The Past Unearthed

The vehicle came to a stop without a sound.

It wasn't a delivery van, a kerosene delivery truck, or some government vehicle. The man who stepped through the immaculate black rear door climbed the exterior stairs one step at a time, as if checking the rust, then gave a flawless forty-five-degree bow.

"My name is Kajio, and I oversee external affairs for the Genbu Clan. You are Hiiragi Shinichi-sama, correct? ...I have come today as Chairman Togakushi's representative."

I studied the tortoiseshell crest on the business card he held out for a while. The same crest was carved into the floor on the building's first floor, where I'd been coming for eight years.

"Please, have some tea, at least. It's cramped."

"I appreciate it."

There were two cushions in the six-tatami room. Last week, the state had occupied that spot; this week, my former employer was occupying it. I thought to myself that it had become a strange room.

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The man named Kajio was good.

He cut the small talk short in two minutes, placed only three documents on the tatami, and said not a single unnecessary word of preamble...