Chapter 195: Yūmi Island (Part 1)
Chapter 195: Yūmi Island (Part 1)
The temperature began to drop after setting out to sea.
The sea wind swirled away in the chill of the night.
“I heard that Yūmi Island used to have another name.”
Kase Mi, a second-year student at Yamaryo University.
Her eyes sparkled mischievously.
“While local fishermen still lived on Yūmi Island, it was called Bone-Eaters Island. A long time ago, the fishermen worshipped a local sea god known as Lord Yasha. It’s said that on the third week of February every year, they held a mysterious ritual deep in the night.”
She spoke vividly, her tone thick with spooky dread.
“They would capture sea merchants or innocent people from the coast and bring them to the island. They threw them off a cliff called ‘Mount Oshinogami’. This was to offer sacrifices to the sea god Yasha. Those unlucky offerings would plummet down the sea-cliff onto the rocky shore below. Some were splattered on impact, others broke their limbs, and worst of all, some even had their faces split clean in half…”
A night breeze blew softly. The atmosphere among her nearby companions became strangely silent. Kase Mi didn’t hold back at all. She continued calmly speaking as the night wind brushed past.
“But after the Meiji period began, the government enforced the policy of ‘unity of ritual and government’. All local shrines became national ancestral shrines. They were consolidated based on a ranking system. Local shrines excluded from this ‘consolidation’ were suppressed as mere superstitions. The fishermen also started moving away because this place was too remote. But even now, some say strange people are active on the island, performing various cultish rituals…”
“Enough! Kase, stop talking nonsense here.”
A book came down, landing with a soft thud on Kase Mi’s head.
The speaker was a young man wearing a slight smile. His name was Yuki Ham, a university assistant, a bit older than these young students.
To them, Yuki was practically a senior.
Seeing how a couple of the girls looked scared by Kase Mi’s story, the corner of his mouth twitched.
“There are no strange rumors about Yūmi Island. Sure, there was a small village there once, but it was just an ordinary village.”
“Whoa! You scared me to death!”
A pretty girl with glossy black hair clasped her chest, shooting Kase Mi a reproachful look as Kase continued to grin slyly.
“Kase, you always like to talk about things that frighten people.”
Ato Shiho was the cutest-looking girl in the group. Like Kase Mi, she was a second-year at Yamaryo University.
“Hehehe, Shiho, it’s not made up! It’s a dark legend the island’s fishermen passed down. It’s just… well now, after so long, the truth about the island is buried in darkness…”
“Keep lying!”
Yuki Ham chuckled. “Your story is straight from a passage in the detective novel Night Demon Island. That was just a ‘story’ dreamed up by the novelist Kiryu Reizuke. Though, he did mention in an interview that the Night Demon Island in his book was basically designed using Yūmi Island as the model…”
“It’s not that simple!”
Kase Mi pushed on. “Yūmi Island really is quite unique. According to Kiryu Reizuke, during the Tenpo era, some Dutch merchants sailing at night saw blue fireballs rising towards the island…”
“So you’re saying there are UFOs on the island?!”
A guy wearing a shirt and jeans, sitting on another chair in the cabin, snapped. A cigarette hung from his lips.
“You guys actually believe this stuff?”
Sakuma Bohei was another third-year student. He had dyed light yellow hair and sunglasses dangling from his shirt collar. He was also part of the archaeology department.
“But that cult currently on the island… don’t they claim their Founder, Hayashizaki Ichi, can communicate with beings from TAR Galaxy? Talk to those alien beings from higher dimensions…”
A short, bespectacled young man was flipping through a magazine.
“Thinking about it that way, it makes sense why the Shinzaki Tenrikyo chose this place for their base. They really might be trying to make contact with aliens.”
At this point, the short guy couldn’t help but laugh.
Mentioning the Shinzaki Tenrikyo, however, wiped the smiles off everyone’s faces.
They all felt a bit uneasy about that cult on the island. After all, the Shinzaki Tenrikyo didn’t have the best reputation.
The Shinzaki Tenrikyo sect wasn’t an especially extreme “cult.” Legally, it was even a registered, legitimate religious organization. To most regular people, groups like this and the Sōka Gakkai (SGI) probably seemed just like strange societies.
Ever since the Aum Shinrikyo incident, people tended to be cautious about secretive religions like this. Bringing it up naturally made the atmosphere a bit awkward.
“Alright, enough about that. Get ready, everyone. We reach the island in about an hour.”
Yuki Ham looked at everyone’s expressions and decided it was time to drop the subject.
“What time is it now?”
Some of the others, who had been sleeping, started waking up at the slightly noisy chatter.
Everyone was dressed for travel, mostly in light, casual clothes. Professor Horikawa Shinjo, the leader of the archaeology team, had gone ahead to the island days earlier.
This trip was led by Assistant Professors Osawa Kyotaro and Tomatsu, bringing a group of students for a field study. It was practical experience as part of an archaeology project. Since joining Professor Horikawa’s team offered extra credits, these young people were happy to tag along.
“Three AM. Still can’t figure out why we couldn’t have started earlier.”
Osawa Kyotaro had also slept on the table for half the night. He yawned and stretched.
“They say an hour until we reach the island? You’ve been there before, right? Anything special about the place?”
Fang Jing hadn’t slept at all. He’d been observing everyone on the boat the whole time.
Most passengers aboard were students from Yamaryo University. A few others were heading to other tourist islands nearby.
“Some are visiting family. This area has lots of islands nearby, but Yūmi Island is the farthest and least populated.”
Osawa rubbed his chin.
“It’s just an ordinary island, nothing special. The environment is plain too. Unlike the nearby islands, which rack their brains trying to create unique local products or build tourist attractions to pull visitors in. There’s no bathing beach, no campsites. Just steep cliffs surround the island. The only access point is one harbor.”
Apart from the harbor, there were no other places for boats to dock. No hot springs, no mysterious caves to explore. It was basically a deserted island not worth a second look.
…
Osawa’s assessment was fairly accurate. A little past four AM, the exhausted group finally set foot on Yūmi Island.
Standing at a corner of the deck, they could see the dark outline of the island in the night. Heavy clouds blanketed the western sky, a murky, pale blackness. Leaden clouds pressed down on the island. The dark silhouette of Yūmi Island’s ridge resembled a beast lying on its side along the ocean’s surface. Its western flank stretched like a thin line, curving southwards, seemingly embracing the bay.
Behind the bay, clusters of lights marked buildings. These were dwellings built by the Shinzaki Tenrikyo.
The island wasn’t large. Around it lay wind-eroded cliffs, jagged rocks, and pale mudflats.
Nothing else unnecessary was visible in sight. It was a solitary island, true to its mysterious name.
As they landed, a breeze picked up, carrying a heavy dampness with it.
Many felt the sudden chill.
Professor Horikawa, dressed like an English gentleman, stood cold-faced. Beside him was a man dressed in white.
“I am Kuzunoki Tadashi. Welcome to Yūmi Island.”
Kuzunoki Tadashi was one of the officials of the Shinzaki Tenrikyo sect.
He was the person primarily responsible for welcoming the group.
Once everyone was ashore, he guided the archaeology team to their accommodations.
“You’ve had a long, tiring journey. Please rest first,” Kuzunoki advised before leaving.
“Regarding this island: It serves as the headquarters of the Shinzaki Tenrikyo sect. Our Founder, Mr. Hayashizaki, stipulated that followers must cultivate in a place of purity. Because of this requirement, the island has no connection to the outside world. Devices like phones are unusable here.”
“The central zone of the island is the sect’s sacred area. That’s where the main shrine is, on the south side. Non-members are strictly forbidden from entering this sanctuary. Your work area is on the island’s western side. That’s also where the archaeological dig site is located.”
“The northern part of the island, where we are now, is accessible to everyone. You can move freely here. However, do not go near the cliffs northeast of here. That direction is deemed unlucky; in geomantic terms, it’s called the ‘Devil’s Gate’. Please keep this firmly in mind.”
After Kuzunoki finished speaking, Professor Horikawa cleared his throat.
“Listen well to what Mr. Kuzunoki has told us. We are here for work, so please cause no trouble for the sect. Make sure to remember these points…”
“Yūmi Island is indeed a place of cultivation, so there will be many inconveniences. Your understanding is appreciated,” Kuzunoki added politely.
After delivering this information, the two men left the building.
The moment they were gone, everyone burst into chatter.
“What was all that? Did they come just to tell us half the island is off-limits?”
“The cult’s attitude is pretty bad!”
“Damn it! No internet here? That sucks! How are we supposed to survive the next few days?”
Complaints filled the room instantly.
“Hey, don’t worry too much. Radios still work! It’s just phones with no network access. But if you really need to make a call, maybe ask Mr. Kuzunoki? The sect does have a satellite phone for contacting the mainland…”
Yuki Ham tried to reassure everyone.
“Alright, everyone, get some proper rest now! We have training after lunch tomorrow. We need to plan out the work ahead.”
Then, Osawa and Tomatsu stepped in, offering a few more soothing words, finally quieting down the grumbles.