Suzaki 'Knocking' Reaches 33 — First Report on the Fifth Floor, and a Resident Who Answered: 'The Air Was Cold'

Reports of "knocking" at Suzaki Third Housing rose by one, from a previously reported 32 to 33. Around 3 a.m. on the 19th, a report came in from the fifth floor for the first time — outside the first-through-fourth-floor pattern seen until now — though the knock count itself (two raps each time) remained unchanged.

What was new this time was that the resident who reported it had actually answered the door, against the management association's standing advice. "I opened it on reflex," the resident told this paper. "It was only afterward that I remembered the rule, and got scared." They said, "There was no one outside, nothing visible at all. But the air alone was cold — a different kind of cold than the air conditioner makes." No change in health or surroundings has been confirmed since.

Following this account, the management association again circulated its previously reported notice to all units: "Even if you do answer, please report to the management association immediately, whether or not you notice anything unusual." An official said, "Fortunately, the resident who spoke with us shows no sign of change. But we now have one more case of what happens after someone answers, and we're watching it carefully."

The covert patrol officer on night duty was stationed on a different floor at the time of the report and again could not detect any presence or sound. The Tokei chapter of the Patrol Guild said it is considering splitting personnel between floors, "but there are limits, given the building's layout." The added security cameras recorded no figure or sound in the fifth-floor corridor either. The permeation index remained at normal levels. Once again, neither the truth nor the cause of the matter has been resolved.