Kouichi thought about what Mei had told him, he knew that Naoki was an orphan and lived with his uncle, however, he knew nothing, about his family's background and also about what happened in 1977.

Not wanting to touch sensitive topics, he searched his grandparents' house, where he found old newspapers .

"1988, 1992, 1971, 1977 - there it is," he thought when he found the May 1977 issue of Yomiyama Shinbun.

The newspaper was almost falling apart, however, there was an article in it about a murder at the Muneyoshi estate on the outskirts of Yomiyama

Kouichi thought about what Mei had told him, he knew that Naoki was an orphan and lived with his uncle, however, he knew nothing, about his family's background and also about what happened in 1977.

Not wanting to touch sensitive topics, he searched his grandparents' house, where he found old newspapers .

"1988, 1992, 1971, 1977 - there it is," he thought when he found the May 1977 edit of Yomiyama Shinbun.

The newspaper was almost falling apart, however, there was an article about the murder at the Muneyoshi estate on the outskirts of Yomiyama, it included photos of the victims, as well as the entire crime scene, and mentioned that the victims had been killed by both firearms and bladed weapons.
On top of that, he read an interview with the then head of the Yomiyama Police Department, Yoshio Oguchi, who stated that the perpetrator most likely acted alone - Kouichi found this absurd, and didn't believe his version of the events, so with some reluctance he decided to ask his grandmother about it.

-Grandma, can I ask you a question?
Tamie looked at her grandson and smiled slightly.

- Sure, ask whatever you want Kouichi...

Kouichi, not realizing the seriousness of the matter, spoke up.

- Do you know exactly what happened in the Showa Day Incident in 1977?

I recently heard it from a friend and...

The expression on Kouichi's grandmother's face changed instantly from cheerful to deathly frightened and serious, Tamie moved to the windows, and delicately looked out through them, then closed and covered them.

- You shouldn't be interested in this incident.

Kouichi had never heard his grandmother's voice so serious in his life, and was a bit frightened, when Tamie recognized that no one was eavesdropping on them, she calmed down a bit and decided to briefly explain to her grandson so happened on the 29th of April 1977.

- Kouichi, the topic of this incident is here... a kind of taboo... in a way, everyone felt sorry for the people who were murdered that day, however, no one felt sorry for the survivors, and they had good reason for it, which is why no one wants to pursue it, but not only that, once a journalist Yomiyama Shinbun decided to research the subject, rumor has it that he even discovered the identity of the perpetrator, but...

- But?

Kouichi asked his grandmother in a frightened voice, as if anticipating what Tamie was about to say.

- He was murdered, however, it was not a simple death, first he was abducted, and then all indications are that he was tortured
Tamie looked at Kouichi with tears in her eyes and said this with a broken voice.

- Promise me that you won't delve into the subject of this event, I'm almost certain that the Great Clans will silence anyone who wants to research this subject today as well.

- The Great Clans?

Tamie calmed down a bit when Kouichi changed the subject. She gathered her information and began to tell the story.

- In ancient times, four feudal clans - Anju, Hironiwa, Minamiyashiki and Muneyoshi - ruled the surrounding areas, even before this city was founded.

Even this incident is said to have had something to do with their misdeeds, especially since the Hironiwa and Muneyoshi clans hated each other, I don't know, maybe perhaps since the Heian era.
Kouichi was shocked and at the same time, his curiosity told him that he should explore the topics of the mysterious tentacles of the four clans, despite his grandmother's warnings.

- But why did no one feel sorry for them?
- They always despised us, ordinary people, and would even murder us by accident if we got in their way, or if we knew too much about their business, I remember when I was about your age, when the first suspicious murders linked to those clans began to occur.
This continued on and off until 1977, which is why no one in Yomiyama felt sorry for them, because every one of those clans, well... maybe except for the Anju Clan, was associated with violence and contempt for ordinary people.
Kouichi reflected on his grandmother's words; on the one hand, he understood why Naoki seemed so aloof, and why he was quite disliked in class, even though no one directly targeted him; however, on the other hand, he realized that the Muneyoshi Clan from which he came had lost its influence after the Showa day incident in 1977, so if someone wanted to torment him, they could theoretically do so without such severe consequences. Thinking about the information he possessed, however, owning the anxiety sown by his grandmother's words.

Takeshi Miyagawa's accusation of murdering 12 people, with both firearms and white weapons, seemed absurd to Kouichi.

However, he was afraid to ask Naoki about it directly, so he decided to ask Ayato, on the grounds that the Anju clan had the fondest reputation of all the Four Clans, so in the next day Kouichi approached him after school.
- Hi Anju-kun, can I ask a question for sure?
-Yeah, sure, feel free to ask anything…
Kouichi thought about a good choice of words, and after a while, with a little stress, decided to ask Ayato if he knew anything about Showa day incident 1977.

- Do you know anything about the 1977 Showa day incident, perhaps? I know this might be a bit of an intrusion into the history of the Muneyoshi-kun family, but... why did one clan nearly wiped out overnight?

Ayato seemed intrigued by the question, however, he was also somehow not stressed.

- Admittedly, my last name is Anju, however, my immediate family is merely a distant branch, and as for this incident, we do not know, maybe the more important members of my family would know what really happened there, besides even If I would know, I guess I wouldn't be able to talk about it.
- I see…
Kouichi said as he felt a bit more cautious since he wanted to ask another question about that incident.
- Is it as dangerous subject as they told? Reportedly someone was killed a few years ago, because he or she digged into that subject.
- Oh, that must be only rumors, I don't think that The Great Clans would hide it, since they won't just attack one another, so… probably police told the truth, as irrational as it might sound.
- You think so?
Kouichi smiled a bit feeling relieved, he could also change the topic to something lighter – at least he thought.
- You knew Misaki Fujioka right?

This seemingly completely innocent question caused Ayato to start stressing intensely, Ayato feeling threatened smiled sadly.

- Yes. I, Muneyoshi-kun and she were very good friends back then.
It is a real pity that she died...

Ayato tried to avoid eye contact with Kouichi during their conversation, as if he was afraid of him, for an unexplained reason.
- And why are you asking Sakakibara-kun?
- Well, did you know she was Misaki-san's cousin?
Well, did you know that she was her cousin?

- No, although, they do indeed look alike, and what does that have to do with anything?

- Misaki-san told me a bit about her, and I'm curious about what she was like.

Ayato began to ponder, however, every reminder of her, caused him grief, sadness and remorse, he finally looked away from Kouichi, not wanting to bring up the subject.

- I don't want to talk about it...

Kouichi, seeing the reluctance in Ayato's eyes, decided to change his mind, thinking that Ayato would help him, Mei and Naoki in investigating Misaki's death.

- In truth, Anju-kun, it is Mei and Muneyoshi-kun's opinion that Misaki may not have died of leukemia, but of poisoning, most likely with arsenic.

Ayato at these words barely maintained consciousness and nearly snapped.
- Sakakibara-kun... don't want to talk about this topic... Please, I don't want to...

Ayato's hands were trembling which Kouichi noticed, however, he wanted to respect Ayato's will and nodded, seeing Ayato's trembling hands
Ayato initially walked away however later began to run, as if running away from Kouichi, inside he felt heartbroken, and scared, he ran disregarding the lanes through the streets, due to which he was hit by a car.

Ayato survived, however, he was hospitalized for a few days, the injuries were not serious so he was expected to return to school soon.

Kouichi, on the other hand, wondered about Ayato's strange reaction - was he hiding something?