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As Kanzaki arrived at the entrance of Kawasaki village, the sweet scent of trees greeted him. The quietness of the place felt natural. Kanzaki's eyes lingered on the rooftop where he and Akira sat that night. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbdFNykQ7YA
Suddenly, his phone rang. It was an unknown number. He answered, and a whisper came down the line. "Hey, I think you have the wrong number," he said, but it was silent on the other end... 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZfqVVYRFbh
"Nani?" a female voice said, unfamiliar but close. "Oii, it's Akira!" the voice said, but it didn't sound like her at all. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5h0Q1mvG08
"Great to hear she has fans," Kanzaki said sarcastically. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS6TWdo29kL
"Ah, how foolish of me..." the voice said before hanging up. Kanzaki stared at his phone for a moment. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjLJlFaP2d3
He didn't know what to do so he decided to ignore it. Kanzaki walked towards his house. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡom6ibIBmzD
As he entered, he quickly opened KakaoTalk, but closed it again immediately. "I don't wanna be a nuisance..." he thought, pushing away the bad thoughts and focused on getting home. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyplSKpIv8c
Kanzaki greeted his mother, who was planting in the garden, before heading to his room. He sat down at his desk, eyes falling on the map unfolded in front of him. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrZwcGHeoMX
"Come to think about it... I haven't seen that woman since I went into the bathroom..." Kanzaki mumbles, tracing his fingers over the map. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9TkoLBP1bU
As he turned the paper over, his eyes narrowed. Written in thick, jagged handwriting, the words read: "I see you, but you don't see me. We will meet soon, but you wont just meet me." His heartbeat quickened. She was here again. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhz7LyMHb7l
The room felt cold. He looked around. It was as if something... Or someone was watching him. This definitely wasn't Akira's handwriting. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzDpbawvf22
Kanzaki opened the map fully, his mind racing. He snapped a picture of the back and sent it to Akira. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvySlFzTR4S
A few minutes later, she replied: "Who wrote that? It's not a prank, right, Kanzaki?" He called her immediately, it was urgent. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVivAJTg4V8
"Akira. Sorry if I can't keep my prom-" But before he could finish, a cold hand covered his mouth, making him unable to speak. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzcOGg0iUuK
The woman's presence was suffocating. "She reeks of blood... Ugh..." Kanzaki thought, struggling to break free from her grip. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZDUvRDZXVV
His eyes flickered to his phone... Akira was still talking on KakaoTalk, unbeknownst of the danger. Kanzaki hung up the call and shut off his phone, his heart racing. She can't find her... 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxRIbLmgmrk
The woman's voice, soft yet chilling, echoed in his ear: "You will not escape from me..." It was silent and her hand slowly let him go before vanishing. Kanzaki was left there, his breath ragged. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBJsU6kEwbV
A day later... The sun was rising. ''Kanzaki! Come meet the neighbours!'' his mother yells. They're getting new neighbours, on both sides because the owners went missing and wont come back. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUXHHVm3udU
"What a hassle..." he thought, sighing. He shuffled to the door, embracing himself for a polite talk. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOxhvlCgYd1
The neighbours turned out to be pleasant. The family on the left had a boy and a girl around Kanzaki's age, while the family on the right had a girl, probably twelve or thirteen.
Remi is a 16-year-old girl, born in Fukuoka on March 6th. She loves gaming and nature, and has blonde wavy hair and blue eyes. Takahiro is a 14-year-old boy, born in Fukuoka on December 18th. He loves fighting and action/adventure, and has short blonde hair and blue eyes as well. Aoi is an 12-year-old girl, born in Sapporo on August 2nd. She loves cooking and is a fan of fantasy and history. She has black short hair and green eyes.
The parents and Mio went for a walk around Kawasaki, leaving the children at Kanzaki's house. They sat in silence, doing nothing in particular. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfRk2ihlcZl
The silence was broken when Aoi suddenly fell on the ground. "Ouch..." she muttered, squinting one of her eyes in pain. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxrkx3veAa4
''Are you okay?!'' Remi asks, worried. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFeMigRjDRe
Takahiro was just watching as Remi helped Aoi. Kanzaki was leaning on the wall. He had to tell Akira about this. "I heard there are Yurei's in this village!" Aoi says, looking at Remi. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI767fHWOuL
"What's a 'Yurei' exactly?" Remi asked. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkHR3L9qNXH
"Yurei are ghosts. They're usually women in long white dresses, which get stained with blood easily. I only know one of them... And, oh yeah! They have long black hair that covers their faces. The one I know leads all the Yurei, especially in this village, because of the forest! Her name is the Queen of Yurei's or Fumiko, and I've seen missing posters. It's probably them who did it, and..." Aoi explains. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFb2FuTe1cd
Remi speaks up, breaking Aoi off. "So, there are ghosts in this village..." She looks at Kanzaki. "Have you ever seen one?" she asks, leaning closer. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvQfGCFz8PO
"Hm... I see one right in front of me," he says, going upstairs to his room. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWFjlTZfVd9
"Woah, Remi... You just got violated by our neighbour," Takahiro says, clearly impressed. Remi freezes at her brother's reaction. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIn58zmZBvx
"S-shut up!" she yells. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡitnFC0zrg1
Takahiro tilts his head to the side. "What's wrong with him anyways...?" he asks. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdWx2ryUbKw
"Maybe... he has seen the queen once but hides it! I'm interested..!" she says, her eyes sparkling. Aoi heads upstairs and knocks on the door where was written 'Kanzaki' "Open up, baka!" she says, kicking the door. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFuSJuLhvYk
Kanzaki opens the door, looking down at her because of the height difference. "What do you want?" he asks, annoyed. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF1LhDFvyxo
"You've seen her, haven't ya! Tell me about it," she orders. Kanzaki gestures her to call the others too. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwvHQBjZgEs
They were in Kanzaki's room, which was simple yet cozy. A modest bed with a plain comforter. A desk cluttered with books. A small, tidy bathroom. A chair, slightly worn from use was tucked under the desk. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCFqN9rd3ZN
"So... I had a best friend named Akira. She liked history. We were just chilling on a roof, watching a red full moon, but when we went to her house, her parents were dead on the ground. There were devil symbols everywhere, and that woman... The Queen... She was just sitting there. We ran away, but she was watching us. She has eyes everywhere, so you could say she knows you're here. She wanted Akira for some unknown reason, but I didn't give Akira to her and let her get out of the village. Now, she's keeping an eye on me," he explains. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLmczpGut5i
"But I'm glad that she's not following Akira now. You could say... It's like a sacrifice. It's fine..." he says, ending the story. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVZwsVyYV7L
Aoi looks at him. "Woah, you really did meet her! Amazing!" she yells. "Legends say she was the one who worked for Astaroth!" she informs, excited. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3vcTrRQasR
Kanzaki looks down... "If Akira was here..." he thinks, dozing off. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPaSN25Yiga
"Are you okay...?" Remi asks. Takahiro slapped Kanzaki, snapping him back to his senses. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe73D1pc2Rd
"What was that for..." Kanzaki says. Aoi looked at the group with excitement. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7yI7JUs6jt
"Can we go into the forest? It'll be night, so it's fine, right?" Aoi asks, not scared at all. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDE6GrTGNvZ
Kanzaki turned to her, his expression serious. "Let's go to my grandpa first. I need some answers," he suggested firmly. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFBZiNHqPbe
Kanzaki stood up abruptly, his gaze heavy as he looked at the group. "This has been bothering me..." he muttered, his voice low and uncertain. They watched him with curiosity as he walked over to his desk, picking up a folded map. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsF6GAazsGT
Without a word, he turned it over, revealing the back to them. The group leaned in closer. Kanzaki studies everyone's expression. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ4XBB5ZNef
"One of them isn't human," Kanzaki thought, his mind racing as pieces started to fit together. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡysaQM23znf
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~~~
His gaze locked briefly on Aoi. It has to be her. He clenched the map in his hand, summing every bit of information up. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIzWs2D5iZL
Aoi is definitely not human. There's no way she'd know so much about the Yurei at her age. And those posters... 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi24VBOubqQ
He glanced toward the window. My house is far from where those posters are, at least two miles from the entrance of the village. She couldn't have seen them from here, let alone memorized their details. The news about the Yurei is only shared at the far end of Kawasaki, close to the forest. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU9UVQriyA5
His eyes narrowed. Yet, she knew. She knew everything. 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡls2hLWBQtF
The realization hit him like a punch to his gut. She is the Yurei. I'm sure of it. She stole a girl's soul and now pretends to be her. Clever... 18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRf3Z2zFobs
The voice in his memory echoed faintly. Her voice... it sounded just like the person who called me that night. I won't do anything... I'll wait for the right moment. I'll act like a friend.
