"Eh?" Miko blinked in surprise, her voice tinged with disbelief. "I have skills?"
"That's right." Amamiya nodded, his expression serious. "And not just one—you have more than one."
Replicable Skills:
- [Talent Skill: Advanced Vision Eye]
'Description: Your eyes are unlike those of ordinary people. You can perceive things hidden from normal sight and see through illusions below an advanced level.'
'Note: Shhh~ Please act like you can't see them.'
- [Talent Skill: Psychic Girl]
'Description: Special constitution, spiritual power awakening.'
'Note: This is an inherited ability. Don't be jealous—it won't help.'
"Wow, that's incredible..." Umi slumped forward in frustration. "I don't have a single skill yet, but Miko already has two! And they sound super powerful."
"I only have one," Chika chimed in. "But if I can find another team-up card and get Miko-chan into the game, we'd totally be unstoppable, right?"
"Forget about the game," Miko quickly shook her head, rejecting the idea. "I'm not interested in playing anything dangerous."
As a self-professed lazy girl, Miko had only one dream—relaxation.
Adventure?
Risk?
None of that appealed to her.
What could be better than drinking cola, munching on potato chips, and watching TV at home? Only a fool would willingly enter a horror game, where danger lurked around every corner, and death could strike with the slightest misstep.
"Is it really because of my eyes that I can see evil spirits?" Miko looked up at Amamiya, her tone almost pleading. "Amamiya, can you take this power away?"
Ever since she had started seeing evil spirits, she hadn't had a decent night's sleep. From her mother to her brother and even her friends at school—everyone had something to say about the dark circles under her eyes.
If she could, Miko would choose to live a peaceful life, one free of the burden of seeing evil spirits. She just wanted to be a normal high school girl.
"I hate to disappoint you," Amamiya shook his head apologetically. "But my ability only copies skills—I can't take your psychic vision away."
Miko sighed, the hope draining from her eyes.
"Nee-chan?"
A sudden voice called out.
Amamiya turned toward the sound and saw a young boy, Kyousuke, standing at the neighboring house, looking at them with curiosity.
"Kyousuke." Miko snapped out of her thoughts and quickly pulled her hand from Amamiya's grasp. "I'll be there in a minute."
The four of them had been standing outside, taking shelter from the rain while chatting, unaware they had caught the attention of the elementary school student.
"It's raining out, and you left without an umbrella this morning, so I was worried…" Kyousuke called across the yard. "But I guess everything's fine now, nee-chan. Please continue!"
"Continue what?" Miko bit her lower lip, then, flustered, mumbled a quick "I'm going home" to Amamiya and the others. She dashed through the rain, taking the stairs two at a time back to her house.
"Phew~ I'm back," Miko announced as she stepped into the entrance, shaking the water droplets from her bangs.
"Towel," Kyousuke offered her a clean one, his tone playful as he handed it over. "I thought you'd keep avoiding him forever, but today you actually made the first move."
Miko accepted the towel, drying her hair as she muttered, "It's not what you think."
Kyousuke wasn't done teasing. "Holding hands with Amamiya-nii in front of those girls, huh? Was that your way of claiming him?"
Miko froze.
'Claim him?'
They were just childhood friends—neighbors, at best. There was no relationship to claim.
And who would even think about dating someone in the middle of a life-threatening horror game where danger could strike at any moment?
"I'm going to my room," she muttered, eager to change the subject.
---
After watching Miko run back home, Amamiya turned and, along with the two girls, returned to his house.
The evening rain fell in a light drizzle, and the sky quickly darkened.
Amamiya glanced at the clock; it was nearly six in the evening. Without a word, she turned and headed into the kitchen to start preparing dinner.
"I'll help," Umi offered, trailing behind her.
"I'll help too!" Chika chimed in, following closely.
"Forget it," Amamiya reached out, stopping them in their tracks. "Just stay in the living room and watch TV."
"Amamiya-kun, you're being biased," Chika pouted.
"That's right," Amamiya responded calmly, "I am."
Letting someone as unlucky as Chika into the kitchen? That was a recipe for disaster. No matter how you looked at it, she had to be kept out.
"..."
After a simple dinner, the three of them spent the evening reading, watching TV, and playing games, all while waiting for the Grim Reaper to make its move.
However, by the time nine o'clock rolled around, the Grim Reaper-like evil spirit had yet to appear.
"Mmm~" Chika stretched her arms above her head. "Umi-chan, it's time for a bath."
"A bath…" Umi blinked, her face suddenly flushing red as memories from the previous night rushed back. Her cheeks burned as she stammered, "You go first! I'll bathe later."
"Oh, okay then," Chika shrugged, getting up to head for the bathroom.
Amamiya turned to look at her, their gazes meeting.
"D-Don't look at me like that!" Umi quickly covered her chest with her arms, cheeks puffing up in embarrassment. "Just… delete that memory from your mind already!"
"Sorry, it's already tucked away in a secret folder in my brain."
"Perv, Amamiya."
"…"
Meanwhile, over at the Shinomiya family villa, Kaguya was preparing for bed.
"Hayasaka, I'm going to sleep," she said, closing the book in her hands.
Kaguya had always maintained a strict routine—bedtime at nine o'clock sharp, up at seven in the morning. Her schedule was rigid, like clockwork.
"Goodnight, Miss," Hayasaka replied, turning off the lights before quietly exiting the room.
Normally, after Kaguya fell asleep, Hayasaka's night would begin. But now? Nightlife? What was that?
Her current life was nothing short of horrifying.
As she stepped out into the corridor, Hayasaka noticed an evil spirit—a grotesque creature with the body of a long snake and the head of a woman—slithering along the wall.
Tensing her body, Hayasaka held her breath, passing by the spirit as if nothing was amiss.
But just as she rounded the corner, she came across another evil entity—a crawling baby ghost on the floor.
Her expression remained blank. With a practiced indifference, she ignored the ghost and continued on her way, grabbing her clothes and heading to the bathroom for a shower.
Unfortunately, an evil spirit was occupying the bathroom, so she had to find another one. By the time she finally managed to shower, both her body and mind were thoroughly exhausted.
"I'm so tired… I just want to sleep."
Dragging herself back to her room, Hayasaka collapsed onto her bed. She hadn't had a good night's sleep in days. She didn't even want to check her phone—she just wanted to sleep until morning.
But when she pulled back the covers, an evil spirit's head was there, staring back at her.
"..."
'Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!'
'What happened to the invincible power of blankets?' Why was this thing 'everywhere?'
She knew she wouldn't be sleeping tonight.
With the thought of an evil spirit lurking under her blanket, any hope of sleep vanished. Silently cursing, Hayasaka glared up at the ceiling.
'Miss, I'm sorry... I truly am.'
While the sleepless spy maid tossed and turned in frustration, Amamiya and the other two girls were also preparing to sleep.
"Amamiya-kun, Umi-chan," Chika whispered softly, "goodnight."
To be safe, the three of them had decided to sleep in the living room again, just like the night before.
"Goodnight," Amamiya replied, listening to the sound of rain pattering against the window as she closed her eyes.
The night passed without incident.
---
The next morning, when Amamiya woke up, he immediately sensed something was off with his body.
'Why is my arm so sore?'
'Who's pressing down on my arm?'