"Hm, Oh~ I'm going first?"
Katou Megumi pointed to her nose in mild surprise—she hadn't expected Eriri to notice her in the dim light.
"That's right! Tell us a super scary story, Megumi!"
Seeing the slightly blank look on the girl's face, Eriri's confidence soared, and she declared the start of battle with full enthusiasm.
"O-okay! I'll do my best." Megumi nodded and tilted her head slightly, pretending to think for a couple of seconds.
In truth, she had already been preparing ever since Sakura announced this activity—she'd only settled on the final story choice after watching the movie.
"Alright~~ Once upon a time—not that long ago, actually—about a month back…"
Her bright, lively voice and this classic opening managed to draw smiles from both Eriri and Yukinoshita.
"A group of girls moved into an old mansion called 'Ruyi Dorm.' The house was built during the third year of the Showa era and had been abandoned for ages, filled with the stale scent of emptiness."
"Even though they'd called the power company during the day, night fell and still no electricity. It was a cloudy night, so not even a sliver of moonlight could pierce through the torn paper screens of the sliding doors."
"At first, the girls used their phones for light, but they soon realized if the batteries died, they'd be swallowed by the absolute darkness of the night."
"Faced with a darkness that seemed ready to drag them away at any moment, they huddled together in the first-floor living room, gathered around a single candle."
"The tatami mats beneath them were damp and fuzzy, like they'd sprouted a layer of moldy fuzz…"
Megumi's voice remained light and bright—no eerie inflections, no forced suspense.
She couldn't match the ghostly, distant tones of Mitsuha's grandmother from the movies.
But even so…
Eriri's small hands, planted on the ground, suddenly brushed against the plush carpet.
It felt damp and a little fuzzy—eerily similar to what Megumi was describing.
In an instant, it was like a jolt of electricity shot up from her pale, delicate foot, raced along her slender leg, and crackled through every nerve in her body.
Her whole form tensed, each tiny hair standing on end, and as the shiver hit her brain, she instinctively squeezed her thighs tighter.
"Wait! Hold on! You can't use real-life names for scary stories! And the candlelit circle? Megumi, that's just lazy! No Ruyi Dorm, no fuzzy carpet, and no power outage either!"
Eriri's voice rang out as she discreetly reached for Kyousuke's hand, seeking comfort.
"Eh~ really…? Okay" Megumi blinked, genuinely surprised that her story had such a strong effect.
"Don't listen to her, Megumi," Kasumigaoka Utaha said with a soft laugh, her wine-red eyes glinting in the dark.
She was watching Yukinoshita carefully; she could see that Yukinoshita was just as scared as Eriri but was holding it together through sheer willpower.
Earlier, she'd clearly noticed her swallow nervously and the thin sheen of sweat at her temples.
"Incorporating real-world elements into a story is a classic technique—it grounds the tale and makes it easier for listeners to imagine. You're doing great, please continue~"
"You… you…" Eriri wanted to start off with "you third-rate light novel author" and thoroughly scold Kasumigaoka's creative laziness.
But she stopped herself just in time, remembering that there were two people here who didn't know Utaha's secret identity.
She figured Utaha probably wanted to keep that under wraps.
Of course, that abrupt stop made her little face turn bright red with embarrassment.
"I am that third-rate light novel author," Utaha said smoothly, finishing Eriri's unspoken words and making a charming "please continue" gesture with her right hand.
"…" Eriri was stunned for a second before firing back unceremoniously:
"Writing should be about imagination! Only a third-rate author like you would be so lacking in creativity that you have to rip real life straight into your work. Using your stories to indulge in your fantasies—doesn't that make you feel ashamed?!"
Utaha pouted her plush lips slightly, looking innocently up at her. "I don't use my novels to indulge in my fantasies, though."
"Oh, come on! Starting with the third volume, you basically turned yourself into the heroine and made Kyousuke the hero!"
"It was subtle at first, but by the fourth volume you didn't even bother to hide it anymore—the conversations felt so familiar, and by the fifth volume it was just shameless…" Eriri's voice rose in frustration.
"My, Sawamura-san~ I'm so touched to hear how closely you're reading my books~~"
Utaha raised her right hand, elegantly covering her mouth and letting out a delighted, teasing laugh.
"…"
'Crap. I let it slip out without thinking.'
Eriri's eyes widened in alarm, her brilliant blue irises darting frantically as her mind raced at full speed.
Who would read those books?! No way she'd admit that.
Hojou forced her to read them? Nope—she'd just be outing herself as a cuck.
Maybe Momotarou the dog wanted to hear them but couldn't read? Plausible! And Momotarou wouldn't rat her out.
Eriri stole a glance at the fluffy white dog behind Hojou Kyousuke and steeled herself:
"I was worried you might stray down the wrong path, so I read your novels to keep tabs on your mental state—just to make sure you wouldn't do anything you'd regret."
No way she'd pin that on a dog.
Even Momotarou didn't deserve that.
In his sleep, the little dog's triangular ears twitched once.
Utaha lifted her left hand, joining her right to cup her mouth in exaggerated surprise. A mist of warmth gathered in her wine-red eyes.
"Eriri… you really do care about me that much~"
"…"
"Megumi, hurry up and finish your story! What are you waiting for?" Eriri snapped, turning the spotlight back onto Megumi.
"Ah~ oh, I thought you wanted to tell the story together with Utaha-senpai," Megumi replied, her reaction a beat behind as always.
"Megumi! How can you mistake my righteous criticism of Kasumigaoka Utaha for playing along with her antics?!" Eriri's voice rose indignantly.
"So… can I still use Ruyi Dorm as the backdrop?" Megumi asked cautiously.
"Whatever you want." Eriri's shoulders slumped, all the terror from before now completely dissipated after that messy showdown.
"Tada~ I have a suggestion!" Sakura raised her hand with a grin.
"Hmm~?"
"How about adding a blonde twin-tailed character to the story?"
"Okay~" Megumi nodded lightly, and Eriri shot Sakura a half-lidded, unimpressed look, but said nothing.
"…The girls sat around the candle in a circle, the tiny flicker of light barely enough to warm the room, making the darkness feel even deeper. Their voices and movements grew soft, afraid that even a whisper might blow out the trembling flame…"
Megumi's voice remained calm and unhurried—she wasn't exactly a master storyteller.
But that gentle, steady delivery somehow gave the scene a raw authenticity.
Everyone except Hojou Kyousuke found themselves instinctively holding their breath, as if any sudden exhale might really snuff out the little electronic candle between them.
As for why he didn't bother to slow his breathing—well, it was because he was gently playing with Eriri's small, delicate hand, his fingers tracing every contour.
He used his thumb and index finger to carefully explore her tiny hand, feeling every knuckle and curve with a tenderness that was almost reverent.
In his mind, he even imagined the soft pinkness of her nails and the faint lines of her knuckles.
The slight dampness of her palm, a result of her nervousness, made his touch feel even smoother as he savored every detail of the hand in his grasp.
Meanwhile, Shouko had, at some point, quietly slipped her hand into his other one.
Now he was holding both girls' hands at once, feeling the contrast between their textures.
The fact that there were other girls sitting around them only added to the sense of guilty pleasure he was feeling, making it hard not to let a smile slip.
"…Like every fearless Japanese high school girl, the blonde, twin-tailed Sawamura suggested they play Hyakumonogatari," Megumi read aloud dramatically.
Like hell! There's no way I'd ever suggest that! Eriri fumed silently.
"A girl with a bob cut looked scared, but her weak protests were drowned out by the excited agreement of the others, and she had no choice but to give in," Megumi continued.
'Hey, that's such an obvious jab at me! Megumi, have you been reading too much of Kasumigaoka Utaha's novels? Don't pick up her bad habits!'
"The idea of playing Hyakumonogatari was unanimously approved. Just as Sawamura opened her mouth to speak—"
Megumi paused here for dramatic effect.
Even Kasumigaoka Utaha couldn't help but swallow nervously, her composure slipping for a moment.
Beside her, Yukinoshita's reaction was even more intense; at some point, she'd grabbed Sakura's hand so tightly that her knuckles were turning white.
"…Suddenly, they heard faint whispering outside the living room door. Everyone who'd been ready to start the game shivered at the same time," Megumi intoned softly.
"'Maybe we shouldn't do this, Sawamura-san…' the bob-cut girl said in a trembling voice."
"'It's just the wind! Don't tell me you're all such cowards!' Sawamura retorted, her breath making the candle flicker dangerously, almost snuffing it out."
"The shadows of the bob-cut girl across from her twisted, turning her silhouette into a monstrous thing with three arms," Megumi read, her tone eerily calm.
That bob-cut girl is basically marked for death! In these kinds of horror stories, the scaredy-cat always goes first! Eriri thought, rolling her eyes.
"After Sawamura's outburst, she saw her friends still looking terrified."
"With a sudden determination, she stood up and yanked the living room door open, ignoring their desperate pleas and stepping into the dark hallway—"
No, Sawamura, don't do it! Eriri screamed silently.
Her small hand tightened around Kyousuke's thumb, her elegant, swan-like neck craning in Megumi's direction as if to stop her doppelganger from going to her doom.
On the other side, Shouko was doing something similar—though her movements were far more gentle.
After all, as long as she was holding Hojou-kun's hand, there was nothing in this world that could scare her.
No matter how loudly Eriri screamed in her heart, no matter how many stray threads Yukinoshita plucked from the carpet in her nervousness, Megumi's story continued relentlessly.
"…Sawamura stepped into the hallway, and the whispering grew louder. She had to swallow a lump in her throat, even as she tried to tell herself it was nothing."
As Megumi said this, it was like she'd pressed a nuclear button: everyone except Kyousuke and Sakura swallowed hard at exactly the same time.
Even Megumi, who'd been speaking in that calm, low voice, gave a satisfied little nod at their synchronized reaction.
"…Sawamura turned on her phone's flashlight and started walking towards the corner where the whispers came from."
"The bob-cut girl and the others knelt at the door, craning their necks to watch the flickering light of Sawamura's phone disappear into the darkness," Megumi continued, her voice dropping to a whisper.
As Sawamura walked further away, the bob-cut girl's voice trembled again: "'Does anyone remember the hallway being this long…?'"
The others exchanged terrified glances and all shook their heads.
When they turned back, Sawamura had vanished completely into the black.
Please, this isn't scary at all! Eriri thought with an unimpressed snort.
"…After a few more steps, Sawamura could finally make out the whispers: 'Be careful, be careful, be careful…' She turned to tell her friends, only to see that the heads peeking out from the living room door didn't belong to them at all."
Suddenly, her breathing became labored—like shifting from automatic to manual control.
She remembered: she was living in this house alone.
"Ahhhhh!!"
The scream rang out at the perfect moment, like a soundtrack to the horror story.
Even Megumi, who was telling the story, flinched in surprise.
Needless to say, the one who'd screamed was—
"Huh? It wasn't Eriri?" Megumi said in surprise.
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean? I told you already—I'm not the kind of person who gets scared by ghost stories!" Eriri shot back with a dismissive glare.
Clearly, Megumi wasn't as harmless as she looked—her sharp little barbs could slice deep.
Just look at how Yukinoshita was fidgeting beside her!
And as for why she hadn't screamed herself—well, obviously, it wasn't because she was clutching Kyousuke's hand and feeling invincible or anything!
"I…"
Yukinoshita remembered reading in some novel that, in situations like this, you should just blame it on something else—like seeing a cockroach.
But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't bring herself to do that.
"It's okay, Yukinoshita-san. Being scared by a ghost story isn't a bad thing—it's actually kind of cute! A moe point, if you will," Eriri said, turning to comfort Yukinoshita with the air of a confident older sister.
Yukinoshita looked up at her with a hint of disbelief in her pale blue eyes.
Of all the people in this room, you're the last one who can say that with a straight face, she thought.
"Ha~ Thanks for the wonderful story, Megumi-chan! Now, it's my turn!" Yamauchi Sakura's cheerful, energetic voice cut through the tension.
Far from easing the lingering fear, her enthusiasm only made Eriri and Yukinoshita shiver in unison.
"No way!" they both shouted at once.
Given how scary even Megumi's story was, if this girl was about to share something that scared her too, there's no way we'd survive it! —Eriri
Given how scary even Megumi's story was, if this girl was about to share something that scared her too, there's no way we'd survive it! —Yukinoshita
"Ehhh~ Does that mean I'm going last?" Sakura pouted, her small face scrunched up.
"No way!" they shouted again in unison.
This girl absolutely can't be the one to end the night's stories! —the two terrified girls thought together.
"Then I guess I'll start!" Sakura declared brightly.
"No way!" Yukinoshita nearly screamed.
Suddenly, their duet had become a solo performance, and everyone's eyes shifted to Eriri.
She raised her right hand and pointed directly at Yukinoshita:
"It's settled then—Yukinoshita, you're next!"
You could practically see the food chain in Eriri's eyes—she was certain Yukinoshita was even lower on it than she was.
The reason was obvious: that scream earlier.
If even Eriri hadn't screamed, there was no way someone who had could tell a truly scary story!
This whole decision-making process took Eriri barely half a second. As the world's smartest and most beautiful girl, it was nothing to her.
"Me…?" Yukinoshita pointed at her own nose, looking every bit as confused as Megumi had earlier.
Her pale blue eyes were wide with surprise.
"Yup. You and Megumi are the guests here, so you get top priority!"
"Nice! What a perfect line—I really am a genius girl!" A tiny smile tugged at the corners of Eriri's mouth, revealing her sharp little canine teeth, making her look adorably mischievous.
"Reasonable!" Kyousuke was the first to respond.
"Reasonable!"
The others all nodded in agreement, their voices blending with the flickering candlelight in the center of the room.
The scene looked so sinister it could have been a cult ritual in some underground lair.
Even though the story hadn't even begun, Yukinoshita was already starting to feel afraid.
'Wait—no, I'm the one telling the story!'
For Yukinoshita, Eriri's "perfect line" seemed perfectly reasonable.
She didn't even realize that the group had already written her off as a total scaredy-cat.
"Alright, then. I'll begin," she declared, nodding solemnly. Her serious expression made Eriri instantly regret her earlier teasing.
Kyousuke exchanged a quick glance with Sakura across Eriri's shoulders, both of them sharing a silent laugh.
Neither of them really believed Yukinoshita could tell a genuinely scary story.
Even Sakura, who was always dreaming up wild scenarios, found it hard to imagine what kind of horror story Yukinoshita would come up with.
Yukinoshita's face was drawn with a heavy seriousness as she tried to dredge something up from her memory.
She knew all creative work was inspired by reality, just like the story Katou Megumi had told before.
But she'd already used the only horror film she'd ever seen for that.
'Should I try to adapt one of my own past experiences?' she wondered, sneaking a glance at Sakura.
'If it were that girl, she could probably share it with a bright smile. But me…'
The candle's flame danced, and shadows played over Yukinoshita's small, delicate nose, swaying back and forth in the flickering light.
Just seeing that face was enough to convince everyone she must be a horror story master.
She took a deep breath and began slowly:
"After school, Mitsuko was walking down a road bathed in the setting sun.
'Meow~ meow~ meow~' A soft, fluffy voice came from the left, catching Mitsuko's attention."
"Pfft—"]
Hearing Yukinoshita's adorable little cat imitation, Sakura had to struggle hard to keep from bursting out laughing.
She turned her head away quickly, but she could still see Hojou's cheeks twitching in an effort to keep a straight face.
Uh…
Eriri blinked a few times, dumbfounded as she stared at Yukinoshita.
She'd known this timid girl wasn't exactly cut out to tell a real horror story—but this was on a whole other level of cuteness!
Eriri tried to match this earnest girl, diligently meowing like a kitten, with the cold and cutting "Snow Goddess" she'd seen clashing with Kasumigaoka Utaha before.
No matter how many times she blinked, she just couldn't reconcile the two.
Katou Megumi, whose face rarely showed any emotion, now looked completely stunned.
As expected, with this kind of gap-moe, Yukinoshita couldn't help but be a heroine, Eriri thought.
She herself couldn't pull off that sort of duality, but she made a mental note of it—just in case.
'Hmm… Maybe I'll try it someday? If I'm always going to be with Hojou and the others, it's probably not good to be a black hole that only swallows light.'
Too bad Eriri didn't hear those private musings, or she'd definitely have launched into a sarcastic rant.
She'd already realized that Katou Megumi, despite her stoic three-no (no emotions, no opinions, no interest) appearance, was actually a black-bellied master of sharp quips.
Meanwhile, Yukinoshita, still head down and focused on meowing, had no clue what everyone else was thinking.
Her face had softened as she continued, completely devoid of any scary atmosphere.
"Meow~ meow~ meow~ Mitsuko realized the sound was coming from a narrow alleyway, a filthy, disgusting alley."
"People always dumped their garbage there, no matter how often it was cleaned. It reeked to high heaven."
"Mitsuko hesitated for a moment, but she still followed the cat's meows into the alley."
Despite how the others didn't feel even the slightest hint of fear, Hojou Kyousuke was starting to squirm, feeling a tingling itch running up his arms as if Eriri and Shouko were gently brushing them with their fingertips.
Don't go in there! It's so dirty and smelly! he screamed inwardly.
His mild OCD and germophobia were making him truly understand what it meant to be horrified.
"Splash—just as she stepped inside, Mitsuko's foot sank into a murky puddle, and filthy black water splashed up onto her crisp white socks." Yukinoshita's voice trembled.
As someone who was practically a household goddess, she clearly had her own issues with dirt and germs. Even just recalling this story was torture for her.
The atmosphere couldn't have been more different from when Katou Megumi had told her story.
If it weren't so rude, Eriri would've asked straight up: "Exactly how is this supposed to be a horror story?"
Shouko blinked her big eyes, shared a glance with Katou, and they both smiled—Yukinoshita was just too cute.
Kyousuke suddenly felt a cool little hand cover his on the carpet.
It was Sakura's—he didn't even have to look.
He turned his head and saw her wide grin, eight perfect teeth showing.
Seeing that goofy smile, the stench of garbage and sewage in his mind's eye vanished, replaced by the image of a beautiful garden.
Earlier, it had been Eriri's hand holding his.
But ever since Yukinoshita began telling her "scary" story, Eriri had let go and started resting her chin in her palm, deep in thought.
Now Sakura's hand had slipped from behind Eriri's back to find his.
Eriri probably thought Sakura was trying to hug her and just squirmed a bit to adjust her posture.
It wasn't just Hojou Kyousuke who was swept up in the story; even Yukinoshita's normally arched brows had drawn together.
"Mitsuko held her nose and carefully stepped around piles of who-knows-what, deeper into the alley. She glanced around, searching for the cat, but the meowing had stopped."
"Mitsuko thought she'd scared the cat away, so she stood completely still, even slowing her breathing.
"The stench grew stronger and stronger, but as long as she thought of that soft 'meow~ meow~ meow~', she felt she could keep going."
…
Kasumigaoka turned her head in surprise, staring at Yukinoshita, who was still meowing away with a soft, gentle expression.
Was this really a horror story—or some kind of cat worship confession?
Sure, she'd said earlier that weaving real-life details into a story could make it more immersive and textured, but this was basically just a diary entry!
The meowing must be an embellishment, right?
She wasn't the only one dumbfounded. Everyone was staring at Yukinoshita's sweet, gentle expression as she mimicked a kitten.
The "Snow Goddess" image she'd built up earlier, yelling fiercely at Kasumigaoka, crumbled in an instant.
"Mitsuko waited for five minutes…"
'Five minutes? That's way too long! No cat would stay silent that long!' Kyousuke, a cat expert himself, silently roared in protest—also, he was starting to doubt Yukinoshita's supposed cat-lover credentials.
"The meowing didn't come back…"
"Mitsuko thought the cat might be secretly watching her, too scared to come out. So she smiled into the darkness…"
Yukinoshita's face lit up with the gentlest, warmest smile, so much so that it reminded Hojou Kyousuke of the way girls looked when they were in his garden at home.
'Uwaa… This is actually starting to get a bit creepy!' Thinking that, Eriri felt a tiny flicker of relief, which startled her the moment it appeared.
"Then, Mitsuko slipped out of the alley and quietly hid behind the wall, ready to dash in the moment she heard the cat's meow," Yukinoshita continued, her voice so earnest it made Kasumigaoka glance at her with a hint of pity.
Kasumigaoka had never experienced something like this, but she knew for sure: if someone saw Yukinoshita like this—hiding behind a wall, peeking into a filthy alley—they'd think she was some kind of weirdo.
If the local neighborhood committee spotted her, they'd probably stop her for questioning and then call her parents!
This girl… Could it be that Kasumigaoka had misjudged her all along? Was she really just another airhead like Eriri? Kasumigaoka mulled it over.
After all, she'd grown up in a merchant family and had always believed the saying: "Only those who complain about a product are the ones interested in buying it."
Sure, Kyousuke had cooked that rice bowl for Katou Megumi, but compared to Megumi, who never criticized anyone, it was Yukinoshita who fit the bill as a "potential buyer."
If Megumi was some unworldly saint with no desire to nitpick, Yukinoshita's blunt criticisms showed she did want something from Kyousuke.
She might not realize it herself, but her subconscious definitely did!
"Meow… meow… meow…" Yukinoshita's soft voice meowed again, still serious.
"Mitsuko heard the sound again. She threw down her schoolbag and rushed into the alley, tearing apart the garbage bags. But even though the sound was coming from there… there was nothing."
Yukinoshita's brow furrowed, lost in the memory as she continued:
"Mitsuko did this twice more, but still couldn't find the cat."
She looked up at everyone, her expression calm but determined—clearly indicating the story had come to an end.
Eriri blinked a few times.
"Um… so it's an alley ghost cat? It's a bit of an old trope, but still pretty spooky," she offered, wanting to be supportive. You've done your best, little Yukinoshita!
But Yukinoshita frowned, scanning the group with mild irritation when she saw they weren't quite getting it.
"That's not the point!" she insisted, her voice serious. "The real horror isn't that Mitsuko couldn't find the cat. It's that the cat had to stay there… in that filthy trash heap. That's what's truly terrifying!"