Lily had become fast friends with Miko this semester, and now we often ran into her on the way to school.
"Geez, Miko, those dark circles are getting worse!" Lily exclaimed, her attention zeroing in on her friend. "Staying up late is a girl's worst enemy, you know."
"I know, I know..." Miko yawned again.
"You're this sleepy right after waking up? Did you not sleep at all last night?" Lily's eyes went wide.
Miko trotted out her excuse again: "I watched a horror movie with my brother last night and couldn't sleep well... That's all."
"Ah, I get it. Even when you know it's all fake, those movies can still keep you up all night!"
If only you knew, I thought. The ghosts are all too real. And what good is hiding under the covers when you find a severed head under there?
I couldn't tell anyone about the vengeful spirits. No one else could see them, and I had no way to prove they existed. They'd think I was either going through a chuunibyou phase or having a mental breakdown.
Another day of silent despair...
"Oh!" Lily suddenly slapped her forehead. "I just remembered, I ran out of pencils last night. Should we stop by the convenience store?"
"Uh..." Miko's eyes went wide. "I can lend you one..."
"The store's right there, why borrow?" Lily linked arms with Miko, pulling her towards the shop. "Come on, we can grab some snacks too!" She glanced back at me. "Amamiya-san, you go on ahead to school."
Some friend, I thought, watching Miko's tearful face as her oblivious "friend" dragged her towards certain ghostly terror.
At the store entrance, the employee-ghost bowed to Miko. "Welcome... to you..."
I hesitated for a moment, then activated my ghost-repelling aura and stepped closer to Miko. I couldn't just leave my childhood friend to face this alone.
As soon as I was within five meters, the ghost employee recoiled as if burned. Its form turned misty and quickly dissipated.
"Huh?!" Miko's eyes went wide. "How did it... vanish?"
"Looks like it was... dispersed?" I said, coming up behind her and giving a slight nod.
"Natsuki...?"
"Come on, let's shop!" Lily interrupted, pulling the confused Miko into the store.
I turned and headed to school, leaving them to their ghost-free shopping trip.
Soon enough, I arrived at Shuchiin Academy. If you know, you know – I won't go into the details about this place.
I headed to my shoe locker in the corner of the first floor, ready to change into my indoor shoes. That's when I spotted her – a girl with waist-length black hair, radiating an icy aura. It was my teammate from last night's bizarre game: Kaguya Shinomiya.
We'd been classmates for two weeks now, but I'd never actually spoken to Kaguya. Her "Ice Queen" aura was in full effect – anyone who dared approach risked being frozen solid.
But something was off. Kaguya stood rigid, her hand frozen on her open shoe locker. She wasn't moving at all.
As I watched, text appeared above her head:
[So scary, so scary... What do I do? What do I do? Why is there something like this in my locker?!]
Curious, I peered into her locker. A vengeful ghost's head was nestled inside, its red eyes fixed on the petrified Kaguya.
The head turned to me. "Can you... see?"
Great. Another ghost parrot.
Keeping my face neutral, I walked towards Kaguya and activated my ghost-repelling aura. The head in the locker twisted and screamed, turning to black smoke before vanishing completely.
"Amamiya-san... is that you?" Kaguya breathed, her eyes locking onto me.
I casually opened my own locker and grabbed my indoor shoes. "So, do I still need to turn myself in?"
"For surrender inquiries, please consult the police. I'm not well-versed in the process," Kaguya replied, her voice icy and emotionless.
'Maybe wipe away those tears first before trying to act tough', I thought.
Only I knew how badly she was faking it. Her calm exterior was a lie, masking the internal screaming I'd just witnessed.
After a pause, Kaguya's curiosity got the better of her. She bit her lip, turned her face slightly, and whispered, "Amamiya-san... how did you exorcise that spirit just now?"
I remembered what I knew about Kaguya – as the Shinomiya family's eldest daughter, her daily routine was regimented to the minute. It hadn't changed in over a decade, from elementary school straight through to high school.
Glass of milk at 9 PM, read for 30 minutes, rest for 30 minutes, lights out at 10 PM sharp.
She must have entered the game around 9 last night. Fresh from her shower, reading in her pajamas. She looked up to find herself in that strange space. No wonder her first thought was kidnapping, especially seeing me standing there with a rope.
After the game, she suddenly saw vengeful spirits everywhere. No one else could see them. Her maid, Hayasaka, had even laughed it off as a poor attempt at a scary joke.
Kaguya had tried everything – salt, prayers, crosses, Buddhist beads, even garlic. Nothing worked against these otherworldly spirits that seemed to embody pure despair.
But now, her teammate from yesterday had casually banished one?
Kaguya's mind raced. She had to learn this technique... even if it meant ambushing me with a sack.
"It's actually pretty simple," I said, oblivious to her schemes. "I just opened a mystery box this morning..."
I explained about the 'Evil Spirit Repellent' aura, leaving out the fact that I could see the box's contents beforehand. No need to mention abilities that couldn't be stolen or transferred.
"I see... a mystery box?" Kaguya frowned, her tone icy. "Such uncertain gambles are unwise and foolish behavior."
Right, I thought. At least mystery boxes give you something. Gambling just takes it all.
Suddenly, a fist-sized black box materialized in Kaguya's hand.
My eye twitched. "Didn't you just say buying these was stupid?!"
So much for the high-and-mighty rich girl act.
Kaguya's ears turned pink, but she pressed on. She was top of the class in looks and brains – surely her luck would be just as good?
If I could get the aura, so could she. And if she drew an evil spirit by mistake... well, that's what I was here for, right?
"I'm heading to class," I said, preparing to leave. Opening mystery boxes felt like a private thing. If she got something amazing, I didn't want to be around for the awkwardness.
"Don't go."
A hand grabbed my sleeve. Kaguya's face was still cold, but her ears were bright red now. Clearly, asking for help didn't come easy to her.
"...Wait until I finish opening it," she mumbled.
Natsuki Amamiya was startled for a moment, but quickly regained his composure. He nodded slightly, "I see."
He took a few steps back, creating some distance between himself and Kaguya Shinomiya, but remained within the range of the "Evil Spirits Retreat" aura.
Kaguya took a deep breath, her fingers hovering over the blind box. She could feel her heart racing with anticipation.
"So this is why blind boxes are so popular," she thought to herself. "The excitement... it's almost addictive."
With a soft click, the blind box opened.
A silver-white card materialized in Kaguya's hand. Natsuki watched silently. The sun was shining brightly, and the air was still. It didn't seem like they'd summoned any evil spirits.
"It's not a spirit-warding item," Kaguya said, her voice tinged with disappointment. "Just some kind of game card."
"A Yu-Gi-Oh card?" Natsuki blurted out, surprised.
Kaguya looked at him, puzzled. "What's Yu-Gi-Oh?"
Natsuki couldn't believe it. "You don't know Yu-Gi-Oh? Or even Snake? Have you ever played any games?"
"It's... actually a team-up card for games," Kaguya explained, reading the card's description.
[Name: Game Team Card]
[Attribute: Refreshes game cooldown time and allows team-up for game participation]
Natsuki was speechless. It really was a blind box – anything could come out of it. But judging by Kaguya's expression, this team card clearly wasn't what she'd hoped for.
Kaguya sighed, wishing she could draw another blind box, but she'd used up all her points.
"Thank you, Amamiya-san," she said, bowing slightly to express her gratitude.
Suddenly, a hand clapped Kaguya's shoulder, making her jump.
A pink-haired girl with a black bow hair accessory appeared behind Kaguya. Her fair skin had a healthy glow, and her smile was radiant. The little rabbit embroidered on her school uniform seemed to dance with each movement.
"Morning, Kaguya!" the girl chirped. She turned to Natsuki, her voice just as cheerful. "Good morning, Amamiya-san!"