落とし穴番外：田舎の家 (Part2)
"Hahaha, that’s the hallmark of a small home. Mine was much the same. Never enough food to go around, though."
" "Hahaha." "
I could only offer a wry smile in response to Taizo’s observation. Even before the war, food was hardly abundant, after all.
"Nothing out of the ordinary here. Just two rooms at the end of the hallway."
As Taizo noted, a corridor cut through the center of the single-story house, leading to a sliding door on either side.
"Shall we get on with it?"
"Understood."
Without any particular need for caution, we slid the doors open one after another. Inside, we found what appeared to be a child’s room, and a bedroom with a Buddhist altar tucked into the corner.
"Honestly, leaving an altar behind like this is unthinkable, isn't it?"
"It’s a reconstruction, after all. I doubt it was simply abandoned, but we should have someone look at it later, just in case."
"Before that, even if the people who lived here are long gone, we should at least pay our respects."
"You’re right."
Taizo was correct. Even though the house had been abandoned ages ago, we hadn't exactly been granted formal permission to enter. Offering a greeting was only proper.
Hoping that the original inhabitants had properly relocated the spirits when they moved out, I pressed my palms together in prayer. I even lit some incense. It was, after all, the Obon season. It occurred to me that I hadn't visited my grandfather’s grave in the countryside for quite some time.
As I was lost in that thought...
"Hm? What’s this?"
Yuki pointed toward a small doll displayed atop a chest of drawers.
"That’s separate from the altar, isn't it? But it just looks like a regular doll, doesn't it?"
"No, look closer. Is that a tiny shrine behind it?"
Prompted by Taizo, I took a closer look. Indeed, there was a miniature shrine-like structure placed behind the doll. But...
"Isn't that just a design choice?"
"Hmm, perhaps. It’s a bit too subtle to be a place for praying for safety or a bountiful harvest."
"For now, let’s make a note of it and move on to the rest of the search, shall we?"
"Let’s do that. Next up are the closets, the crawlspace, the attic, and any hidden rooms."
"Those are the most dangerous spots."
In the countryside, it’s a common trope to find a "cursed room" tucked away in such hidden spaces. It’s practically a cliché. Fortunately, however, this house contained no such thing. I double-checked with the Call screen, and it confirmed there was nothing of note in the attic or elsewhere, so my worries were unfounded.
"Actually, couldn't we have just checked with the Call screen from the start?"
"The Call screen follows our rules, but if something is sealed or magically concealed, there’s no guarantee it will react. Visual confirmation is the baseline."
"As Yuki says, seeing things with your own eyes is vital. Besides, we’re using the Call screen as a secondary check, so we should be fine."
It was a slightly unsettling thought, but since I didn't know a more reliable way to detect such things, I couldn't argue.
"Right then. About thirty minutes per house—we’ll have no trouble finishing them all. Let’s head to the next one."
" "Ooh!" "
Ah, but spending our precious summer vacation doing nothing but searching under this scorching sun is a bit much. Let’s get this over with quickly...
"Let’s finish this job in a flash and go play at the beach!"
" "Ooh!!" "
That’s the spirit. We’re going to make the most of this summer.
And so, after much hard work...
We confirmed the presence of a 'doll' in every single house. However, according to Souta and Mizu, they didn't feel anything malicious—in fact, they didn't sense any power from them at all.
What on earth could they be?
Small houses in the countryside are just like that. The clutter inside varies depending on the family's circumstances.