[Strange Tales] Searching for Lost Things | The One Who Forgot to Return [Return Arc, Final Episode]

Chapter 1: Being Called

The rain had been falling for three days.

It wasn't falling hard.

It was thin and long.

It was a rain that seemed to dissolve into the air.

The roof.

The power lines.

The balcony railing.

The gutter by the side of the road.

Water remained in every corner of the city.

Before it could dry, it would rain again.

That was the kind of rain it was.

Mitsuke was sitting by the window.

Looking outside.

She wasn't waiting for anything in particular.

It was just something she often did on rainy days.

Ryoji was in the kitchen.

The sound of the refrigerator door opening.

The sound of a plate being set down.

The low hum of the microwave.

It was the usual sound of daily life.

And yet.

Today, it sounds just a little bit distant.

As if I am listening to it from the other side of a wall.

Mitsuke strains her ears.

Rain.

The refrigerator.

The ventilation fan.

The sound of cars driving by.

And then.

In the gaps between them.

A voice calling someone was mixed in.

"...Mitsuke."

It was a very small voice.

Outside the window.

No.

It was further away.

I felt like I heard it from somewhere much deeper.

Mitsuke blinks.

"What is it?"

Ryoji's voice.

It came from the kitchen.

Mitsuke turns around.

"No."

"You said something just now, didn't you?"

"I didn't."

Ryoji watched her for a moment, but didn't ask any further.

Instead, he brought over a plate.

Toast.

A fried egg.

A simple breakfast.

"Eat."

"Now?"

"Now."

"I'm not hungry."

Ryoji's expression hardened slightly.

"Eat."

Mitsuke gave a small laugh.

"Alright, alright."

She took the plate.

At that moment.

Outside the window, the raindrops intensified all at once.

Pitter-patter.

Pat.

Whoosh.

The sound changed.

Just for a few seconds.

And then it became quiet again.

Mitsuke looks at the window while holding a fork.

Her own reflection was visible on the wet glass.

Behind her.

Someone is standing there.

A black shadow.

For an instant.

She blinked.

It disappears.

Ryoji has not noticed.

Mitsuke did not say anything either.

*

Afternoon.

A phone call came in.

It was a request.

The voice was a woman's.

I couldn't tell her age.

It was a very calm voice.

However.

Only the content of what she said was strange.

"Recently, I've been having dreams about going to places I don't know."

Mitsuke listened in silence while holding the receiver.

"In the dream, someone is always walking."

"Who is it?"

"I don't know."

"What about their face?"

"I can't see it."

There was a brief pause.

I could hear the sound of rain from the other end of the line.

Just like here.

A light rain.

"But."

The woman said.

"That person, they've been trying to return for a long time."

Mitsuke's fingers stopped.

"Return?"

"Yes."

"To where?"

A long silence.

After that.

The woman said softly.

"It seems they don't know."

Mitsuke couldn't say anything.

Those words.

He felt like he had heard them somewhere.

No.

He had heard them many times.

Cannot return.

Does not flow.

Remains.

Searching.

Being called.

Everything.

They are slightly different in shape.

But.

The roots are the same.

I felt that way.

"Can I meet them?"

The woman asks.

"Yes."

Mitsuke answers.

"I'm going."

*

The client's house was an old apartment complex.

It is a little far from the station.

At the top of a slope wet with rain.

A building with many years since its construction.

The fluorescent light in the hallway is shining white.

Damp concrete.

Rusted handrails.

A somewhat nostalgic scent.

Time always flows slowly in the housing complex on rainy days.

That is what Mitsuke thought.

The client was a woman in her forties.

Her name was Kana Ogawa.

She lived alone.

The room was well-organized.

A table.

A bookshelf.

A houseplant.

A television.

An ordinary room.

However.

There were many clocks.

On the wall.

On the shelf.

On the desk.

In the kitchen.

There were many small clocks everywhere.

Ryoji looked at one of them.

"Do you like clocks?"

Kana shook her head.

"They've increased recently."

Did you buy it?

Maybe.

Maybe?

Kana smiles as if troubled.

I noticed it had increased before I knew it.

Mitsuke looks at the clock on the wall.

3:12 PM.

The clock on the shelf.

3:12 PM.

The clock on the desk.

3:12 PM.

They are all the same.

Even though it is only natural.

For some reason, it felt unsettling.

Since when have you been dreaming?

Mitsuke asks.

About a month ago.

Kana answers.

At first, I was just walking.

But lately.

The words stop there.

"Call my name."

Ryoji looks up.

Mitsuke listens in silence.

"The person in your dream?"

"No."

Kana shakes her head.

"From behind."

The air in the room grows a little heavy.

"Do you know who it is?"

"I don't."

"Are you scared?"

Kana thinks.

For a while.

"I'm not scared."

At that answer, Mitsuke's eyes narrow slightly.

"It feels nostalgic."

Kana continues.

"Even though it's a voice I don't know."

It is raining outside the window.

Drip.

Drip.

Water falls from the balcony railing.

Listening to that sound.

Mitsuke thinks.

I've heard it before.

A voice calling a name.

A person searching for a place to return to.

A shadow trying to go home.

Memories that didn't flow.

Emotions left behind in the house.

Everything.

I thought they were separate stories.

But.

Perhaps.

From the very beginning.

They might have been heading to the same place.

"Today."

Mitsuke says.

"Can I stay here tonight?"

Kana was a little surprised.

"Of course."

Ryoji looks at Mitsuke.

"Another night, then."

"Yeah."

"Did you find anything out?"

Mitsuke thinks for a moment.

Not yet.

But.

The shape of it is starting to become visible.

"I think it's the same."

"What is?"

Mitsuke doesn't answer.

He looks out the window.

Rain.

A white sky.

A wet city.

"The people from before."

Ryoji said nothing.

Mitsuke continues.

"Everyone."

"I was looking for something."

A short pause.

"But."

I look at myself reflected in the window glass.

Deep inside it.

For just a moment.

I saw a black umbrella.

Beyond the building.

In the rain.

Far away.

A shadow that seemed to be looking this way.

Mitsuke holds her breath.

She blinks.

It is gone.

"......I had forgotten."

She murmurs softly.

Ryoji asks back.

"What?"

Mitsuke did not answer.

Because I still don't know the answer.

Just.

Deep in my chest.

Only the same feeling remained as when someone called my name.

Nostalgic.

Not scary.

But.

I must not answer.

I had that feeling.

That night.

The rain became even quieter.

The clocks in the room.

All at once.

Stopped at 11:47 PM.

Even though no one touched them.

All of them.

At the same time.

Only Mitsuke.

At that moment.

From far away.

I heard someone's voice.

"...Go home."

It was a voice I recognized.

Chapter 2: The Forgotten Purpose

11:47 PM.

The clocks had stopped.

The clock on the wall.

The clock on the shelf.

The small digital clock in the kitchen.

Even Kana's wristwatch.

All of them.

They were all pointing to the same time.

Ryoji looked at his smartphone.

"This one is still running."

11:50 PM.

Three minutes had passed.

It felt as if only this room had been left behind by time.

Kana was sitting on the sofa.

She looked pale.

"Does this always happen?"

Ryoji asks.

"No."

Kana shakes her head.

"It's my first time."

Mitsuke was standing by the window.

The voice heard just a moment ago.

Go home.

I know it.

There is no way I could forget it.

I have wanted to see you for so long.

That is why.

Once.

I tried to go over there.

"Mitsuke."

Ryoji's voice.

I do not answer.

"Hey."

My shoulder was grabbed.

In that instant.

The sounds of the room returned.

The refrigerator.

The rain.

The ventilation fan.

A car driving in the distance.

Mitsuke blinks.

"……What?"

"Don't 'what' me."

Ryoji peers into her face.

"Where were you looking just now?"

"The window."

"Liar."

Mitsuke smiles slightly.

Ryoji does not smile.

"Did you hear it?"

Mitsuke remains silent.

That was enough.

Ryoji clicks his tongue softly.

"Let's go home."

"Not yet."

"The request can wait until tomorrow."

"No."

Mitsuke looks at the window.

Raindrops are tracing down the glass.

"It has to be today."

"Why?"

"I don't know."

A frown forms between Ryoji's brows.

"You're staying even though you don't know why?"

"Yeah."

The usual reply.

Ryoji starts to say something, then stops.

And then.

"Don't go wandering off on your own."

That was all he said.

*

Around the time it passed midnight.

Kana fell asleep.

It was to have a dream.

The bedroom door remained open.

Mitsuke and Ryoji are in the living room.

The lights were off.

Only the white fluorescent light from the hallway was shining in.

It was still raining.

It was weak.

A rain that was almost like mist.

12:23 AM.

Kana muttered something in the bedroom.

Mitsuke looked up.

"…I have to go home."

It was sleep-talking.

Ryoji heard it too.

Neither of them moved.

A little while later.

Again.

"I have to go home."

This time it was a little louder.

Mitsuke stood up.

He entered the bedroom.

Kana was asleep.

There was sweat on her forehead.

A frown between the brows.

It does not look like they are running away from something.

Rather.

They are looking for something.

Mitsuke sat down beside the bed.

Touching Kana's hand.

It is cold.

At that moment.

There was the sound of water.

*

It is dark.

There is water at my feet.

It is not deep.

About ankle-deep.

Mitsuke takes a step.

Splash.

Only the sound echoes far away.

There is nothing around.

No walls.

No ceiling either.

The sky, too.

Just dark.

And then.

There are people in the distance.

One person.

Two people.

No.

More.

Many.

Everyone is walking.

Not in the same direction.

To the right.

To the left.

Those who turn back.

Those who stand still.

Those who walk in circles in the same place.

No one is looking at each other.

Just.

Searching for something.

Mitsuke approached one person.

It was an old man.

"What are you looking for?"

The old man does not answer.

He walks.

He returns to the same place again.

"Where are you going?"

The old man stopped.

He looks slowly at Mitsuke.

"......Going home."

"To where?"

The old man opens his mouth.

But.

No words come out.

He makes a troubled face.

And then.

He starts walking again.

To the same place.

In the same direction.

Over and over.

Mitsuke stood frozen.

I look at another person.

A young woman.

She is sitting on the ground.

She is holding something.

There is no baby.

Even so.

She is moving her arms as if cradling something.

"What are you doing?"

The woman answers.

"I'm waiting."

"For whom?"

The woman's face freezes.

"...Who was it again?"

Even so, her arms continue to move.

Mitsuke's chest feels a little tight.

I walk.

There are people again.

They are crying.

They are angry.

They are laughing.

Calling out to someone.

Everyone is different.

But.

They were the same.

Lingering on something.

Emotions.

Memories.

People.

Places.

Time.

Each one is caught on something different.

At that moment.

I remembered the drain.

The things that didn't flow away.

I remembered that house.

The feelings that remained behind.

Fujisaki's shadow.

Walking while searching for something.

That bus stop.

A person who forgot where to return to.

A voice calling my name.

Everything.

Overlapping within the search.

"...I see."

The voice falls onto the water's surface.

Small ripples spread out.

"It's not that I can't return."

An old man is walking.

A woman is waiting.

Someone is crying.

"How to return."

The words stop.

I was afraid.

To touch the answer.

But.

I realized it.

"I just forgot."

The water's surface trembles.

In that moment.

Countless emotions came flooding in.

I was happy.

I was sad.

I loved.

I hated.

I was afraid.

I was lonely.

I had fun.

I lived.

Everything.

Everything is here.

"This..."

Mitsuke presses her chest.

It wasn't that the apparitions had nothing.

It was the opposite.

They had too much.

Memories.

Emotions.

Experiences.

Holding onto them.

They became unable to let go.

Why had I been carrying it?

That was the only thing I had forgotten.

"I'm taking it back home."

Mitsuke murmured.

The moment those words left their lips,

the world went silent.

Those who were walking stopped.

The one who was crying looked up.

The arms of the woman who had been waiting froze.

Everyone.

Looked at Mitsuke.

There was no hostility in their gazes.

It was just,

the look of people who were on the verge of remembering something.

Tears fell from Mitsuke's eyes.

They didn't know why.

It wasn't because they were sad.

It wasn't because they were afraid.

It was just,

that they understood.

People live.

They see.

They hear.

They touch.

They fall in love.

They grow to hate.

They lose.

They find.

And then.

They take it home.

And yet.

Along the way.

The things they held became more important.

They could no longer let go.

They forgot to return.

That is why...

Mitsuke looks around.

I will stay here forever.

At that moment.

Something was standing on the other side of the water's surface.

A black umbrella.

Far away.

I cannot see its face.

It was that shadow.

The pursuer.

Mitsuke's body stiffened.

I had seen it many times.

Near the boundary.

Always.

It was watching me.

I must run.

That is what I thought.

But.

The shadow did not move.

It did not follow.

It was just standing there.

For the first time, Mitsuke.

Looked back without running away.

A long silence.

Even though it was not raining.

Only the black umbrella is open.

"...Oh."

Mitsuke murmurs softly.

Something is wrong.

If it were a pursuer.

Why wouldn't it follow?

Mitsuke is right here.

So close to the boundary.

And yet.

That thing.

Has been.

Standing on the other side of the boundary all this time.

"Could it be?"

Before she could put it into words.

The black umbrella moved slightly.

To the side.

Just one step.

As if the thing that had been blocking the path.

Was opening the way.

Beyond that.

Deep in the darkness.

Someone was standing there.

Mitsuke's breath hitched.

I still cannot see their face.

They are far away.

But.

I know.

My body remembers.

Before the voice.

Before the memories.

I just know.

I wanted to see you.

For so long.

For so long.

The person I wanted to see.

One step.

Mitsuke's feet moved forward on their own.

Water splashed.

One more step.

At that moment.

A voice came from far away.

"Mitsuke!"

It was Ryoji.

A voice from reality.

It was distant.

Very distant.

Mitsuke did not turn around.

She only looked at the figure in front of her.

And then.

That person.

Slowly lifted his face.

Mitsuke smiled.

While crying.

"...I finally found you."

On the other side of the water's surface.

He did not smile.

He simply.

With sad eyes.

Looked at Mitsuke.

Chapter 3: Still Not Returning

Only the sound of water remained.

Splash.

A small ripple spread out.

It vanished.

It became quiet again.

Mitsuke could not move.

They were right in front of her.

The person she had wanted to see for so long.

In a place where she could reach them if she stretched out her hand.

But.

They were far away.

It was the same as that day.

Even though they were close.

She could not reach them no matter what.

“...I wanted to see you.”

She said it once more.

This time, her voice trembled.

He said nothing.

He was just looking at Mitsuke.

She had never forgotten that face.

I have never even tried to forget.

That is why.

I was happy.

Simply.

I was happy.

Mitsuke takes a step forward.

The water rings.

His expression changes.

"Don't come any closer."

Mitsuke's feet stop.

He makes a slightly troubled face.

"Are you saying that again?"

There is no reply.

"Even though I finally found you."

"Don't come any closer."

The same words.

Mitsuke looks down.

Her own face is reflected on the water's surface.

It is rippling.

"......I want to go home."

Those words.

They came out more easily than I thought.

Perhaps they had been deep in my heart all along.

I want to go home.

To this place.

To where this person is.

To a place where I no longer need to search.

To a place where I no longer need to lose anything.

To a place where I no longer need to wait.

Mitsuke looks up.

"I want to be with you."

He remained silent for a while.

And then.

He said quietly.

"Don't go home yet."

"Why?"

"You don't have it yet."

Mitsuke knits her brows.

"What?"

He did not answer.

Just.

I look at Mitsuke.

Those eyes.

They were the same as they used to be.

Kind.

So kind it makes me angry.

Eyes that explain nothing at all.

"I don't know."

Mitsuke says.

His voice sounded a little sulky.

"Tell me properly."

He let out a small sigh.

And then.

"Live."

Expression vanished from Mitsuke's face.

I know.

Those words.

Back then, too.

I heard them.

The night I opened the box.

The boundary collapsed.

The sounds grew distant.

Ryoji grabbed my arm from this side.

And then.

From the other side.

This person pushed back.

Go back.

Live.

At that time.

I thought they were cruel words.

Even though I came because I wanted to see you.

Even though I had finally arrived.

I was turned away.

But.

Now they sound a little different.

Mitsuke looks around.

Those who continue to walk.

Those who continue to wait.

Those who continue to cry.

Those who continue to be angry.

Everyone.

They have something.

But.

They cannot return.

No.

They have forgotten how to return.

And.

I was.

The opposite.

Even though I am still alive.

Even though I haven't finished collecting what I need to bring back.

I tried to return.

I see.

Mitsuke murmurs.

I look at him.

I was too early.

He does not answer.

That was enough.

Mitsuke smiled a little.

Tears stream down her cheeks.

Then.

I take a breath.

Can I go home someday?

For the first time.

His expression softened a little.

Just a little.

At that time.

The words stop.

Do not get lost.

Mitsuke laughed while crying.

You say difficult things.

At that moment.

Mitsuke!

I heard the voice again.

Ryoji.

It is closer than before.

Mitsuke! Come back!

Mitsuke closes her eyes.

I can hear it.

The person on the other side.

The person here.

Both of them.

Are calling me.

But.

They were saying the same thing.

Don't come yet.

Go back.

Live.

Mitsuke looks at him.

“Ryoji, you're angry.”

“I know.”

“I'm scared.”

“I know.”

He smiles just a little.

I heard it for the first time in a while.

His voice.

Just that alone.

Makes me want to go home again.

My chest hurts.

“...I really do want to go home.”

The smile vanished from his face.

"Go back."

This time, it was firm.

Mitsuke lowered her eyes.

"Yes, yes."

She answered as she always did.

One step.

She stepped backward.

The water chimed.

He grew distant.

One more step.

"Will we meet again?"

There was no reply.

"Hey."

Mitsuke smiled.

"Don't chase me away next time, okay?"

He did not answer.

But.

At the very end.

He gave a small nod.

That was fine.

*

I saw a black umbrella.

On the way home.

That shadow was still standing there.

Mitsuke stopped walking.

Before, I would have been scared.

I thought I was being chased.

I would be caught.

I would be taken away.

That is what I thought.

But.

Now.

It looks a little different.

The shadow does not chase me.

It does not come here.

It is just.

Standing by the boundary.

Mitsuke looks at the black umbrella.

"Could it be?"

A voice falls onto the water's surface.

"Always."

Searching for words.

"Were you watching me?"

There is no reply.

The black umbrella tilts slightly.

That is all.

"So that I wouldn't leave?"

Still, no answer.

But.

They are not following.

Mitsuke smiled faintly.

"I wasted my time being afraid."

The black umbrella did not move.

The truth is unknown.

Not yet.

It is fine not to know.

Mitsuke turns their back.

This time.

Of their own accord.

I walked toward this side.

*

"Mitsuke!"

I opened my eyes.

A white ceiling.

Fluorescent lights.

The sound of rain.

Ryoji's face is right in front of me.

He was incredibly angry.

"...You're too close."

"Idiot!"

He shouted at me.

Mitsuke blinks.

Kana is sleeping on the bed.

I look at the clock.

12:23 AM.

The clock that had stopped.

Is moving.

The second hand.

Tick.

Click.

Click.

An ordinary sound.

It felt strangely reassuring.

"How many minutes?"

Mitsuke asks.

"How many what?"

"Me."

Ryoji looks at his smartphone.

"Not even a minute has passed."

Mitsuke's eyes widen.

Even though it felt so long.

"I see."

Ryoji grabs her arm.

"Where did you go?"

Mitsuke thinks for a moment.

"I almost went home."

Ryoji's face freezes.

"...You."

Mitsuke smiles.

"But you came back."

"Of course I did!"

I shout.

Kana tosses and turns in her sleep.

Both of us fall silent.

For a while.

Only the rain could be heard.

Mitsuke says softly.

"I was able to meet them."

Ryoji says nothing.

Who.

He didn't ask.

Because he already knew.

"I wanted to go home."

Ryoji's brow furrows.

"...I don't know."

He stands up.

"I'm hungry."

Mitsuke smiled.

"Me too."

Eat this when you get back.

A meat bun?

They don't sell those this time of year.

If you look for one, you'll find it.

Find it yourself.

It was our usual conversation.

And yet.

It made me a little happy.

*

The next morning, Kana told me about her dream.

It was the usual place.

Strangers were walking by.

But.

This time, it was a little different.

One person stopped walking, she said.

Kana said.

Someone who had been walking the whole time.

And then?

I don't know.

She smiled a little.

"But, they didn't look like they were lost anymore."

Mitsuke nodded.

I didn't ask any more than that.

What Kana's dream was.

What that place is.

I still don't know.

However.

I understood one thing.

A supernatural entity.

Is not born just to be there.

People.

Do not live just to keep staying in one place.

To experience.

To feel.

To remember.

And then.

Someday.

To take it back home.

But.

Emotions that are too strong stop you in your tracks.

Love.

Obsession.

Anger.

Sadness.

Fear.

Regret.

The things they carried were too heavy.

Why they held onto them in the first place,

they forget.

That is why.

They stay.

They repeat.

They search.

They wait.

Perhaps that is all,

what is called a strange occurrence, truly is.

*

A few days later.

The rain stopped.

For the first time in a while, I saw the blue sky.

I open the window.

A damp breeze blows in.

Mitsuke was eating a steamed bun at the desk.

"They were selling them."

She says happily.

Ryoji is dumbfounded.

"I'm surprised you found them."

"Because I'm a searcher of lost things."

"They weren't lost."

The phone rang.

Mitsuke puts down the steamed bun.

She picks up the receiver.

"Yes."

A short pause.

She listens to the other person.

Mitsuke's face returns to its usual expression.

Softly.

A little sleepy.

Her usual face.

"Yeah."

I nod.

"What did you lose?"

Outside the window.

Water after the rain is flowing into the drain.

This time.

It doesn't stop.

Heading somewhere.

Quietly.

Flowing away.

In this world.

Still.

There are many who have forgotten the place they belong.

Without even realizing it themselves.

Those who are seeking help.

Surely.

There are many.

That is why.

The search for lost things continues.

Until one day.

The day I myself return home.

Until that day comes.

Just a little longer.

On this side.

—Return Arc, End

© 2026 meguzo × Neural Trinity. All Rights Reserved.

Searching for Lost Things, Return Arc, Modern Strange Tales, Ghost Stories, Horror Novel, Creative Ghost Stories, Apparition, Place to Return, Memories and Emotions, Life and Death, Boundary, Occult Novel, Short Horror