Mrrow.

Thanks for helping us, Noir.

A bed, a closet full of clothes, a gramophone, a pile of records…

There are numerous belongings that are personalized to a specific taste. I believe this is Saeki-sama’s bedroom.

Yes, and I’ve grown quite tired after all of that walking. I’ll take this opportunity to rest for a bit.

(He’s just sitting on the bed without a care in the world…)

Master, watch your step.

Why? Wait, woah…

There’s sheet music all over the floor. And it’s…all handwritten.

The handwriting matches that of the memo pad on the bedside table. I conclude that Saeki-sama wrote the sheet music.

I see. I’m starting to get a sense of what kind of person he was.

But…

All of these clothes are the same. Black jackets, bowler hats, and vintage umbrellas.

To be precise, I count 125 umbrellas.

It’s just the same things over and over again… I guess he had an obsessive personality.

You think so? This room isn’t too out of the ordinary for an eccentric artist like him to have.

Really?

People who hate change tend to seek peace by surrounding themselves with familiar things. Perhaps to him, this room was his whole world and the only safe space he had.

Think of him like a child who wraps himself in his bedsheets so monsters don’t eat him up at night.

……

Kinari-kun, are you okay?

(He’s staring at the bedside table.)

There is only one person in this picture.

Toi-sama previously said that Saeki-sama was bedridden when he was alive. I can confirm from looking at this picture that he was in poor condition.

…He resembles my developer.

Kinari-kun…

Saeki-sama… What could your wish be?

…Pfft, haha.

Plüss, you know dead men tell no tales, no matter how much you ask them to.

Kuguri…

What’s the matter? Didn’t you say that ghosts were fictitious? And yet here you are, talking like he’s standing right in front of you.

Are you feeling sympathetic towards him?

…I am wondering if I should reassess my understanding of ghosts.

Toi-sama spoke as if he knew ghosts were real.

There is not sufficient evidence that proves the existence of ghosts. However, there is also not sufficient evidence that disproves their existence.

In that case, the concept of a human dying and returning to this world as a ghost is…

…Ah. So you want to believe in ghosts.

Is it because there’s someone you wish to see again?

……

Unfortunately, even if they did exist, the border between this world and the afterworld is drawn much too thick.

Once you go there, you’ll never return. If you want to reunite with someone who’s gone…

Those who remain in this world have no choice but to meet them over there.

……

Kuguri-san, stop…

What’s wrong, cica? You’re making such an unpleasant face. Do you think I’m trying to lead plüss to ruin?

No, I…

Ah, or maybe it’s the opposite. Did you think I was being enticed by the grim reaper?

…You don’t have to worry. I have no business in that world, for now at least.

Even if I were to go, there’s no guarantee the person I want to see would land in the same hell as me.

……

(Does Kuguri…have someone he wants to meet in the afterworld?)

…I mean, it’s just… I still want you by my side.

I agree. I need you with me, Kuguri.

(I need Kuguri to fulfill his end of our agreement. And…I do not think I would be happy to see him gone.)

Aha, the living are such cute creatures. If that’s how you think, I encourage you to try your best at deceiving me.

But I think I’ve grown a bit tired of being sent on a wild goose chase by a dead man…

M-Meow!

Noir, don’t walk over the sheet music. You’ll get your paw prints on it.

…Hm? This one is…

(The bookshelves just opened up…?! There’s a hidden door.)

Mrow.

Noir is standing in front of the door…

Oh, dear… It seems we’re not out of the woods yet.