "Kiyoteru, it feels like every part of me is screaming your name! I just want to open you up and crawl inside your skin! Is that too much to ask?!"

As Kiyoteru read the poem, he saw that it was almost illegible, but what words he could make out were horrifying. "Yuri! Th-This is-!" By now, he was panicking. "I'm calling the police."

"Don't," Yuri replied as she pulled a knife out. "We're perfectly fine just like this!" She then began to laugh loudly. "Ah! It's time!"

As she began to aim the knife at her abdomen, Kiyoteru yelled out, "Yuri, no!"

Yuri then quietly stabbed herself in the abdomen, letting the knife cut deep inside as the wound drew blood. She then took the knife and stabbed herself in the upper chest. Finally, she stabbed herself again in the abdomen. Once she stabbed herself three times, she collapsed to the floor, not saying a word as blood poured from the two wounds and from her mouth.

Kiyoteru, horrified, screamed out, "Oh my God! Somebody help me! Yuri stabbed herself!" He then screamed loudly.

Monika and the pink-haired girl from before, being down the hall, heard Kiyoteru's scream. Monika asked her friend, "Natsuki, was that Kiyoteru?"

"I think it was," Natsuki replied as she grew concerned. "I think he needs help." They both then bolted back down the hallway towards the Literature Club meeting room. As soon as they arrived, Natsuki flung open the door and called out, "Kiyoteru! Yuri!" Then, she saw the bloody scene before her.

"She...," Kiyoteru stumbled out as he tried to make sense of what had just happened in front of him. "Yuri just..."

Natsuki immediately began heaving as vomit filled her mouth. She tried covering her mouth, but to no avail as the contents of her stomach spilled out onto the floor and onto the right sleeve of her uniform. Monika ran over as she pulled her cell phone out and began to dial the fire department. She said to Kiyoteru, "I'm calling an ambulance now!"


7 Days Later

Kiyoteru and Natsuki walked together to the house of the man whom Kiyoteru has talked to at Sayori's funeral. After Yuri's funeral the day before, they decided to give the man a chance, having called him right after the funeral ended. Natsuki said to a worried Kiyoteru as they walked up to his front door, "Are you sure you want to go through with this?"

"After what Yuri did to herself," Kiyoteru told her. "I feel as if we have no choice. By the way, I didn't tell Monika about this."

"Same here," Natsuki replied as she knocked on the door. "You know, she's been acting weird since Sayori's funeral."

Then, the man from Sayori's funeral opened the door. "Ah, Kiyoteru, was it? Come on in." He seemed friendly enough as Kiyoteru and Natsuki entered his home. Inside, they saw that his living room and kitchen area had various odd pictures hung up in frames on the walls.

Natsuki asked the man, "By the way, what's up with all these pictures?"

"You see," the man replied. "I am a paranormal investigator. I hunt ghosts, track down cryptids, look for UFOs, the whole 9 yards. The pictures I have hung up are pictures of spirits I have captured." He then sighed. "However, I do have another passion, and it is one that pays the bills. I am a police officer of the Kyoto Police Department, and have been for a year following my training. Recently, I have become interested in the criminal activities of a rather peculiar group in our city." He then motioned his hand to a couch. "Please, make yourselves at home."

Kiyoteru and Natsuki then sat down. As they did, Kiyoteru asked him in a skeptical tone, "Now, Akahito, is it? You told us you had information about Sayori and Yuri that we did not know about. Well, what is it?"

"Indeed," Akahito replied as he showed the two of them a thumb drive. "This DVD contains the last words of Hiirasawa Sayori, as well as a conversation with Fujiwara Monika she secretly recorded on the day before her suicide. I used my connections in the police department to be able to take this home with me."

Kiyoteru and Natsuki were shocked. Kiyoteru immediately asked him, "So, let me get this straight. Sayori recorded her own death?"

"Sort of," Akahito replied as he popped the DVD into his TV and turned it on. "Pay attention. The first clip is the audio-only recording of Sayori's last conversation with Monika."

The clip started with Sayori presumably hitting the record button on her phone before sliding it into her pocket. Then, Monika was heard asking her, "Sayori, how have you been?"

"Eh," Sayori was heard replying to her. "So-so, I guess." One could tell that she was faking contentedness. She then was heard yawning. "I gotta get up sooner."

"You should," Monika replied to her. "You know, it seems like you always dote on Kiyoteru. How do you think he feels about you sleeping late and almost being late for school?"

"Well," Sayori said. "He probably hates me for it because I'm a piece of crap for doing that to him." One could tell that her voice was beginning to break down. "Every day, I wake up late and make him wait for me. What kind of friend am I?"

"Now, now," Monika replied to her. "Don't overthink it, Sayori. Have you had these feelings before that you're a terrible friend to him?"

"All the time," Sayori replied to her in a hushed tone. "All the damn time."

"Say," Monika said as she jarringly began to change subjects. "I don't mean to get off topic, but I need to get this off my chest."

"What's up?" Sayori tried to act as if nothing had happened.

"It seems that on every 5th of the month, I always try to kill time with Be Good to Yourself by Journey," Monika randomly brought up out of nowhere. "I don't know why. Please, help me figure out now about why. Maybe I'm bi- Wait, is this conversation hanging by a thread now, Sayori?"

Sayori, now deeply confused, said to Monika, "Uh, did you just have a stroke?"

"Not that I know of," Monika replied. "It always seems to happen on every 5th. Word, huh?" The recording then ended.

Akahito then paused the DVD. "Now, do you recognize anything odd about that conversation?"

"It sure sounded like Monika had a stroke or something at the end," Natsuki replied. "Say, why did she emphasize every 5th of the month like that?"

"Think back to her random comment," Akahito told both of them. "Now think of every 5th word."

Kiyoteru then realized what he was saying. "Was it a secret message?"

"It was," Akahito grimly replied. The message was 'kill yourself, please, by hanging, Sayori.' I'll rewind it." He then pressed rewind on the video to the point where Monika said her random tirade. As Natsuki and Kiyoteru listened closely, they realized Akahito was right. "Now do you see?"

"Oh my God," Kiyoteru replied as he felt his hands clench into angry fists. "She... Monika..."

Akahito then skipped to the second video. "This is a video Sayori took just before she hung herself. It ends just as she ties the rope around her neck." He then played it.

The video showed Sayori filming herself with her phone as she sighed and held up a rope. "Well, Monika, you're gonna get your wish." She then switched the camera feed to show the stool she would kick. "Kiyoteru, if... If you're watching..." She then began to tear up. "I want you to know that I love you, and that you're not at fault for what I'm about to do. Natsuki, Yuri, you two were the best of friends, and I also want you two to know that none of this was your fault, either. None of this is your fault. It's all mine." She then switched back to herself. By now, tears streamed from her eyes as she put the phone down, presumably to tie the rope to the ceiling and make a noose.

Natsuki, who was now crying, said, "Why... Sayori, why..." Kiyoteru also began to break down.

"Well," Sayori said as she picked up her phone. "It's time." She then hopped onto the stool and showed herself tying the noose to her own neck. Once she was done, she said in a broken voice as she faked a smile with tears streaming down her face, "Goodbye, everyone." The video then ended.

Kiyoteru then said to the TV screen, "Sayori... I know you tell me it's not, but... I can't believe it... It is my fault..." He then wiped his face of tears.

Akahito said to both of them, "Monika subtly encouraged Sayori to end her own life, and I think she may have played a part in your friend Yuri's mental breakdown as well."

This, of course, begged just one question, which Kiyoteru asked. "Why? Why would she do this?"

"Remember that group I mentioned earlier? Well, Monika is a member of a cult known as the Organization of Knowledge." Akahito then sighed. "The OK Group believes that this world is something along the lines of the Matrix, in that we are all living in a simulation. They believe that they need to collect sacrifices to break free. However, they cannot directly kill their sacrifices. In Monika's case, she used psychological techniques to manipulate her victims into killing themselves. Once they do, they will wait normally about 10-15 days, and then steal their remains, if they are still around, and conduct a burning ritual with them."

Kiyoteru then asked him, "How far will she go? Is Sayori's body gone?"

"She will go to any and all lengths," Akahito replied. "I should know, for I used to go to your school, though I was a third-year when you all were first-years. I even dated Monika. She broke up with me to join the cult, which led me to become a police officer. It is my mission in life to take down that cult once and for all, and to bring it's leader to justice. Also, no, Sayori's body is still safe. However, the cult plans on stealing the body tonight."

Natsuki, flabbergasted, replied, "Tonight?!"

"Indeed," Akahito replied. "It's a good thing you both came to my home today, because I'm going to need your help." He then walked over to and opened a case on a kitchen counter, pulling out a rifle. "Have you ever fired a gun before? Either of you?" They both shook their heads. "I thought so. I will be using my service pistol. I entrust these rifles in your hands. They're simple to use, really." He then showed them the parts of the gun. "Obviously, you pull the trigger to fire. This rifle and the other are identical. Both carry 10 rounds at a time, and are semiautomatic, meaning you don't have to cock it every time after you pull the trigger. They use clips that are fed in from the top." He then popped open the top of the rifle and grabbed a 10-round clip. "To load it, all you need to do is slide this clip in, shut the top, and cock it. If you're firing and a round gets jammed, just cock it to eject the jammed round and keep firing."

Natsuki asked him, "Why do we need guns?"

"This cult deals with the Yakuza on occasion," Akahito replied. "They do illegally traffic and store guns of many kinds from around the world."

"Say," Kiyoteru asked him out of curiosity. "Who is their leader, anyway?"

"Azuma Yosuke," Akahito simply replied. "He is 52 years old and has experience in the JGSDF in cyber security and cyber warfare. After he left the military in 2015, he founded his cult, which numbers around 1,000 members right now. He is armed and extremely dangerous. He is wanted right now for various counts of wire fraud that he committed to fund his cult, though that list of charges will definitely expand soon."

"I assume we're going to the cemetery?" Natsuki then thought to herself about the situation.

"Indeed," Akahito replied as he put the rifle and clip away in the case. "We will meet at the cemetery around 10 at night. The cultists will be there soon after. They will be armed, so be careful. I expect about 5 of them to show up."