Boundaries

Boundaries  境界 (Kyōkai) are the seas that connect the Near Shore with the Far Shore. They can be accessed in various ways.

They were introduced in Chapter 4, when Kou described his older brother telling him about these boundaries that connect both shores.

There is a stretch of water running between deserted buildings and telephone poles, and the sun can be seen descending in the horizon. Kou also mentions how forgotten objects such as used dolls, broken television boxes, and other vintage articles are discarded and have drifted to piles.

When a human sacrifice is offered, all boundaries leading to the Far Shore will be closed in an event known as the "Severance". This forces all supernatural inhabitants to be moved to the Far Shore, whether or not they have a rumor once their existence is forgotten by the living. This is portrayed by the shattering of their bodies into glass shards.

Locations
There are several spaces in Kamome Gakuen where one can access the boundaries:


 * No.2 The Misaki Stairs: Can be reached by taking the 4th step on the Art Department's Stairways.
 * No.3 Hell of Mirrors: Can be reached by either being pulled by a Mirror Supernatural, or via No.2's Boundary.
 * No.4 Shijima-san of the Art Room: Can be reached by going through a painting of The Atelier Tower in Kamome Gakuen's Art Gallery.
 * No.5 The 4PM Bookstacks: Can be reached by going through a certain section of the Library at 4 PM.
 * No.6 God of Death: Can be reached by either being taken by Shinigami-Sama himself, or taking one of the gaps.

Description of Boundaries
Most of the School Wonders' boundaries, as well as other boundaries not associated with the School Mysteries contain a shallow layer of water on the floor. One example of this is shown at the end of Chapter 40, where Tsukasa reveals Shijima hiding under the tablecloth. Water can be seen under her feet in the broadcasting club's room. Usually, this layer of water is only a few inches deep, only partially covering the feet, but depending on one's control or understanding over a boundary, the water can be made to rise high enough to engulf and drown anyone in it, as was done to Nene and Natsuhiko following the conclusion of the Tea Party.

Depending on the own personal whims of the School Mystery, a boundary seemingly reflects their own will, and its appearance can be changed if said School Mystery is removed from their position or replaced. For example, No.2's Boundary during Yako's tenure as No.2 had a starry night sky, filled with various types of buildings and places full of toys, dolls, mannequins, and other random stuff that was used to "recreate" Misaki. But following her removal as No.2 after the removal of her Yorishiro, the boundary changed into one with a sunny sky, lush forests and a noticeable absence of the aforementioned buildings and things.

In other cases, if a School Mystery was removed by someone who is unauthorized to remove School Mysteries and then replaced with a supernatural that has little or no memories of his original self, the Boundary still remains the same as it was before, and even its Yorishiro remains the same (Provided it isn't removed by anyone at that point.

The Shores
The Boundaries exist as the various places that connect both the Near Shore, and the Far Shore. The Shores simply represent Life before Death, and Life after Death, respectively. When someone from the Near Shore dies, they are destined to go to the Far Shore, but depending on their regrets or wills, they can choose to stay behind in any of the boundaries or even the Near Shore, albeit for a limited time.

The recently dead souls usually go to the Far Shore via a Train System located on one of the boundaries that is closest to the Far Shore, and it is only when the train reaches its destination that the souls within it truly crossed into the Far Shore, thus if the train was to be interrupted during transit, the souls within are still considered not fully dead, and thus can be brought back to the Near Shore.

Near Shore (Human World)
The Near Shore (alternatively known as the human world) is a place where the living exists. Only those from the Far Shore can exist on the Near Shore through rumors or powers. Teru admits there are one-way routes to the boundary closest to the Far Shore, such as the run-down building he came out from Chapter 69. However, he was only able to use these routes by forcing them open with his power, and as mentioned, these routes may never be used again afterwards.

More formally, there is a gateway between both worlds hidden in an open cave. There are stalactites hanging from the wall, and tassels weaving through the cave walls. In order to activate it, Teru wiped his blood on one of the walls, which opened a gaping tunnel of water connecting to one of Kamome Gakuen's hallways. Guided by the light at the end, one must not look behind them while trekking through, or otherwise they would not be able to go return to the Near Shore. Like the one-way routes, said gateways are temporary and may not be accessed again after a single use.

Far Shore
The Far Shore is a place known to be the world of the dead. The closest boundary to the Far Shore is No.6's boundary. There is an open pit in the middle of the interwoven Japanese-styled building, rumored to be the entrance to the Far Shore. When a living person enters the Far Shore, their body will deteriorate until only their soul is left behind.

However, it was also mentioned that Sumire's village was relatively near a cliff that led to the Far Shore. There are spikes submerged in the water below. Monstrous creatures would appear from the depths of the water and wreak havoc, which led the villagers to sacrifice a chosen maiden of the Akane family in order to appease them.

Gaps
Some areas that exist outside of boundaries and both the Near Shore and the Far Shore are known as gaps. They are described as places of nothing, and can be used to access any location in any world. One known gap is the elevator in the old school building.

Creatures
There are many creatures that make their home in these boundaries. They are notable for their otherworldly appearance or decomposing nature. In the presence of humans or supernaturals, malicious creatures will still attack all the same. They can only be defeated through an exorcist's weapon and/or a protection charm.

Star Festival
These creatures are civil and sentient, as shown by their docile nature and trading of currency (with mermaid scales ranking a high price). They host a wide variety of game and food stands, which closely resemble the humans' Tanabata festival when Nene noticed she was in a different timeline. They're personified to be more like humans, with the exception of their otherworldly appearances matching oni or wind-up toys. They also utilize the rumor of hanging a tag on the festival's bamboo tree for a wish.

No. 6's Boundary
In the pit, to which Aoi quoted to be the boundary's garbage disposal, is a home to a festering swarm of bug-like creatures, ranging from humongous centipedes with multiple eyes, cyclopes moths, and black beetles. They're shown to be a bit sentient, considering Aoi's control over them and unexpectedly stabbing Akane when Aoi distracted him.

They are also present in some of the numerous rooms of The Red House, as some of them took Nene Yashiro away when she opened the door housing them.

Aquatic
When Teru, Akane, and Aoi made their escapade by traveling through the boundary, they witnessed different creatures, both hostile and docile. They usually resemble aquatic or amphibian-like animals, such as lizards, turtles, and fish. Some of them usually make their homes in abandoned buildings or mossy caves.

A few such aquatic creatures were encountered by Kou and Mitsuba when they explored The Aquarium, and they even fought some of them while attempting to escape. The Aquarium is revealed to be a gigantic Aquatic creature itself.

The Seven Mysteries' Boundaries

 * No. 1: The Three Clock Keepers (Currently unvisited)
 * No.2: The Misaki Stairs
 * No.3: The Hell of Mirrors
 * No.4: Shijima-san of the Art Room
 * No.5: The 4PM Bookstacks
 * No.6: God of Death
 * No.7: Hanako-san of the Toilet (Currently Unvisited)

Other Boundaries

 * The Broadcasting Club's Boundary
 * The Tea Party Boundary (Tea Party Arc)
 * The Star Festival Boundary (Summer Lights Arc)
 * Unknown Boundary that is full of ruined buildings and objects from various time periods. Also home to the Far Shore-Bound Train System(Far Shore Bound Arc)
 * Unknown Beach Boundary

Gaps

 * The Elevator Gap

Other Mysterious Locations

 * Unknown World that is full of doors (Described by Hanako as a place that's "Both Everywhere and Nowhere", and that one can reach anywhere in the past or future from it. However, it is not explicitly stated to be a Gap)
 * Old Kamome Village (Where Akane Sumire resides, accessed from the hole in No.6's Boundary)
 * The Red House (Has a shallow layer of water caused by several open faucets but is otherwise not identified as a boundary)
 * The Aquarium (It is actually a gigantic supernatural creature that disguised itself as an Aquarium)