Epi.6-1: The Thing Beyond the Door

After walking for a good ten minutes from the forest entrance along the paved road, it appeared in the open view ahead.

“Here it is! The abandoned house!”

Standing before the strange building lit by the setting sun, her eyes sparkled.
In her hand was a selfie stick. She flashed a bright grin toward the camera at its tip.

“Okay, I’m going in now—”

As she opened the door with light steps, her blonde ponytail bounced.
Once the door closed, the inside of the building became dim all at once.
Even now, with the setting sun still shining in, the far end of the entrance hall and the second-floor hallway were only faintly visible.
When the sun went down—probably, it would be pitch-dark.

At that moment, she felt something move at her feet.
When she looked down, her eyes met with a small doll.

The doll, with its old-fashioned face, froze in place.
Its eyes were clearly looking at her.

“Whoa, it just moved, right!? Seriously!?”

She forgot about filming entirely and rushed over, easily catching the doll—Rin—just as she tried to escape.

The small arms flailed.

“No way, it’s really moving! This is the real deal!”

“…Let go… or I’ll curse you.”
Low and short. A voice tinged with anger and caution.

“Whoa, it really talked… This is insane, it’s amazing… Hey, will you seriously curse me? Please! Hurry, hurry!”

She was lifted up, her head patted, and shaken.
Rin was truly resisting, yet none of it was getting through.

“…Let go.”

Her voice was sharper than before.

“Hey, let her go.”

A sudden voice made her turn around.
There stood a girl floating softly in midair, with another girl standing as if hiding behind her.

“Wha… are you, like… actual ghosts?”
Her eyes went wide for a moment, then immediately sparkled.

“…Yeah. And, you know, let her go, okay?”
“…Ah—sorry, sorry!”

She gently set Rin down on the floor.
Rin immediately fled, shot her a sharp glare from a short distance away—and vanished into the darkness beyond.

“Bye-bye!”

She waved without the slightest hint of guilt.
Then she turned back to the two of them.

“So the rumors about actual ghosts showing up were really true… I’m so glad I came~”
She clenched her fist in excitement.
“—I’m Yuka. And you two are?”

“I’m Sayuri.”
“…Shinobu.”

“Sayuri-chan and Shinobu-chan, huh~ You’re both super cute.”

Smiling brightly, she leaned in to peek at Shinobu’s face behind Sayuri.

“Hehe, right?”
Sayuri floated with a shy laugh, and Shinobu blushed and quietly lowered her eyes.

“So, do you two live here?”
“Well, I’m kind of a freeloader. Shinobu feels like someone who belongs here.
The others come and go, but Shinobu’s always here.”

“Huh… I see.”
Yuka nodded as if convinced, then tilted her head slightly in thought.
“…There aren’t humans living here… right?”

“—There is,”
Sayuri said lightly.

“What? Seriously? I only said that as a joke. What kind of person? Some grubby old guy?”
“She’s just a normal woman,”
Shinobu answered quietly.

“She’s always drinking, though,”
Sayuri giggled.

“That’s not normal, is it? —Wait, crap! Filming!”
She suddenly shouted and grabbed the camera that had fallen onto the floor.

“Ugh, I was so into the doll that I totally forgot…”
Her shoulders slumped.

“…Well, whatever. It might be more fun to film that woman instead.
—But before that, can I take a picture for keeps ?”

A flash burst out, lighting up the dim entrance for just a moment.
When the shot was done, Yuka hugged her phone and let out a cry of joy.
“This is totally a paranormal photo! Amazing! This is definitely gonna blow up!”

After showing them the photo and getting excited for a while—

“I’ll go ask Misaki-san, so wait here, okay?”
Without even waiting for a reply, Sayuri glided smoothly up to the second floor.

“But still…”
Yuka studied Shinobu closely from various angles.
Shinobu squirmed, embarrassed by the attention.

“You’re just way too cute. I can’t believe you’re actually a ghost.”
Along with all sorts of compliments, she took several more photos.

Before long, Sayuri appeared as if dropping down from above.
“She said I can bring you.”
“Whoa, I’m getting nervous…”
Led by Sayuri, Yuka began climbing the dim staircase.

—“She’s always drinking”… is she an alcoholic? If she seems dangerous, I’ll run right away.

With both excitement and anxiety, Yuka’s heart was pounding.