Ghost Hunt Volume 1 Chapter 1

[sera131]

Table of Contents

• Section 1
• Section 2
• Section 3

Chapter 1 - Drop in Atmospheric Pressure

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1

The weather on the following day was lovely and the cherry‐tree‐lined path along the school gate was as pure as a white tunnel.

With such good weather, I couldn’t help feeling better. As soon as I woke up this morning and saw the clear sky, I immediately felt cheerful and ended up going to school earlier than usual.

After passing through the row of cherry trees and beginning to walk towards the school, I suddenly felt like taking a look at the old school building.

The former building sits across the sports field opposite the current one. It's a wooden building that's half-collapsed, a schoolhouse with disturbing rumors. In every way, it’s the perfect example of a haunted house.

Could the rumors be true?

I looked up at the old school building and contemplated it.

They might be true. Having been neglected for so long, the windowpanes were clouded over with dust. More than half of them were broken and the inside of the dim school building could be seen through those spots.

The breaks in the windows formed dark holes. Holes to somewhere else— It felt as if they connected to some place other than the world I knew.

The tiled roof was warped and a blue tarp covered half the building. The blue color was lightly soiled all over and the once beautiful hue was heavily faded.

I moved a bit closer to the old school building.

The glass of the old-fashioned entryway door was also hazy and cracked. It looked all the more desolate with the transparent vinyl pasted over it.

I peered in through the glass.

It seemed like twilight in the entryway and the run-down shoe shelves stood like slanted tombstones in the faint light. The inside was full of heavy dust and cobwebs. Even the webs were covered in dust. It was a completely deserted building.

Tattered balls of trash littered the floor where broken glass lay scattered about. This old school building, with its disturbing rumors, was like a haunted house, ruined and abandoned.

As I continued to peer inside, I suddenly noticed something strange in the entryway.

What is that?

It was a black machine.

It was awfully big, but it looked like a video camera. It was fixed atop a tripod.

As I wondered why there was such a thing, I couldn’t stop myself from making sure.

I put my hand on the door knob in spite of myself.

It had a dusty, gritty feeling.

The door made an unpleasant creak as it opened inwards.

The machine was just within the door. It really was a video camera. Did someone lose this— there’s no way.

I approached the camera.

Why is there a camera here?

It was truly bewildering. It could be likened to the feeling of going to a friend’s house and seeing a car parked in the living room.

Hmm, what the heck is this?

It was just as I unconsciously reached out my hand toward the video camera.

“Who's there!?”

I heard a sharp, male voice.

It came just as I felt unsettled from seeing something strange in the dim entryway of a completely deserted building. In that old schoolhouse with sinister rumors.

Isn’t it impossible to not get surprised when suddenly called out to at such a time?

Of course I was surprised! I was more than just surprised. I literally jumped. I jumped sideways and inadvertently crashed into one of the crumbling shoe shelves.

The shelf immediately started violently shaking.

There was no time to observe the man in my peripheral vision, who was standing at the door.

I rushed to avoid the lurching shelf, jumping sideways once more to escape.

I stumbled from the momentum and fell down, and the shelf collapsed in such a way that it grazed my uniform skirt. On top of that, the video camera, which had gotten mixed up in the mess and fallen over, nearly took a direct hit. I reflexively gulped for air.

...oh my gosh…

Good grief! I thought I'd get caught under that.

I sighed in relief, then turned to give the guy who scared the heck out of me a piece of my mind….

Oh no!

The shoe shelf, which was already falling apart, was now completely broken. And the man had collapsed.

“Are you okay!?”

I rushed over to him. At the same time, I heard a voice.

“What happened!?”

It was a boy’s voice.

It was Shibuya-shi, the really disquieting transfer student from yesterday, who rushed to the door. He wasn’t in uniform today, either. As before, he was in black from head to toe.

He rushed over while looking from me to the fallen man. “Lin?”

Do they know each other?

After speaking to the man, Shibuya-shi looked at me sternly. “What happened?”

“Uh, well...”

The man sat up when I tried to answer.

“Are you injured?” Shibuya-shi asked him.

“Yes...” he muttered. Red dripped from beneath his forelock, which was long enough to hide his side profile.

My voice became nervous and high-pitched even for me. “...Did you cut yourself somewhere!?”

Blood dripped from the tip of his chin onto the floor, forming dark spots.

What do I do!?

“Um, sorry! I was surprised and...”

Shibuya-shi stopped me as I hurriedly tried to reach for the man.

After checking the state of the man’s injury with calm hands, he said, “It’s a small cut… Anything else?”

“I’m fine.” The man attempted to stand. He grimaced slightly when he put weight on his foot.

“Can you stand? How’s your foot?”

“...It’s nothing.” Though he said that, his expression seemed rather pained and a cold sweat had settled on his forehead.

Not knowing what to do, I became flustered. “I really am sorry. But when I suddenly heard your voice, I was surprised and...”

“Enough excuses,” Shibuya-shi said frostily. He glared at me with unimaginably cold eyes. “You’re the kid I met yesterday, right?”

“Yes.”

You don’t have to look at me so harshly. I was the one who was surprised. And on top of that, I fell down. That’s enough to be a victim.

“A hospital takes priority over excuses. Is there a doctor around here?”

“Just after leaving the school gate...”

“Help me support him there,” Shibuya-shi said as he lent the man his shoulder.

I also tried my best to help, but as soon as I touched the man’s arm, I was shaken off.

What’s with this guy!?

He glared at me. “No thank you. Your help is not needed.”

...What’s with that attitude, you jerk!? For a start, this happened because you suddenly called out to me. You act like that even though I was kindly trying to lend you a hand?

“Lin, can you walk?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

Shibuya-shi gazed at me. “What’s your name?”

“It’s… Taniyama.”

“Well then, Taniyama-san, it seems to be all right here, so feel free to go to class.”

“But...”

“I’ll kindly let you know, the bell rang a little while ago.”

What!

I’m late despite waking up early?

I got up early, was frightened to death, then got glared at by this shifty pair, and on top of that I’m late?

Augh, I shouldn’t have come to the old school building.

It really is a sinister place!

2

I rushed to class, but of course, I was totally late. And to top it all off, the teacher said something sarcastic and made me feel awful.

Thanks to that, I felt bad all day long.

Then after school came.

As I was getting ready to go home, Keiko and the others gathered around my desk.

“Hey! Mai, are you going home?”

“Why?”

“Because, you know, the transfer student from yesterday said he’d come meet us.”

“Shibuya-shi?”

“Right. Don’t you want to see him?”

No way. I’d rather not see that guy’s face for a while.

“I’m going home,” I declared.

Keiko and the others looked at me coldly.

“Why? Mai, you’re weird.”

Even Michiru nodded. “Weirdo! Don’t you want to see that holy visage again?”

No, I don’t!

Even so, they made a fuss about me being weird.

Unlike all of you, I’m not satisfied with just a handsome face.

After cruelly treating me like a weirdo, Michiru said, “Well, that’s fine. The fewer the rivals, the better.”

“Exactly. For the time being, no one’s noticed that Senpai. Only we’ve seen him. Yay!” Keiko looked incredibly happy.

“I wonder if he’ll really come,” Yuuri said dreamily.

“You don’t think he’ll come? He was pretty interested yesterday.” While saying that, Michiru straightened and smoothed her uniform even though there was no need to.

Similarly, Keiko took out her colored lip balm. “But like, what a surprise yesterday! Didn’t the atmosphere get exciting? I really thought a ghost had appeared.”

“Me too~”

“Let’s tell our best stories today!”

“But what about the location? This place doesn’t have the right mood. Should we use the A/V room again?”

You must be bored.

“It has to be really dark, huh? I guess either the A/V room or the gym mixer room.”

“Oh, that’ll work.”

Just as they were discussing that…

“Hey!” said Kuroda Naoko-joshi, the class representative.

She seems a bit high-strung, so she’s difficult to approach. We’ve been in school half a month and I still haven’t talked to her yet.

“Ah, Kuroda-san, goodbye.” Yuuri flashed her an innocent smile.

“No, not goodbye. What were you all talking about just now?” Kuroda-joshi sounded a bit irritated.

It's not like we were talking bad about you.

So, I said, “They’re going to tell ghost stories today. That’s what we were talking about.”

Keiko nudged me as soon as I said that.

Kuroda-joshi glared at us intensely.

What’s this girl’s problem?

Just then, Shibuya-shi appeared at the door. “Is Taniyama-san here?”

Kuroda-joshi looked toward him. “What grade are you? Do you need something?”

“Yes, I have an appointment with them.”

“Appointment? To tell ghost stories?”

“Yes…?”

When Kuroda-joshi heard his reply, she glared at us even harder. “I told you to stop doing that!”

...Huh? What’s she talking about?

She glared at us angrily. “It’s no wonder my head started hurting when I got to school this morning.”

“Huh?” I tilted my head in confusion. What did she mean?

“Taniyama-san, I’m incredibly sensitive to the supernatural. I get headaches whenever spirits gather. I’ve had a headache all day today. It must be because spirits are gathering.”



“...Huh...”

“Don’t you know? When you tell ghost stories, it attracts spirits. They’re mostly low level spirits, but if low level spirits gather, it will summon stronger spirits.”

“...Huh?”

...What the heck is she talking about?

“And now… even after all my warnings about how you shouldn’t amuse yourself with ghost stories...” Kuroda-joshi then turned to Shibuya-shi and said, “You, too. As our elder, you shouldn’t be doing that. I will perform an exorcism just in case.” Her tone was incredibly haughty.

Shibuya-shi shrugged his shoulders. “Don't you think it’s just your imagination?”

“This is the trouble with people who can’t sense spirits.” Her tone was extremely severe.

Shibuya-shi fixed his eyes on her. “If you’re sensitive to spirits, do you sense anything from the old school building?”

“The old school building? Yes, it seems the spirits of those who died in the war have gathered there,” Kuroda-joshi readily replied.

“Those who died in the war…?”

“Yes. I’ve seen the figures of people looking through the windows of the old school building on several occasions. They looked like people from the war.”

“Really? Which war?”

“World War II, of course! It seems that, during the war, there used to be a hospital on the spot where the old school building was built. I saw a spirit that looked like a nurse. The hospital must have been hit in an air raid. There were also the spirits of people wrapped in bandages.”

“Hmm. Incredible.” Shibuya-shi smiled sarcastically. “I didn’t know there was a hospital around here during the war. I heard this school was here before the war. Was it also a medical school in the past?”

...This guy’s got a bad personality…

Kuroda-joshi grimaced and her face suddenly turned red. “That’s… not something I know. At any rate, that’s what I saw. People who can’t sense spirits wouldn’t understand.” She refused to recant her words.

“The principle was complaining that it’d be a problem if the old school building couldn’t be demolished. Why don’t you exorcise the spirits?”

“...It’s not that simple. I’ll do it if it’s possible.”

“Right,” Shibuya-shi replied tersely, then turned towards us. “Since this place is no good, do you want to change locations?”

“You’re still going to do that!” Kuroda-joshi forcefully snapped at Shibuya-shi.

Shibuya-shi himself looked unconcerned, but Keiko and the others, who were standing around me, started to fidget.

“Umm…” Yuuri said timidly. “Can we put it off for today?”

“Yeah… I’m kind of not in the mood.” Even Keiko had turned timid.

What’s the matter? This is your chance to get close to the Senpai no one’s noticed yet.

However, even Michiru said, “...Sorry, Shibuya-senpai. Me, too...”

“All right.” Shibuya-shi nodded. “Some other time, then.” Saying so, he raised his hand. Then, looking at a smug Kuroda-joshi, said in very quiet voice, “You shouldn’t overdo it, okay.”

“...What are you talking about?”

“It’s fine if you don’t understand. —Taniyama-san, a moment.” Shibuya-shi called out to me.

Keiko and the others shot me a surprised glance.

“What is it?”

“I wonder if you can spare me a few minutes?”

Shibuya-shi’s smile reached only his lips. However, Keiko and the others failed to notice the disquieting nature of his eyes and stared at my back reproachfully as I exited the classroom.

3

“Who is she?” Shibuya-shi asked as he walked quickly in front of me. Where does he plan on going?

“I don’t know. Today was my first time talking to her, too. She seems kind of untrustworthy.”

“...Yeah. I wonder if she’s really a psychic.” He appeared lost in thought.

“She said so herself, so maybe it’s true? —By the way, the man from this morning, is he okay?”

“Speaking of which,” Shibuya-shi said and turned around. His expression was cold. “He sprained his left foot. It’s in a rather terrible state, so he won't be able to stand for a while.”

“...I’m… really sor...” As I was saying that, I started to wonder why I should have to apologize. “Um… do you know each other?”

“Didn’t it look that way?” Shibuya-shi looked at me with contempt.

“...How do you know each other?” I tried asking.

Something seemed odd. The man was undoubtedly over twenty-five. That same man spoke to the 17-year-old Shibuya-shi using polite language. Conversely, Shibuya-shi’s tone was rude. Isn’t this backwards?

In a quiet voice, Shibuya-shi nonchalantly replied, “Assistant.”

Oh? What an arrogant assistant. Do you normally speak to your employer in that tone?

“Your employer seems to have a very strict personality,” I said somewhat sarcastically.

Whether he sprained his foot or broke a bone, I can’t forget my resentment at being shaken off when I tried to lend him a hand.

“But I’m not the only one to blame for his injury. He was the one who surprised me, so...”

“It’s the other way around.”

What’s… the other way around? I didn’t surprise him or anything!

Shibuya-shi said curtly, “I’m the employer. He’s the assistant.”

What!?

No way!

...Holy cow! No wonder he seems arrogant.

A mere 17-year-old is using a full-fledged adult as an assistant? Who is this guy!?

I took a long, hard look at Shibuya-shi.

He openly stared back at me. “I have a problem because my assistant can’t move. I think you’re responsible, Taniyama-san.”

“Hey, don’t be ridiculous! For your information, I’m a victim, too! He scared the heck out of me and I was late.”

Shibuya-shi gazed at me coldly. “He was injured. ...What about you?”

...I mean, I’m alive and well, but...

“The camera was also broken.”

Oh, the video camera. Come to think of it, it had completely fallen over. And it was a precision instrument…

“You were touching the camera, so Lin… he tried to stop you. That was the result.”

“It was… a really…”

A really dangerous environment. What happened was an inevitability; it wasn't my fault. ...But I feel like he won't listen to me no matter what I say.

“You need to reimburse me for the camera...”

Reimburse!? You can’t be serious!

“I didn’t knock it over on purpose!”

“Weren’t you taught not to touch other people’s things without permission?”

...But… I was curious why there was a video camera there.

“How much of a reimbursement...?”

Without hesitation, Shibuya-shi named an unthinkable sum of money. It was a fortune beyond my wildest dreams.

“That’s not funny! Why would a video camera cost that much!? That can’t be true!”

“It was a custom-made item manufactured in West Germany. Would you like me to show you the certificate?”

Foreign manufactured. Custom-made.

...I lost all hope.

What am I going to do!?

“If that doesn’t suit you,” Shibuya-shi said.

...What is it? I’ll do anything if it means I don’t have to repay you!

“Will you stand in for my assistant?”

“By that you mean… work as your assistant?”

“Exactly.”

“I’ll do it!” No matter what is, be it an assistant or maid-servant, I’ll do it.

Shibuya-shi nodded.

Then, all of a sudden, I started to have doubts. “...By the way, what is it you do, Shibuya-san?”

He’s a second-year high school student. What on earth could a 17-year-old student be doing using an assistant and an outrageously expensive camera?

“Gōsuto Hanto.”

“Huh!?”

“If I translate it literally, I think it’s ghost extermination. We came to investigate the old school building at the request of the school principal. We’re from ‘Shibuya Saikikku Risaachi.’”

“Saikikku Risaachi?”

“Haven’t you taken English classes?”

I have! I know I’m bad at English, so sue me.

“It’s a psychic research office. I’m the head of that office.”

Wh...what!?

The head of an office!? A mere 17-year-old!?

What else did he say? An investigation of the old school building? A psychic research office?

You’re kidding me!


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