Chapter 236: The Haunted House
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 236: The Haunted House
Generally, haunted houses are places that couples or mixed groups of guys and girls frequent.
It’s not that groups of same-sex friends never come, but they’re far fewer in number compared to male-female couples.
There are probably many reasons for this, but I suspect it has something to do with the physical contact that happens inside the dark, enclosed space.
The thought of guys clinging to each other is horrifying enough.
"But is it really okay for us to be playing around like this when everyone else is working?"
"Aw, don't worry about that. We can just work hard again tomorrow."
"True."
Come to think of it, we’d been working nonstop for about five hours since the morning.
If anyone had a problem with us taking a short break, they must have no conscience.
"Oh, by the way, Sasha will hang out with you next. And after that, Karen-chan."
"...Do I not get a say in this?"
"Ryu-chan, you don't like hanging out with your friends?"
"No, that's not it, but..."
Cornered, I couldn't help but look away as I answered. Rika just grinned and patted my shoulder.
"I'm kidding, I'm kidding. I already know our goodwill can be a bit much for you."
"......"
Rika knew I already had someone I liked.
Of course, we were keeping our relationship a secret due to the President's personal circumstances, but I couldn't help but feel a surge of guilt when I was hanging out with other girls behind her back.
Sensing the somewhat awkward atmosphere, Rika twisted a strand of her hair and said, "Hehe, this wasn't my intention."
I gave a wry smile and replied to her.
"You don't have to force an apology. It's my fault for being so ambiguous."
"Ryu-chan..."
"Alright, let's drop the heavy talk. It's already our turn."
"Ah."
While we were talking, our turn to enter had arrived.
As we approached the entrance, a student from Class 2-C standing in front of the haunted house spoke.
"That'll be 600 yen for two."
"Here you go."
"Just a friendly warning, but please don't touch the staff inside, okay?"
"Haha, we won't touch them~"
The comment was clearly aimed at me, but Rika, thinking it was a joke, laughed and handed over the coins.
"...This way, then."
When the student pulled back the curtain blocking the entrance, a pitch-black room was revealed. Steeling ourselves, we slowly stepped inside.
*
"Whoa, it's dark."
Inside the haunted house, it was so dark you couldn't see an inch in front of you.
After a moment, my eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness, and I could faintly make out the outlines of objects.
It seemed they had made the inside of the haunted house a maze to make the most of the small space. We placed one hand on the wall and slowly moved forward.
"Kyaaaaaah!"
Flinch!
A scream, presumably from the group that went in before us, echoed from very close by.
Startled, Rika stopped in her tracks and looked back at me with an anxious expression.
"Sui-chan, you're still there, right?"
"Yeah."
She had called me Ryu-chan when she was being serious, but now she was already back to calling me Sui-chan.
"C-Ca-Can I hold your hand?"
"My hand?"
"Yeah. I'm a little scared."
Without a word, I held out my right hand to her.
Rika fumbled in the dark until she found my hand, then remarked with wonder.
"A boy's palm really is bigger than a girl's."
"I'm a bit bigger than average, too."
"Why's that?"
"Because I have a large frame."
"Ah..."
Perhaps the idle chatter eased her tension, because the stiffness in Rika's shoulders finally relaxed.
For her to be like this before we even encountered a student in a ghost costume, maybe Rika had a weak stomach for horror.
But if we delayed any longer, the group behind us might catch up, so we decided to keep moving forward.
"By the way, Sui-chan, can I ask you something?"
"What is it?"
"You said before that ghosts and monsters exist in the underworld. Have you ever actually seen a ghost?"
Rika's question hit so close to home that I couldn't help but think of the two ghosts that followed Ryuji around every day.
"You might not know it, but they're very close to us."
"What? Where? Where?"
Rika jumped in surprise and frantically looked around.
"No, I don't mean they're here right now."
"Then?"
"There are already two in our classroom."
One is a pharaoh who flew all the way from Egypt, and the other is a tsundere ghost who can't forget the memory of his first love and is now tied to this world.
"...I'm suddenly not so sure I want to go back to the classroom."
"They're both good guys, so it's fine."
I was comforting Rika as we walked through the maze when it happened.
"Ah."
An obviously suspicious-looking metal cabinet stood right in the middle of the path.
Gulp.
Because we were pressed so close together, I could clearly hear the sound of her swallowing.
"I-I guess we have to open it, right?"
Rika asked me in a trembling voice.
"I think so."
Hearing my answer, Rika reluctantly approached the metal cabinet.
"I'm opening it. You sure? I'm really opening it."
Repeating the same words like a parrot, as if to warn any ghost that might be nearby, Rika squeezed her eyes shut and threw the cabinet door wide open.
Clang!
"...Huh?"
But there was nothing inside.
Just as a relieved Rika was about to sigh in relief,
Lunge!
"Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
Suddenly, two hands shot out from below and grabbed Rika's ankles. She let out a massive scream and threw herself into my arms.
Squish!
In that moment, I felt the distinct, soft sensation of something round.
'Thank you.'
I gave the ghost a mental thumbs-up for the unexpected bonus and gently patted the back of the girl in my arms until she calmed down.
*
"S-Sorry."
"No, it's fine."
It took about a minute for the terrified Rika to compose herself.
"I didn't think they'd come at me like that when my guard was down."
I listened to Rika's grumbling with a wry smile.
You had to hand it to the students playing the ghosts; they were clever.
Luring our attention with a cabinet in the pitch-black darkness and then suddenly grabbing our feet—it was a combo that anyone who couldn't read presences like me would fall for.
"I won't let my guard down again! Just you watch!"
But her determination was in vain. Rika fell for one trap after another set by the Class 2-C students, screaming each time.
To be honest, even I was startled by the mirror trick at the end.
We were both looking into a large, full-length mirror when a ghost suddenly popped out from behind us.
I almost sent it to the afterlife for real.
"Ah! That was fun!"
After about ten minutes, we finally emerged from the haunted house. Rika was all smiles as she spoke.
Stunned by this complete 180 from how she'd been inside, I asked her.
"Didn't you keep saying you were scared?"
"Huh? Isn't that the whole point of a haunted house?"
She wasn't wrong, but...
I recalled how she'd made such a huge fuss about being scared inside, and it created a strange sense of disconnect.
"Oh, I can let go of your hand now."
As if just remembering, Rika let go of my hand, which she had been gripping tightly, and said with a bright smile.
"I had fun today, Sui-chan. As expected from our class's ultimate secret weapon, your hosting skills are top-notch."
"I'm glad you had fun."
We hadn't hung out for that long, but this was the first time Rika and I had spent time alone together since our trip to the amusement park.
There was a little trouble in the middle, but for the most part, it was nice to be able to hang out casually like we used to.
"It's Sasha-chan's turn next, so you have to keep your schedule free, okay? Otherwise, I might get chewed out for selfishly having all the fun myself."
"Got it."
It seemed too late to refuse, so I decided to quietly sacrifice myself.
In return, I should probably be honest with the President.
"I'm heading back to the classroom first. What about you, Sui-chan?"
"I'm going to stop by the student council room. The President must be even busier since it's the last day of the festival."
"Really? Okay. I'll let the others know!"
Maintaining her initial high spirits, Rika waved at me and then skipped away.
I waved back until she was out of sight. Feeling tired despite not having done much, I stretched and headed for the student council room in the annex building.
Oh, but of course, after changing out of these hideous clothes.
*
"You're late! Unforgivably late, Kim Yoo-Sung!"
The moment I opened the door to the student council room, I was greeted by the Vice President pointing an accusing finger at me, a sight I hadn't seen in a while.
"You're finally back, Vice President!"
When I voiced my delight without thinking, the Vice President's face flushed slightly as he retorted.
"You idiot! Did you think I'd be happy just because you said that?!"
But his body couldn't lie; the corner of his mouth was twitching.
"How pathetic, Brother."
"Honestly, picking a fight the moment you return. You don't seem to have reflected at all during your suspension, Shinji."
"Haha, this is my identity, isn't it, milady? More importantly..."
The Vice President suddenly stopped talking, looked around at the members of the student council, and continued.
"Now that the final member is here, I believe we can proceed with the meeting we postponed while waiting for Kim Yoo-Sung."
As he spoke, the Vice President pulled something out from his jacket.
It was a remote for a projector.
Beep!
The instant he pressed the button, a giant screen began to descend slowly from one of the walls in the student council room.
Once all the student council officers were seated, the Vice President spoke on their behalf.
"Let us begin the meeting regarding the campfire in the sports field on the last day of the cultural festival."