I know the things I saw yesterday weren't dreams, but it still feels like they weren't actually real.
My new counselor said that he wants to visit you next week.
I wonder if anything has changed because I went to the hospital.
We had an out-of-body experience... Makoto claimed that our spirits left our bodies.
Is that something that happens often in this world?
Or...?
Stand up.
Bow.
Cheater!
You've trimmed it all around.
Shut up.
Could you sleep last night?
I couldn't sleep at all. It was really hard because-
Stop blabbering just because your spirit left your body...
Have you ever experienced something like it before?
You know what kind of family I'm from, don't you?
You're saying that this kind of stuff is routine for you? No way!
Hey, can I visit you some day? I'm very curious about your grandma.
And out of curiosity... your dad is dead, but where's your mom?
L-Let's stop. Haven't we just become friends?
Don't make small talk with me! If you don't stop acting this way I'll-
Kill you?
Shall I throw you off the roof?
Makoto, the princess wants to speak with you later.
Makoto, you are bound by compulsory school attendance only until junior high school.
So if you aren't interested in education, I will train you the year after next.
When did I say that I would succeed you?
It doesn't matter if you want to or not, you don't have a choice.
This is the only path for those of the Ogami family.
I'd rather die!
Don't open that door!
Dad didn't want it either!
Makoto!
Miyako...
What's up?
Ah, sorry. I didn't mean to startle you.
How is it? Have there been any recent... You know...?
I already told you. The situation is improving.
I see... Well then, it's okay...
You should go wash your face.
Yo.
You're still wearing that visor?
I think you should give it up...
I'm surprised that you aren't embarrassed, sporting that hairstyle.
Makoto!
Well, since the three of us even run into each other here, we must have some kind of bond.
Hey, I've been meaning to ask you...
Have you been able to leave your body since then?
Nope, and I don't want to.
What about you, Makoto?
I haven't.
Me neither.
I still have vivid dreams, but...
Leaving your body is something that requires rigorous training, usually.
Does that mean that everyone who trains will be able to do it?
As if I'd know.
Those things we saw when we left our bodies...
Ghosts, huh?
Ghosts? You mean like in those ghost photographs?
So it wasn't this world after all?
We were probably in Kakuriyo.
What is this Kakuriyo thing? Do you mean, like, the other side?
I guess it's something similar.
Underneath that dam, there was some kind of connection between Kakuriyo and Utsushiyo.
Editor's note: Utsushiyo is the physical world; in other words, reality.
You know a lot about this, as might be expected.
Makoto... do you want to have another out-of-body experience?
I see. Then we'll visit your home right after this.
Um, do out-of-body experiences really exist?
OBE... There are, in fact, reports of it.
Komori, have you experienced something similar?
N-No, I haven't.
In the past, out-of-body experiences were said to be some kind of spiritual phenomenon.
Today there are dedicated research facilities, such as the American Monroe Institute,
Editor's note: The Monroe Institute is a 30-year-old organization dedicated to researching human consciousness.
that examine the phenomenon's neurological aspects.
However, some cases are believed to be due to Depersonalization Disorder.
Editor's note: Depersonalization Disorder consists of a chronic sensation of physical detachment from one's body and an inability to differentiate reality from imagination.
Depersonalization...
It is one of the symptoms of Dissociation Disorder.
Editor's note: Dissociation Disorder is a psychological reaction to traumatic experiences in which the mind compartmentalizes memories and emotions.
Some people with extreme trauma feel like their consciousness is being severed from their body.
Eventually they lose their grip on reality.
So this is...
Correct. Dissociation is a symptom of PTSD,
but recently there have been cases of the syndrome being experienced without prior trauma.
We still don't know anything about the details of the mechanism.
But if you stimulate the brain directly with electrical signals,
you will be able to have an out-of-body experience.
Isn't it unusual for a young lady like yourself to take over a brewery?
In the past women couldn't enter breweries, but today it's nothing special.
In this region, we begin working after the new year.
Therefore, we have to tidy up and prepare various things.
Ah.
So you commute all the way from Tokyo?
Well, it's several days a week, so I'm planning to rent an inexpensive estate.
Oh, well, well.
You don't need to worry.
The Prefecture Board of Education is offering it to me, so it would be best for me to use this opportunity.
Um, please take care of Tarou.
Tarou is a very good child.
He tries to face reality and is very optimistic, so do not worry.
How is the condition of his mother?
I...
She is visiting a doctor nearby. Most recently, she has been attending therapy sessions and receiving medication.
I see...
Hm?
You would like me to accompany you?
Just to the bus station.
Honestly, I'm not as concerned about myself as much as-
You're concerned for your mother, am I right?
I want to help you in any way I can.
I have a lot of experience treating crime victims.
Recently I discovered...
that she didn't become ill just because of that incident.
When my sister and I were kidnapped, she received some prank calls.
The only people who knew about the kidnapping were the people of this town,
but I don't know what those people said to her.
I see.
My mother can't sleep, so she takes sleeping pills.
But if she takes drugs, she can't dream.
She wants to see my older sister in her dreams.
There are times I imagine how wonderful it would be if one could control the content of one's dreams.
You have a kind heart, Komori.
I'm afraid.
I get it...
What I'm really afraid of...
is that my mother will break.
Whoa! I left my body!
It's not just in my head after all.
What's this?
What are you hurrying for?
Makoto?
You came too.
"Too?"
Hey!
Don't fly so high!
Yeah, it... Well, it seems like she's someone else.
Yeah, exactly.
Yeah.
Altered personality? I doubt that she suffers from schizophrenia, but...
No, nothing like that has happened yet.
She's telling me it's getting better, but... I have the feeling that it's getting worse.
Why did the three of us leave our bodies together?
I think it's just a coincidence.
There must be some kind of link.
And this triggers it...
A few minutes ago, I saw ghosts.
You're lying!
It's not surprising.
In Kakuriyo, the dead wander, just as we do.
You mean, this is Kakuriyo?
I don't think that normal people should come here.
I mean, it's not like I'm scared or anything, but...
I wonder what's happening over there.
I thought I'd be accustomed to this kind of visual, but it's different from my games.
So this is how it is now.
Where are the ghosts we saw last time?
No idea.
W-What's that?
A bird?
It's looking at us.
Is that a ghost too?
My heart won't stop pounding.
Oh no... Definitely not...
That thing we saw just now. I think I've seen it before.
When you left your body before?
No, I mean... in a book.
Let's take a break. I'm kind of tired.
My body isn't tired, but I've reached my limit.
Let's go home.
Yeah, let's do so.
The black giant...
W-What now?!
Just be quiet.
You two can see it as well?
Huh? What do you mean?
Well, it's in my memories.
Well no, I mean, the one in my memories is...
You mean, from when you were kidnapped?
Yeah.
So the culprit is...
N-No, I mean the one who got run over...
Damn it...
I see. At first I thought you were Tengu,
Editor's note: Tengu are mythical Japanese creatures, usually depicted as grudge-bearing avians.
but you're just kids.
He can see us.
1966, West Virginia, at Point Pleasant. A mass sighting incident involving a monstrous "Mothman" occurred.
The investigator, John E. Keel, claimed that strange voices tried to speak to him through the radio.
After experiencing such things, he came to the conclusion that beings such as the Mothman, UFOs, and fairies
exist in a realm which cannot be seen with the human eye.