This is a true story that happened to me several decades ago.

Back then, the company I worked for had a factory nicknamed "The Execution Grounds." "Execution" was code for getting axed—if you were transferred there, there was a high chance you'd end up quitting within six months.

The exact reasons for leaving weren't clear, but it was almost always due to sudden poor health.

And yet, for reasons beyond me, I ended up getting transferred to this place plagued by dark rumors...

Until the day I moved, my coworkers teased me, asking, "Are you gonna quit too?" I put on a brave face and declared, "I'm gonna uncover the secret of the Execution Grounds!" A few months later, I deeply regretted those confident words.

When I actually transferred there, the building turned out to be immaculate and meticulously maintained. What shocked me most was that despite being a factory, there was zero overtime and no night shifts. On top of that, the cafeteria served Japanese, Western, and Chinese lunches for a flat rate of 500 yen.

When I explained the situation to my old coworkers at headquarters, telling them, "The Execution Grounds is seriously the best place to work!", they pushed back: "Come on! If it's called that, there has to be a reason!" They begged me to dig around and find out why.

Since I was curious too, I asked people in my department and at the company dorms about the rumors, but I couldn't find a thing. In fact, most people there didn't even know the rumor existed, reacting with, "Wait, headquarters calls this place the Execution Grounds?!"

Even after a few months had passed, I still hadn't found anything that could explain the rumor.

That day, my work ran late, and it was past 6:00 PM.

Shortly after, a security guard came by and told me, "Make sure you leave before seven."

I'd never paid it any mind before since I never worked overtime, but everyone was required to leave the factory before 7:00 PM.

I rushed to pack up my things. In my hurry, I realized I'd left my cell phone on my desk and dashed back to grab it.

I found my phone and checked the clock just as I was about to leave.

It was 7:10 PM. Even though the guard had told me to be out by seven, I was just casually thinking, "Ah, I went past the time," when suddenly I heard a faint *shh-clink... shh-clink-clink* sound of metal scraping.

I thought, "Huh? What's that sound?" and pointed my phone's flashlight toward the noise. Standing there were men in tattered clothes, staring downward.

What's more, those men were bound together with chains. It took me a moment to process what I was looking at, but as soon as I realized, I let out a scream and sprinted down the hallway at full speed.

Noticing my scream, the security guard rushed over and snapped at me, "I told you to leave before seven!" But I was in no state to care about getting yelled at.

When I asked the guard, "What on earth was that?!", he reluctantly told me the truth.

My transfer had been to Hokkaido, where the Meiji government used prison labor to develop the wilderness. To prevent escape, prisoners were chained together while they worked.

Because it was undeveloped land, they were attacked by wild animals and suffered through brutal winters. On top of that, they were barely fed, and many died from malnutrition and disease.

When prisoners died, they were buried right along the side of the roads they cleared, still wearing their chains. Those spots were known as Kusarizuka—Chain Mounds—and memorial monuments were built to pray for their souls. Naturally, one of those sites was right near the plant.

Ever since that day, the sound of scraping iron has never left my ears.