[Call Me Queen]: "Lately, there haven't been any really outstanding horror movies, huh? Ghost Films, please save us!"
[It's Crazy Friday, Send Me a Movie Ticket]: "The last time I went to a theater for a horror movie was for that one using the latest tech — Evil Spirit vs. the Doll. I have to admit, that new filming technology is amazing — so vivid, so real!"
[Accelerating Spiral Ascension]: "So vivid and real is justice! Why watch horror movies when I could be watching… special films instead?"
[Beyond the Sea]: "Haven't you seen the trailers? Ghost Films just dropped two horror movies — The Grudge 2 is coming out soon, and RULE#1 is scheduled for next year."
[It's Dr. Big Silver]: "What?! Two movies? Director Edward is that productive?!"
With the release of Ghost Films' two horror movie trailers, every horror enthusiast online instantly became excited. After all, Director Edward had already proven his mastery in the horror genre — his creativity and skill were unquestionable. So, people were naturally curious: why was Edward suddenly making two movies at once?
But soon, everyone realized that Edward had only directed one of them — The Grudge 2. The other, RULE#1, was directed by someone else under Ghost Films, though Edward had personally written the screenplay.
Fortunately, the two movies were set to release at different times, sparing horror fans the struggle of deciding which one to watch first.
On the internet, someone even started a challenge called "Watch The Grudge 2 with a Heart Rate Monitor and See Who Stays the Calmest." Normally, such internet challenges wouldn't cause much of a stir — they came and went every week — but when a certain rich second-generation heir announced that the calmest viewer, with the lowest average heart rate, would win a car… the internet exploded.
"Baby, let's go see The Grudge 2 when it comes out!"
In the Paldea Region's Uva Academy, a girl looked eagerly at her boyfriend sitting beside her. Hearing her suggestion, Steve's expression turned helpless.
His girlfriend might say she wanted to see it now, but back when they watched the first Grudge, she had been so terrified she crawled into his bed for an entire month.
At first, Steve had been scared too — but after that month, he wasn't scared anymore. Now he was just physically exhausted. That kind of horror had real physical damage attached to it — he had never expected The Grudge to come with physical attacks!
"But you were completely terrified during the last one. Are you sure you want to see The Grudge 2? You're not scared?" he asked suspiciously.
May's eyes sparkled with determination as she nodded seriously.
"I want to contribute to Director Edward's charity cause!" she said, pulling out a reason no ordinary person could argue against.
Steve's mouth twitched. He wasn't sure if she actually meant that, but there was no way to refute her without sounding like a bad boyfriend.
Still, May seemed to sense his doubt. She stuck her tongue out playfully, her face blushing slightly as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Actually… I want to try winning that prize," she admitted shyly, looking down and tapping her toes on the floor. "Didn't you say your mom's legs aren't doing well and she has trouble going out? I thought, if I win the car, we could give it to her."
Seeing her sincerity, Steve took a deep breath and bought two premiere tickets on the spot.
With a mix of excitement and anxiety, Steve brought his girlfriend to the premiere screening. Unfortunately, they had to go to a more remote theater — all the prime locations had sold out within hours. But even in the smaller cinema, the seats filled up quickly.
The more crowded it got, the happier Steve became. The Grudge 2 was, after all, a horror movie — and he'd rather watch it in a packed theater than in an empty one with just his girlfriend. His heart (and body) couldn't handle that kind of intimacy-driven "terror" again.
Before the movie began, theater staff announced that they had installed real-time heart rate monitors in the seats — everyone's heart data would be recorded automatically, and participants would receive a copy of their data after the film. The announcement got applause — who didn't love a free raffle with prizes?
Then, as the lights dimmed and the familiar Ghost Films Pictures logo flickered onto the black screen, the entire cinema went silent. Steve felt his girlfriend's hand grip his tightly. As the film began, the master level cinematography quickly pulled him straight into the world of The Grudge.
In The Grudge 2, the story once again revolved around Kayako's curse — a curse born of hatred so deep that it would never fade. From the moment Suzuki Tatsuya brought his sister to inspect that haunted house, their fates were sealed.
Kayako — a woman brutally murdered due to domestic strife — had left behind a lingering grudge so strong that it haunted the very walls of her former home. Anyone connected to it would inevitably meet tragedy.
Steve summarized this silently in his mind, though what truly caught his attention was that infamous haunted house.
Ever since the first Grudge came out, that house design had gone out of style. Short-term rental owners had been forced to slash prices dramatically. Back then, Steve had managed to rent such a place for only thirty pokedollars a night — and, well… let's just say that week had been something else.
Now, he wondered if The Grudge 2 would have a similar effect — if so, they could save a lot on future trips. Hotels were expensive, especially on holidays!
The story began with a real estate agent named Suzuki Tatsuya taking over the cursed Saeki property — a house notorious for mysterious deaths and eerie rumors. Hoping to uncover the truth, he enlisted the help of his psychic sister, Kyoko.
As they entered the home, Steve's girlfriend whispered under her breath, "Don't go in there…"
But, of course, the characters couldn't hear her. And in they went.
Kyoko discovered that Kayako and her son Toshio had died violently in that house, and their hatred had turned into a powerful curse. Kayako's spirit hadn't found peace — instead, it now hunted anyone who stepped into the house.
As Kyoko's investigation deepened, she witnessed horrifying phenomena — pale handprints appearing on windows, disembodied whispers echoing through empty rooms. When Kyoko finally saw Kayako bending down to stare directly at her, the entire cinema erupted in screams.
But that was only the beginning.
"Kyoko, did you bring your Pokémon?" Tatsuya asked nervously.
Kyoko nodded and released her partner — a Banette, a Ghost-type Pokémon known for its vengeful nature.
Yet the moment Banette appeared, it let out a chilling scream and instantly retreated back into its Poké Ball, refusing to come out no matter how Kyoko called. The siblings fell into uneasy silence.
Realizing they couldn't count on help from Banette, Kyoko prepared some sake — a ritual precaution — and warned her brother to be careful. "If the tenants drink it and say it tastes fine, then we're safe," she said.
But Kyoko hadn't accounted for human greed. When it came to cheap housing, people would say anything — and not everyone believed in curses.
Days later, Kyoko received a call from her brother: a family named Kitada had moved into the house. They'd drunk the sake and said it tasted fine. Still, Kyoko couldn't shake her unease, so she went to the Saeki house after work — only to find Mrs. Kitada staring blankly into space, her eyes hollow. Kyoko's heart went cold. She knew then — Kayako had not spared them.
Meanwhile, tragedy struck the Kitada family. After receiving Kayako's diary and Toshio's drawings, Mrs. Kitada's mind twisted. She turned on her husband, killing him with a frying pan. Their once-peaceful home descended into chaos.
Elsewhere, Tatsuya noticed his son Nobuyuki behaving strangely. Realizing the curse might have spread to them, he contacted Kyoko again, desperate for a way to break it.
He even hired several experienced Ghost-type trainers to help investigate the house — but every one of them died, their Pokémon torn apart.
This sequence, Edward later revealed, was based on a real event he'd encountered in the original Grudge world. Back then, he had been living temporarily in the Saeki home, playing games with Toshio. With Edward around, both Kayako and Toshio were unusually calm — as long as outsiders didn't enter uninvited, they rarely killed.
But some people just couldn't resist tempting fate.
One night, Edward was sleeping in the living room (Kayako had offered him the bedroom, but he'd refused out of politeness). Suddenly, he heard someone trying to pick the lock.
Kayako and Toshio crouched silently behind the door. When Edward woke, Kayako even smiled faintly and pointed to the door — he shook his head.
Out of respect, Kayako sealed the lock with her psychic power to warn the intruder away. But the fools outside kicked the door open anyway. Edward didn't stop them.
That night, he witnessed firsthand how Kayako killed.
In the movies, her killings were usually left unseen — the camera would linger on her crawling closer, the victim's screams would echo, then the screen would fade to black, leaving the horror to the imagination.
But this time, Edward saw it with his own eyes — Kayako stuffed one man alive into a drainpipe, while another burglar was strangled to death by her hair as Toshio played video games nearby.
The corpses vanished into Kayako's spectral realm — just two more souls among countless others.
As for the Pokémon deaths, Edward kept them vague in the film. In the Pokémon world, people had deep affection for Pokémon — showing such cruelty too directly would be too disturbing.
The mysterious disappearances terrified Tatsuya. Kyoko's investigation soon revealed an even darker truth: everyone who had ever been connected to the Saeki house had either died or gone missing.
And she and her brother had both entered that house.
Kyoko tried to communicate with Kayako through her psychic powers, but the hatred was too deep — Kayako was like a bottomless pit, devouring everything that came near.
Soon, Kayako began another massacre. Even Manami appeared briefly, showing off her new Ghost-type victim, proving Kayako's curse was now stronger than ever.
Edward had even considered filming a scene of Kayako tearing apart a legendary Pokémon, just to show how unstoppable she had become — but he decided against it. He knew some of those Legendaries were petty.
By the time the film ended, the audience sat trembling in their seats, drained and pale. Only when the credits rolled did they finally feel alive again.
"B-baby…" May whimpered, eyes wet with tears.
Steve sighed heavily. He already knew what was coming — May had probably booked a room again. There was no escaping tonight.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we've finished collecting your heart rate data!" announced a staff member as workers began handing out printed results. The atmosphere lightened immediately.
"…Yeah, no chance." Steve looked at his chart — his heart rate had been through the roof the whole movie.
May smiled sweetly as she showed him hers — just as bad.
"Don't worry," she said softly, holding his hand. "Even if we don't win, we'll work hard and buy one ourselves someday."
Steve smiled faintly. She was right. Depending on luck was foolish — it was better to work hard and earn it themselves.
(End of Chapter)