Black Pearl

Instead of taking a bag, Ryota took a suitcase with him. The money would be safer in a suitcase with a lock rather than a zip bag. So he would have to carry two suitcases and a bag now.

With a sigh, Ryota sat on the floor. The rectangle block in front of him was empty and only the floorboard was visible. Lying beside him was a suitcase stuffed with notes of one thousand, two thousand, and five-thousand yen.

Ryota had thought the money would be around one hundred thousand yen, but as he packed the bundles into the suitcase, for once he felt the price may be close to two hundred thousand.

That was a scary number because the current amount was four times the amount he could have gathered.

He pulled his hands close and looked at the tables and chairs in the closet. 'I should confront him before things go south.'

He put the tatami mat back, then bent to get the suitcase when something black glowed at him. Ryota closed his eyes, then opened them over the diary on the floor.

Once again, the bulb's light fell on the black pearl fixed on the diary's cover and reflected the light in Ryota's eyes.

He dropped the suitcase back, interested in the diary. He admired the black pearl that was perfectly cut. Ryota flipped the cover, it was flat from the other side – as if the half-stuck pearl in the diary disappeared into nothing.

He closed the diary and turned to examine it. Nothing was on the back. He checked the spine and it just said the words 'Dairy 1965.'

Nodding, Ryota opened the diary. His vision turned black. Energy came bursting from the diary and swarmed Ryota's face.

Black clouds moved like snakes curling around his arm, it enveloped Ryota. He struggled and threw his arms to get the darkness away from him. But the energy couldn't be destroyed.

He leaned forward, coming out of the darkness, panting. He waved the energy away. The clouds dispersed across the room, into the darkness. From the doorframe, two of the three wolf spiders swung down and disappeared under the scraps of metal and wood junk.

Ryota leaned over the diary. The cover page was resting open and the first black page was staring at him. He grabbed that page and dared to flip the diary open.

A blast of energy pushed him back. The pain tensed his chest muscles, tightening, prompting him to scream.

He staggered back on his butt and bumped into the tables behind him. The pile of chairs and tables trembled, threatening to fall over him any moment. In fear, Ryota forgot the pain in his chest and rose. He let the diary fall as he grabbed the tables to keep them from falling.

Slowly, the pain in his chest faded, enabling him to focus on the tables. Finally, he sighed when the tables stood still. 'Just what was that? It felt as if someone blasted air at me.'

The third time he had to reach for the diary, he was afraid of that energy hurting him again. He sat on the floor and decided to take it slow. He reached out for the diary and flipped another page.

The first texts appeared on the black page, they read: This is a property of Hayashi Ryota.

And he stopped reading right there. A frown climbed over his face and he twisted his neck in confusion. 'When did I buy this?'

He had not brought it, yet the printed text stated it belonged to him. The text continued: Please return it if lost or taken by mistake to The Hayashi Hill House, Shizuma.

The corner of Ryota's eyes twitched. 'Where is that place? What is Shizuma in the first place?'

Ryota had not learned Japan's map by heart, but he had a good idea of the cities and islands existing in Japan, Shizma was not one of them. He had never heard about it from anyone either.

Other than that, Ryota never wrote his name on a 1965 diary he had purchased. So whoever wrote PLEASE RETURN IF LOST… was either Ryota in his sleep or… His thoughts faded after that. Only one man knew about his emergency fund. There was a good chance the same man knew about this.

Before he could jump to any conclusions, Ryota continued reading the diary. He turned the page, expecting to see some scribbles, but to his surprise – the page was black.

'Today's date.' He jumped to the fourth of April 1965. The pages had turned yellow and the margin lines had faded with time.

The page of the fourth of April was blank until a map of Japan suddenly popped out. Like the joker-in-the-box, a map attached to the page scrolled down.

'How did it appear out of nowhere?'

It was an old map of Japan, but something was highlighted in red. He blinked, adjusting his eyes. A red dot was in the middle of Tokyo, Chiba, and Kanagawa's Bay. The same red color line was marked to the page of the third of April, and under the arrow was written: Shizuma.

He thought that the map indicated Shizuma's position, but then he frowned. 'Wait— those three bays…' He gasped. 'There is nothing but water all around! When did they build an island?'

He pulled the map close to him. Even in the dim light, he was sure the mark was directed to the blue area between Tokyo, Chiba, and Kanagawa Bay.

His heart sank. 'Many impossible things became possible today. Maybe this can too…'

He flipped through the diary and found the rest of the pages blank. Then he reached the end and found disappointment. But what he read at the bottom of the last page left his mouth hanging open.

For my loving grandson with whom I could only spend a few years. You may not remember me, but I will remember you forever.

Right below the message was a sign, under the sign as another handwritten text: Ojisann, your grandfather.

Ryota bit his lip. 'This can not happen,' he thought. He bit his lower lip as he continued to stare at the message.

The black ink had smudged the pages, but the words could be figured out by anyone.

'Uncle. He must know about this.'