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"This is…"
Max's spiritual senses spread out over a kilometer radius, brushing over countless presences—until two particular ones caught his attention.
By all appearances, they were human.
One radiated unusually strong life energy—powerful, at least compared to an average person. The other felt just as strong, but in a subtler, almost concealed way, not laid bare like the first.
And near them… he could feel an evil spirit.
"Interesting."
Curiosity piqued, Max adjusted his course immediately.
Might be worth checking out. Maybe it even tied into that unknown world of yokai.
He was still pretty far, more than nine hundred meters out, and they were moving.
About fifteen minutes later, he found them.
His "targets" turned out to be two girls.
They looked around fifteen or sixteen—high schoolers, most likely.
One had short orange hair, her bangs clipped neatly to the side with a red hairpin. Her skin was pale, her face strikingly pretty—but honestly, her figure was even more eye-catching. Her uniform strained at the chest, twin peaks proudly rising like mountains.
The other had waist-length black hair fading to purple at the tips. Her features were delicate, well-balanced, with amber-gold eyes that glittered like jewels. Definitely a classic beauty.
Her chest was much more modest, though—it gave her a small, cute look instead. She also had faint dark circles under her eyes, like she hadn't been sleeping well.
The instant Max took in their appearance, he knew exactly who they were.
The long-haired girl was Miko Yotsuya—the protagonist of Mieruko-chan.
One day she'd suddenly gained the terrifying gift of "spiritual sight," able to see and hear spirits from the hidden world. And nearly all of those spirits were grotesque, horrifying evil ghosts. To survive, she had no choice but to pretend she couldn't see them, swallow her fear, and act calm.
The orange-haired girl was her best friend, Hana Yurikawa.
She had a special constitution.
Her life energy wasn't just stronger than most humans—it was so abundant that she could replenish it by eating. Because of this, evil spirits were constantly drawn to her.
Whenever her life energy got drained, she felt hungry, turning into a bottomless eater. But if too much got consumed, her very life would be at risk.
Right now, she'd already been targeted.
A hideous ghost was clinging to her, quietly leeching away her energy.
Miko's gaze flickered toward it, her eyes trembling—only to force herself to look away.
Her best friend was in danger, but she couldn't do a thing.
All she could feel was helplessness. And fear.
Because honestly—those things were nightmare-fuel. How could she not be scared? She didn't want to die either.
God… why make me see such horrifying things? Can't somebody, anybody, save me?
Her silent cry echoed inside, despair weighing her down.
Meanwhile, Hana remained blissfully unaware of her danger. Feeling a little hungry, she pulled a chocolate stick from her bag and held it toward Miko.
"Miko, want one?"
She pushed it right under her friend's nose.
"No, thanks."
Miko forced her voice steady and shook her head lightly.
"Okay then!"
Hana smiled, happily chomping down.
And just like that, her dwindling life energy flared up again, as if someone had tossed fresh logs onto a fire. The sudden surge made the ghost falter, forcing it to drift back, waiting for her energy to stabilize before trying again.
It opened its gaping, toothless mouth.
Dark wisps curled inside, spinning like a vortex, sucking at Hana's energy strand by strand.
"…Guess that's my cue."
Max smiled faintly and strolled toward them.
Before long, the three crossed paths.
"Hey there."
He stopped in front of them, greeting them casually.
"Uh—hi!"
Both Miko and Hana froze for a second, caught off guard by the sudden approach.
Whoa, he's so handsome!
Hana's eyes lit up in awe, her heart skipping. Unable to help herself, she blurted:
"Um, can we help you with something?"
Miko stayed quiet, studying him instead. Her curiosity and suspicion sharpened.
She'd figured out by now: as long as she didn't let the ghosts realize she could see them, they couldn't touch her.
So her best bet was to focus all her attention elsewhere—like on this stranger.
Neither of them felt much resistance to his approach. Honestly, it was hard to dislike someone who looked like that.
Max smiled warmly.
"My name's Max. I'm kind of a supernatural enthusiast. I was hoping to interview you two—would that be alright?"
When you're out in the world, you make up your own identity.
"Supernatural enthusiast… interview us?"
The words left both girls blinking in surprise.
Hana tilted her head, confused. She hadn't expected this gorgeous guy to be into creepy ghost stories. What a weird hobby. She frowned slightly—she wasn't a fan of ghost talk. Too scary.
Miko, on the other hand, stiffened the second she heard "supernatural." Her pupils tightened, her fists clenched before she could stop herself.
Hana glanced at her, easing her frown. "Miko, what do you think? Is it okay?"
When her friend didn't respond, Hana called again:
"Miko?"
"Ah—"
Snapped from her daze, Miko blinked. Hana gave her a questioning look.
"He wants to interview us. That okay?"
"…No problem," Miko whispered, shaking her head.
When she looked back at Max, she realized he was already watching her. His smile held a strange, knowing edge.
Their eyes met. His star-blue irises gleamed, like they could peel away her mask and read straight into her soul.
"?!"
Miko's chest tightened. A strange panic gripped her, like a secret had just been exposed.
Seeing her agree, Hana turned back to Max. She forced herself to ignore her dislike for ghost talk and said:
"Alright then, go ahead and ask."
"Oh, one thing."
Something occurred to her, sparking curiosity.
"Didn't you say you wanted to interview us? Where's your equipment?"
On TV and online, interviewers always had cameras, recorders—at least a phone. But Max wasn't even holding that.
Max just chuckled. "I'm not that professional. Just a little casual, you know? A chat."
"Oh, I see."
Hana nodded in understanding.
Max glanced at Miko, smiling as he posed his first question:
"So then—are you two afraid of ghosts?"
"....."