The realization hit me hard – these vengeful spirits were everywhere. And apparently, I was the only one who could see them.
My mind wandered to Kaguya. She'd completed the game too – could she see these twisted ghosts as well?
...…
Meanwhile, across town at the Shinomiya mansion...
Kaguya huddled under her blankets, eyes wide with terror, her whole body shaking.
(What are those things?! Why is there something so horrifying next to Hayasaka?)
...….
Back at my place, the house felt eerily empty.
After a much-needed shower, I retreated to my room and opened up the game store, only to sigh in disappointment.
Talk about a letdown. The "store" was pathetically bare-bones – no fancy graphics, no microtransactions. Just a single, lonely product:
[Name: Daily Mystery Box]
[Price: 10 game coins]
[Description: Open for a random gift – could be items, abilities, attributes, or vengeful spirits. Grand prize: power of the gods.]
[Note: Figure out the odds yourself. Box refreshes at midnight, or pay 10 coins to refresh manually. No limit on refreshes.]
Hold up – vengeful spirits were a possible "prize"? Yeah, no thanks. The last thing I needed was to unleash one of those things in my room.
Still, I felt that familiar itch. The allure of the mystery box is hard to resist, especially with "godly power" dangling as the top prize.
Everyone knows the odds are astronomical, but... what if?
What if I got insanely lucky and snagged divine authority on my first try?
There had to be some lucky bastards out there, right? Why couldn't it be me?
As I wrestled with the temptation, new text appeared in my vision:
[Warning: The screams of vengeful spirits echo within the mystery box...]
That settled it. Mystery box officially off the table.
But wait – did this mean I could actually see through the game store's offerings? That could be seriously useful.
Exhausted from the day's insanity, I closed my eyes and quickly drifted off into a deep sleep.
......…..
Monday morning. The alarm jolted me awake.
I dragged myself out of bed, got dressed, and pushed open my window. Outside, the sun shone brightly on cherry blossoms in full bloom – a picture-perfect spring day.
After washing up, I headed to the fridge for some milk. But when I opened the door...
A vengeful spirit's head stared back at me, its mouth full of razor-sharp fangs. Misty drool dripped from its jaws.
SLAM!
I shut the door, my face a mask of calm. Suddenly, I wasn't so thirsty anymore.
Taking a deep breath, I opened the game store and checked out the mystery box.
"Should be refreshed by now. Let's see what we've got..."
After a moment, text appeared above the box:
[Hint: Contains power that makes evil spirits tremble]
My eyes lit up. Without hesitation, I spent my points to redeem it.
I felt a slight weight in my hand as the box materialized. When I opened it, a soft chime rang out:
[You've opened the Daily Lucky Box!]
[Obtained: Basic Aura - Evil Spirit Repellent]
[Description: Passive ability, no energy cost. Evil spirits retreat within a 5-meter radius]
"Bit weak, but I'll take it," I muttered. I turned back to the fridge. "Alright, you refrigerator-hiding creep. Your time's up!"
After a ghost-free breakfast, I grabbed my bag and headed out.
As I left the house, I spotted my neighbor emerging from next door. She had long, straight black hair and slight dark circles under her eyes. She covered her mouth, yawning.
"Morning, Miko," I called out.
"Morning~" she replied sleepily.
Yotsuya Miko, the eldest daughter next door. Quiet, studious type.
My family moved here three years back. Miko and I ended up at the same middle school, so you could say we're childhood friends, sort of.
"Those dark circles are getting worse," I noted. "What've you been up to?"
"Nothing much," Miko said, biting her lip. "Just... watched a scary movie. Didn't sleep great."
"Brave of you to watch horror flicks alone."
She didn't respond to that.
We chatted as we walked to school together, the spring morning bright around us.
As we approached a crosswalk, something caught my eye.
Across the street, a well-dressed woman stood out from the crowd. She was beautiful, turning heads left and right. But my gaze was fixed on something else – the massive, bloated ghost-baby sprawled across her back. Its long tongue lolled out, occasionally swiping at oblivious passersby.
I glanced at Miko and froze. Her face had gone pale, eyes fixed on her feet. Her fingers were clenched so tightly on her sleeves that her knuckles had turned white.
"You okay?" I asked softly. "What's wrong?"
"I'm fine," she mumbled, shaking her head slightly.
The light turned green, and people started to cross. The beautiful woman moved forward, the ghost-baby on her back wriggling with glee.
I took a deep breath and was about to step off the curb when Miko suddenly grabbed my sleeve.
"Wait," she said, looking up at me with misty eyes. "I just remembered... I need to buy something. Come with me to the convenience store?"
"What do you need?"
"Don't ask questions, just come on."
She grabbed my wrist and pulled me away from the crosswalk.
Once the woman and her ghostly passenger were out of sight, Miko visibly relaxed. But her relief was short-lived.
At the convenience store entrance, a twisted ghost in a store uniform was bent over, bowing to customers. Even in death, it was still diligently working – truly the spirit of Japan.
Miko froze again. "Never mind," she said quickly. "I just remembered I have spare pencils in my bag. Let's go to school."
I stared at the ghost, a suspicion forming. Could Miko see them too? Was she another player in this weird game?
I leaned in close to her ear, deciding to ask outright.
"W-what are you doing?" Miko stammered, blushing slightly as she leaned away.
"Weird game?" I whispered, making sure no one else could hear.
Miko looked confused. "Huh? What game? What are you talking about?"
"Nothing," I said, straightening up with a sigh of relief. "Let's keep going."
So I was overthinking it. Miko wasn't a player – which was probably for the best. At least she wasn't at risk of whatever punishment came with losing the game.
But if she wasn't a player, how could she see the ghosts?
Before I could ask, a cheerful voice called out from down the street.
"Hey, you two!"
A girl with short blonde hair and a curvy figure jogged towards us, waving.
"Oh, good morning, Amamiya-san," she said, flashing me a smile so bright it seemed to make the sunlight a little warmer.
"Morning, Lily," I replied politely.
Lily Kawahana. Our bubbly classmate, and a stark contrast to Miko's quieter demeanor.