After breaking up, my ex asked me to win her back

Soon, the police arrived.

Three officers in total, two men and one woman, one of whom was older while the other two were younger.

These three must be the only police in the town, as they seemed to take the case very seriously, arriving with stern faces.

It made sense, given that in this rural area, a murder case was a major event, which understandably made them anxious.

After arriving at the scene and inquiring about the situation, the officers were surprised to find that the case was related to a Shrine Maiden's disappearance from over thirty years ago.

Although they all thought Kagura Hikaru's behavior of calling the police based merely on a "guess" was somewhat inappropriate, the suspect's fierce and inwardly anxious demeanor unavoidably raised their suspicions. Driven by their doubts, they proceeded with the angry villagers to the suspect's house.

In reality, this action was somewhat irregular, as without evidence or a search warrant, it was improper to randomly enter someone's home; if no body was found, the suspect could easily sue the police.

But conversely, finding a body would resolve the issue, proving the suspect was the murderer, and minor violations could be overlooked.

Everyone knew that criminals had fewer rights than others, and a judge certainly wouldn't be too hard on the police.

Especially since Hiroichiro Tanaka wasn't some professional serial killer; his psychological resistance was weak. When questioned by the police, he sweated profusely and panicked, clearly indicating his guilt.

What more was there to say?

Before reaching Hiroichiro Tanaka's house, the group had unknowingly grown larger, with most people merely being curious. However, some villagers harbored lingering anger over the past tragic event.

Take, for example, the indifferent middle-aged policeman who walked behind, letting two young officers escort the suspect.

Kagura faintly sensed that this man's views on Hiroichiro Tanaka, or more precisely, on Mizuno Yuna, differed from the others.

"Hey, Shrine Maiden, do you know that person?"

Taking advantage of a moment when no one else was paying attention, Kagura quietly spoke to the Shrine Maiden beside him.

Mizuno Yuna seemed surprised, "Oh, how did you know? Did you use your strange supernatural power?"

"Just intuition."

"Intuition, hmph..." The Shrine Maiden tapped her chin, "After all, thirty years have passed; it's hard to recognize some things. But that older cop, he must be Mr. Shimizu, still as pretentious as ever."

"So you do know him."

"Yeah, he's also from this village. I remember he even confessed his feelings to me back then, heh heh."

The Shrine Maiden smiled smugly, touching her nose like a fox that had stolen some oil-soaked tofu.

Kagura ignored her, lost in thought as he watched the old police officer's retreating figure.

If that was the case, he probably had some ideas.

Soon, everyone arrived in front of Hiroichiro Tanaka's house. Under the villagers' impolite commands, Hiroichiro Tanaka reluctantly took out his keys to open the door, allowing the throng to enter. They quickly found the well in the courtyard.

The well wasn't big, and as Kagura had said, it was sealed with cement, looking abandoned with some withered weeds growing around it.

The villagers eagerly collected tools from their homes to begin unsealing the well.

The process seemed lengthy, probably because none of them had experience, or perhaps Hiroichiro Tanaka had sealed it too tightly, causing slow progress.

About an hour and a half later, Kagura's family returned from the Crematorium, having apparently heard about the situation from others and found Kagura there.

Facing their questions, Kagura could only deflect with seemingly plausible theories.

He had already used these excuses with the police, as they couldn't have spent the hour and a half without asking anything. Kagura had just improvised some details one might find in a detective novel.

Something about visiting the Shrine, accidentally discovering clues, recalling a missing case from years ago, and then piecing together various leads to find the truth.

His explanations, partly true and partly fabricated, managed to temporarily confuse the issue.

"It's open, they've broken through!"

Suddenly, a cheer came from the other side, and the villagers had finally chiseled open a crack at the well's mouth.

After all this time, the first sign of breakthrough lifted everyone's spirits, all except for Hiroichiro Tanaka, who sat on the ground looking exceptionally distressed.

The truth buried for thirty years was about to see the light of day, and his last bit of hope had vanished.

But with a strong young police officer by his side watching over him, he had no chance to escape and could only sit dejected.

The concrete-sealed well was smashed open to the size of a face, and the Shrine Maiden recognized an old police officer who pulled out a flashlight and shone it inside. He seemed to see something, and his expression turned demonic for a moment before he fiercely turned toward Hiroichiro Tanaka sitting on the ground, his eyes red, gesturing to the surrounding villagers, "Break open the well mouth."

From his expression, the surrounding villagers seemed to understand something as well, their faces changing colors and their glances at Hiroichiro Tanaka sharp as arrows, buzzing with discussions.

Soon, the concrete around the well mouth was carefully removed—the villagers trying not to let chunks fall into the well.

Once there was enough space for a person to fit through, a villager went down with a rope into the well, got ready, and came up, pulling the rope upwards with another villager.

Kagura Hikaru calmly watched the well mouth.

First, a bone-white skull appeared in view, followed by the entire skull.

Everyone instantly fell silent, watching in horror.

As they carefully pulled, the skeletal remains of a female were dragged up.

What puzzled Kagura Hikaru was that the skeleton was completely intact.

Normally, human bones do not stay connected after death as it is the tendons and muscles that hold them together. Without flesh, a skeleton is just a loose collection of bones, which cannot normally stand upright.

Yet, the remains before him, still clad in tattered and faded Shrine Maiden Attire, were exactly of Mizuno Yuna, intact and connected, forming a 'normal' female skeleton; it was almost like a prop bought from the internet, but the true color and texture of the bones made it impossible for him not to believe.

Something was wrong!

Kagura Hikaru was suddenly startled.

On closer thought, there were many abnormalities, not to mention the state of the skeleton. How could those three police officers let the villagers tamper with the crime scene? Normally, shouldn't they have left the skeleton in the well for easier evidence collection?

The more he thought about it, the more alarmed he became. Kagura Hikaru cautiously scanned his surroundings, but no one showed any expression that suggested anything was amiss, as if everything was normal.

Could it really be so?

The first suspect was Komori Ai, who had an ability akin to hypnosis. Kagura Hikaru turned his gaze toward her, only to see her shaking her head, equally bewildered.

It wasn't her, then it could only be...

Kagura Hikaru watched as the villagers gently laid the remains on the ground, then his gaze shifted to the Shrine Maiden beside him.

Her look was one of resignation and relief, her face wearing a gratified smile.

Her originally black pupils faintly revealed golden sparkles, emitting a subtle glow that was clearly visible even under the sunlight.

Staring at her, Kagura Hikaru inexplicably felt at ease, as if wanting to leave everything to nature, but this sensation was quickly dispelled by his wariness.

What was that, another Supernatural Power? Were the people around her and her skeleton all influenced by her?

In the legends of the Island Nation, satisfying an Earthbound Spirit's unfulfilled desires during its lifetime would allow the spirit to achieve Nirvana and leave this world.

Then, finding her complete remains and arresting the murderer, could this be the wish of Shrine Maiden Mizuno Yuna, thus indirectly leading to this outcome?

If so, that might explain things, but it still felt odd.

...Well, it seems harmless enough, let it be.

With more and more inexplicable events encountered, Kagura Hikaru was gradually learning to stop overthinking.

He was neither a scholar of the supernatural nor intended to research these phenomena deeply, as digging too deep usually led to no good end.

Having found the remains matching Mizuno Yuna's characteristics in the well, Hiroichiro Tanaka's suspicion was subsequently confirmed, and the old police officer, who the Shrine Maiden called 'Mr. Shimizu,' personally handcuffed him.

The moment the handcuffs were fastened, Kagura Hikaru saw him briefly show an expression as if he was about to cry, but he quickly returned to normal.