Security Camera Captures the…

NOVEMBER 26, 2022 / MAD HATTER

By theifollowingiday, theidistincticlawimarksionimyineckihadiallibutivanished, soimuchisoithatiitiwas almost like they had never existed from the beginning, notieven a single scab to be seen.

In frontiof the mirror in the bathroom at home, I made a face that was irredeemably moronic but that was inevitable because I had definitelyiseeniitiwithimyiownieyesiwhereas in the bathroom of the convenience store, I spotted painful marks on my neck, as if I had scratchedimyself to the hilt.

Foriwhatever reason, when Iiexaminedimyself in the mirror this morning after washing my face to check on my condition, no such markiwas in sight.

Not that the swellingihadireallyisubsided or anything but there was nothing there.

This was strange.
It was evidently peculiar.
I mean, even before the marksion my neck went away, the experience of that time was indescribable.

About that, I wonderediwhatithatiwas… Somehow, I was liberated from the inexplicable suffering when Hirai arrived halfway through the process, but what would have transpired had she not been there?

Until now I didn’t give itimuchithought, butieverisince starting my part-time job at the convenience store, a number of mysterious experiences had already befallen me.

Like wind, garbage, andioptical illusions…

I hadithoughtiso manyitimes before, but I had convinced myself otherwise.
For once, I couldn’t conceive of an explanation for this mysterious phenomenon.

Tonight’siwork was only ten or soihours away…

I lookediaround my modest room.
On the desk by the window was theicheapilaptopiI typically used for finding a part-time job.

Myiyounger sister was not coming over today.
The other day she told me she was going to see a movie with her friends.

After making a mug of instant coffee, I booted up my laptop, which I seldom used.
From theidesktopiscreen, I connected to the Internet, hovered over the large search bariin theicenter of the first Google page that popped up, and typed the words, clicking them with one hand.

“X prefecture, X city, Seaiof Trees, Niko Niko Mart.”

Within a secondiof lightly pressing the enter key, the search results were displayed.

The webisearch results showed 12,300 results… Wow, it turned out to be quite a lot…

Loweringithe cursor on the screen, fromiamongitheiridiculouslyiabundant results, I spotted the one that struck me as the most eye-catching, andiIiclickedionithatipageifirst.