Natsuki stood up and headed to the bathroom, with Mrs. Kaguya following behind.
There was a full-length mirror on the wall. Natsuki positioned himself in front of it, his entire body visible in the reflection.
It was eerie... Only a floating phone could be seen in the air.
"So it's true, like in those urban legends - Yujin can't be seen in mirrors?" Mrs. Kaguya caught on quickly. "That explains why I can't video chat with my daughter. It's not because of a faulty phone?"
"Seems that way," Natsuki replied, taking out his phone. "Come here, let's take a picture."
Mrs. Kaguya stepped closer, raising her hand in a peace sign next to her face.
Click.
Photo taken.
Natsuki checked it and said, "Nope, doesn't work. Video calls are out too."
"That's a bummer. Who knew it'd be like this?" Mrs. Kaguya sounded disappointed. "Hold on, can my daughter hear me?"
"Your call's still connected."
Natsuki glanced at the phone. The ice queen on the screen had her arms crossed, face impassive, but the tips of her ears were noticeably red.
"Kaguya," Natsuki cleared his throat, "Can you hear your mom talking?"
Kaguya's voice was cool and collected: "No, I can't hear a thing."
"Well, there you have it. Video calls are off the table," Natsuki handed the phone back to Mrs. Kaguya and turned away. "Just stick to texting for now."
Natsuki had no interest in eavesdropping on their mother-daughter late-night chats.
He returned to his room to study for tomorrow's exam.
Before he knew it, it was 11 PM.
Natsuki closed his workbook and was about to hit the hay when his pinky finger suddenly twitched.
Then it kept moving.
No prizes for guessing who was behind this - it had to be Chika.
Playing around at school was one thing, but messing with his finger in the middle of the night?
Buzz.
His phone vibrated.
Natsuki picked it up to see a message from the pink-haired girl.
"Natsuki, help!!"
"I was about to go to sleep when this creepy, disheveled ghost crawled under my bed right in front of me. It's too much! I can't possibly sleep knowing something's hiding under there!"
"Not my problem," Natsuki replied. "Why don't you switch rooms?"
Chika: "My sister's already asleep. We can't wake her up this late."
Natsuki: "Then just tough it out till morning and head to school."
Chika: "You're so mean, Natsuki! My body will break down if I don't sleep all night."
Natsuki: "Come on, you're a high school student. Pulling an all-nighter won't kill you!"
Chika: "I really wanna check if that creepy thing under my bed is gone."
"Hold up, don't look," Natsuki warned.
"Without me there, if you lock eyes with some evil spirit, you're toast."
"I can't help it! The more I think about it, the more curious I get."
"Curiosity killed the cat, you know."
"Even if you say that, girls are naturally curious, Natsuki!"
She's not scared enough, Natsuki thought. If she were, she'd just lie down and pretend nothing happened, never daring to peek under the bed.
Natsuki sighed and initiated a video call.
"Natsuki?" Chika appeared on screen, tilting her head in confusion. "You wanna sleep with me or something?"
Chika was wearing Pikachu pajamas, her pink hair loose on her shoulders. Without her usual black bow or makeup, her skin looked as delicate as a freshly peeled egg.
"No sleep-overs here," Natsuki said, turning on his light and sitting at his desk. "Let's stay up and study together instead."
This pink-haired girl was a total mess. It was hard to tell if she was genuinely ditzy or just playing dumb.
She said she wanted to look under the bed, but who knows if she'd actually do it?
Better to keep an eye on her, just in case. Their ghost-busting team couldn't afford to lose a member.
"Seriously? Studying now?" Chika whined.
"Can you resist looking under the bed?"
"No," Chika admitted pitifully. "Why would a ghost hide under the bed when there are so many other places? It's driving me crazy!"
"Then sit down and read a book."
"Fine..."
Chika obeyed, sitting at her desk. They chatted while studying.
Half an hour later, Chika was already dozing off, her head bobbing. Finally, she slumped over the desk, fast asleep.
Go to bed, don't sleep on the table! Your poor buttons are screaming! Natsuki thought, eyeing Chika's, uh, generous figure. With great willpower, he ended the call.
No more words were exchanged that night.
The next morning, Natsuki first messaged Chika. After confirming the pink-haired girl was fine (aside from a sore back), she headed downstairs.
"Morning, Natsuki~" Mrs. Kaguya called out, looking up.
Natsuki sighed, seeing Mrs. Kaguya's now semi-transparent body. What to do when your guardian spirit is addicted to their phone, weakening themselves daily?
Of course, Natsuki forgave her. Ghosts don't need sleep, but just sitting around all night must be torture - worse than insomnia.
"Morning," Natsuki replied, heading to the bathroom to get ready. After a quick breakfast of bread and milk, he left for school.
"Morning, Natsuki."
Miko was already waiting outside, as they'd agreed to walk together. Childhood friends going to the same school - totally normal.
"Good morning, Miko dear," Mrs. Kaguya smiled.
Seeing Mrs. Kaguya looking even more faded than yesterday, Miko's eye twitched. She glanced at Natsuki: "Last night..."
Phone addiction, what else? Natsuki thought.
They walked to school in silence. Since they weren't in the same class, Natsuki and Miko changed their shoes and headed to their respective classrooms.
"Kaguya's waiting for us in the club room," Mrs. Kaguya whispered. "I messaged her when we left this morning."
She sighed, "It's a shame we can't bring phones to school."
"Obviously not," Natsuki replied. "If you brought your phone, people would just see it floating in mid-air. Talk about freaky."
Still grumbling, Natsuki left the classroom and hurried to the club room door.
Knock, knock.
"Come in," came Kaguya's cool voice from inside.
Pushing the door open, Natsuki saw Kaguya was alone in the room.
Seeing her mom's see-through body, Kaguya rubbed her temples in exasperation.
A moment later, another knock.
"Kaguya, I'm here!"
Chika burst in, followed by the blonde bombshell, Umi.
"Morning, Natsuki," Umi greeted with a dazzling smile, waving.
"Morning," Natsuki replied.
The four chatted for a bit before getting ready to open their mystery boxes.
"Me first! Me first!" Chika eagerly grabbed hers, but when she opened it... nothing.
"Huh?" Umi blinked in surprise. "An empty box?"
Kaguya's lips tightened into a fine line, a sense of déjà vu washing over her.
Watching the pitiful pink-haired girl, Natsuki raised an eyebrow.
"...Another box mission?"
"It's actually pretty interesting," Chika said, revealing the task details.
"What does 'the fox borrows the tiger's power to bully others' mean?" Natsuki read aloud.
"Oh, that's a good one," Umi chimed in. "It's about using someone else's authority or influence to intimidate people."
Kaguya nodded, "Precisely. It refers to a weaker person exploiting a relationship with someone powerful to throw their weight around."
"Like name-dropping a celebrity you barely know to get special treatment," Chika added, her eyes sparkling with mischief.
Natsuki sighed, "Why do I get the feeling you're plotting something, Chika?"
"Who, me?" Chika batted her eyelashes innocently. "I'm just thinking about all the fun ways we could complete this mission!"
"Let's not get carried away," Kaguya warned, though a small smirk played at her lips. "We should approach this thoughtfully."
"Agreed," Umi said. "But it could be a good chance to observe how people react to perceived power dynamics."
As the group continued discussing potential approaches, Mrs. Kaguya floated nearby, thoroughly entertained by the teens' scheming. She couldn't help but wonder what kind of chaos her daughter and her friends might unleash on the school in the name of their mission.
Natsuki read the mission details aloud:
"[Limited Time Fun Mission: An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth]
[If you hold back, you'll only get angrier. If you back down, you'll feel more lost. You finally understand that the best way to overcome fear is to face it head-on.]
[Task: Scare any three ghosts before midnight]
[Reward: Random active skill]
[Failure penalty: None]
[Note: No cheating allowed]
[Friendly reminder: Moderate gaming is good for the brain, but addiction harms your health. Manage your time wisely and enjoy a healthy life.]"
After reading, Natsuki glanced silently at Kaguya.
As expected, Kaguya had her arms crossed, biting her lower lip in frustration.
"Not fair! Not fair at all!" she fumed. "Why doesn't Chika get punished for her fun tasks, but I always do? It's so unfair!"
"Wait, there are tasks in the blind boxes?" Umi asked, surprised. "This is new to me."
Natsuki turned to Chika and said, "Well, looks like you've got an interesting challenge on your hands. Any ideas on how to scare ghosts?"
Chika's eyes sparkled with excitement. "Ooh, this is gonna be fun! But wait... how do we find ghosts to scare?"
"I might have a few ideas," Natsuki mused, thinking of Mrs. Kaguya floating nearby.
Kaguya, still sulking, muttered, "At least there's no penalty for failure this time."
"Come on, Kaguya," Umi tried to cheer her up. "Let's help Chika out. It could be entertaining!"
"Fine," Kaguya sighed. "But I still think it's unfair."
"Life's not fair, darling," Mrs. Kaguya chimed in, though only Natsuki could hear her. "But this could be quite amusing to watch."
Natsuki raised an eyebrow at Mrs. Kaguya, wondering if she'd volunteer to be one of Chika's "victims."
"Alright, team," Chika announced, striking a dramatic pose. "Operation Scare-a-Ghost is now in session! Any brilliant ideas?"
As the group huddled to brainstorm, Natsuki couldn't help but wonder how this bizarre mission would unfold. With Chika's enthusiasm, Kaguya's competitiveness, and Umi's creativity - not to mention an actual ghost in their midst - things were bound to get interesting.