篠

More than 26 years prior to the main story, a woman calling herself Shino had left her hometown in the countryside where she had no family or work to support her, and somehow made it to Tokyo while earning a meager daily wage. She was haggard and on the verge of starvation when she met Fumichika Nejima, who had tried to perform a black magic ritual to summon a partner for himself. Fumichika, who felt a connection with Shino due to the ritual, decided to take her into his home and let her live there. Both of them having lived alone for most of their lives, the two turned out to be a perfect match. Shino gradually recovered, but still was not strong enough to work. Fumichika was by no means a skilled businessman, and their lives were far from financially secure, but Shino, who had experienced wartime Japan, was simply content to have food on the table to eat every day. The two spent their days together, poor but happy to be by each other's sides. Several years later, Shino's condition to a severe turn for the worse. The local doctor could offer them no help and, without enough money to take Shino to a major hospital, Fumichika resorted to using black magic to heal her. However, it was no use, and she passed away at their home. Her final words were: I'm sorry I must go first. I'll leave the rest to you." [Edited from in-game Persons of Interest profile for Nejima] Following Shino's death, Fumichika attempted to perform a resurrection rite using black magic to bring Shino back to life. He attempted the ritual four times, sacrificing a young woman with each attempt, and after the fourth attempt he found an emaciated baby nearby. Following Fumichika's arrest, the baby was taken in by Tetsuo Tsutsumi and raised as Ayame Tsutsumi, later Tono. Fumichika himself believes Ayame to be a reincarnation of Shino herself, but is actually the biological child of both Fumichika and Shino.