The ghost woman's eyes swirled like an endless spiral—deep crimson and hypnotic. One wrong glance, and you'd be trapped under her spell.
"Sheet of paper! This wasn't part of the deal! I don't know how to fight ghosts!" Ryo shrieked, clinging desperately to the table.
"Seriously? What do you usually do when you run into an evil spirit?" Ayame asked, her nerves on edge. But she was more worried about Ryo than the ghost itself.
"I don't make eye contact with them, duh! And I sure as hell don't piss them off!" Ryo hollered, feeling like he was about to wet his pants from sheer terror.
The ghost's overwhelming negative energy pinned them in place, making it impossible to move.
Ryo had no clue how such a powerful spirit had ended up in Akito's house. But there was one thing he was sure of—Fumiko's constant negativity must have attracted this dark presence.
"You're not allowed to be happy! You're not allowed to laugh! Stay with me!" The ghost wailed, its voice an eerie blend of man, woman, child, and elder, overlapping in a chilling harmony.
A shiver shot straight up Ryo's spine. He could feel it—this spirit had been feeding off bad energy for a long, long time.
"We need to get out of here! There's no way I can handle that thing!" Ryo shouted before bolting toward the door. Ayame, Akito, and Fumiko instantly followed, counting on the protective shield Ryo carried.
But just before they could reach the exit, the ghost's long, flowing hair whipped out like living tendrils, blocking every escape route.
"Aaah!!!" Ayame screamed as the hair coiled around her, pulling her toward the edge of the shield. If she were dragged out, she'd vanish—forever lost, never to return to her body.
"Hoshino-san!"
Ryo desperately pulled Ayame back inside the shield. Akito also clung to her, both of them struggling against the ghost's relentless grip. Thanks to the glowing blue talisman, Fumiko could now see everything unfold before her eyes.
She could see their enemy—the ghostly woman haunting them—because she was holding Ryo's arm. The moment she laid eyes on the spirit, a cold wave of terror washed over her.
This was real. The woman who had tormented her for months wasn't just a nightmare. She was standing right in front of her.
This ghost had plagued Fumiko's dreams for the past five months—descending from the ceiling, lying beside her as she slept. She'd always wake up paralyzed, unable to move, unable to scream, crushed under an invisible weight pressing down on her stomach.
A nightmare. A never-ending sleep paralysis that had stolen her rest left her irritable, short-tempered, and easily angered.
And every time something bad happened in her life, she would see that woman in her dreams—grinning. A sinister, ear-to-ear smile, razor-sharp teeth gleaming beneath those blood-red eyes that seemed to bore into her soul.
At first, she thought it was just stress—an overactive imagination playing tricks on her. But now, seeing the ghost while fully awake, she could no longer deny the gut-wrenching fear consuming her.
"You don't deserve to be happy, Fumiko! I will take your life!" the ghost shrieked, lunging at her.
But the spirit slammed into Ryo's talisman barrier, repelled by the protective energy.
"Oh shxt! Baldy's talisman actually works! But it won't hold for long—it's already cracking! Hurry up and open the damn door!" Ryo shouted.
Akito scrambled to unlock it, but the ghost's tendrils wrapped tightly around his arm, trying to pull him away.
One of the ghost's tendrils had wrapped around Ayame, pulling her out of the shield. Her leg was already past the barrier, and they all watched in horror as her foot slowly faded into nothingness.
"Aaaah! Wait—hold on!" Ryo screamed, realizing he had no choice but to use his last resort—the red talisman he had saved up for an entire month's worth of allowance.
"Fumiko-san! Grab the red talisman from my pocket! Hurry!" he yelled.
Fumiko frantically reached into Ryo's pocket, her fingers fumbling for the paper charm.
"Stick it to my chest!" Ryo ordered. Without hesitation, Fumiko did as he said.
The moment the talisman touched his chest, Ryo erupted in blazing red flames. Letting go of Ayame, he grabbed the ghost's hair, and in an instant, it caught fire.
The flames raced up to the spirit's head, engulfing it as it hung from the ceiling. But Ryo knew—this fire wasn't enough to destroy it.
"RUN! We need to get out of here!" Ryo shouted, throwing the door open.
They bolted out of the house, their hearts pounding in their chests. Even from the gate, they could hear the ghost's agonized wails echoing through the walls—furious, vengeful, and filled with unbearable pain.
"Fuuuumikoooo!" The spirit repeatedly shrieked her name, her rage shaking the house's very foundation.
They turned to look back. The aura surrounding the house had darkened even more, thick and suffocating. Ryo knew one thing for sure—if he ever stepped foot in that house again, he wouldn't make it out alive.
"You said you were just going to talk to your mom! Why the hell is there a vengeful spirit in your house?!" Ryo shouted, still trembling from the near-death experience.
"I don't know either! I'm sorry!" Akito stammered while teary-eyed Ayame clutched her leg as it slowly became visible again.
"I think it's because of the negative energy you give off, Fumiko-san," Ryo muttered, adjusting his glasses. "Dark spirits are drawn to people carrying heavy emotions. They grow stronger when they feed on negative energy. Sometimes... we humans are the ones who create bad spirits."
Fumiko lowered her gaze. "Maybe... maybe I did attract that spirit because of the anger I've been holding inside."
"If you have somewhere else to stay, Fumiko-san, I suggest you live there for now," Ryo advised. "The spirit will weaken once it no longer has negative energy to feed on. When that happens, I'll find a way to get rid of it for good."
Fumiko nodded, then turned to her son with a bittersweet smile.
"Forgive me, Akito. Even in the afterlife, I'm still causing you trouble," she said softly.
Akito simply shook his head and smiled. "I don't wish for anything else, Okaasan. I just want you to be happy. Please... set yourself free. Start over. Otousan and I will always be watching over you."
Even though he had never seen his father in the afterlife, Akito spoke as if he knew.
"Is he here? Can I see him?" Fumiko asked hopefully.
Ryo shook his head. "Your husband ascended a long time ago. We can't see or talk to him anymore. But just think of it this way—he's in a good place, watching over you."
As they walked past the gate, Ryo took one last look at the house. He knew, without a doubt, that he would never set foot in there again. What did they take him for? An idiot?
But just as they were about to leave, a strange instinct hit him—like a bolt of lightning straight to the brain. He froze mid-step.
"What's wrong, Okame-kun?" Ayame asked, puzzled.
Ryo's face was unreadable—except that he kind of looked like he was about to poop.
"Stomachache? Do you need to go?" Ayame pressed, making Fumiko and Akito turn back with concern.
Ryo didn't answer immediately. A cold sweat formed on his forehead, and a new kind of panic settled in—one worse than what he had felt inside the house.
"Wait... something's wrong." His voice wavered.
They all tensed up, unsure of what was happening.
"What do you mean?" Akito asked, growing anxious. Even Fumiko looked on edge now.
Ryo swallowed hard. Then, with dawning horror, he blurted out—
"Th-the piggy bank!"