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I tried to make sense of Bruno’s rather incoherent story.

“…So, in other words, on your way to the restroom, a ghost that looked just like me in a white dress appeared from the corner of the hallway and chased you while laughing, right?”

That’s terrifying.

“Yeah, that’s right. It looked just like you, but there was this eerie, seductive vibe about it.”

Sorry for not being seductive enough.

“What… what could that mean?”

Hearing about the strange event second-hand rather than witnessing it directly seemed to unsettle Lynn even more. She shivered despite being in a perfectly warm room, hugging her arms as she asked. Cestlavie and I exchanged glances.

““…………””

Like me, he hadn’t sensed any spiritual presence during the time Bruno supposedly encountered the ghost. So that leaves us with—

“The possibilities are: 1) You simply mistook something else for a ghost.”
“Your mind can conjure a ghost out of curtains when you’re really scared.”
“I didn’t!!”

Even so, human perception is often quite unreliable, especially in a place known as a ‘haunted mansion.’

“2) Another possibility is that it was a creature that mimics the appearance of someone you know, rather than a ghost.”

Maybe something like a doppelgänger or a shapeshifter.

“That’s it!”

Bruno snapped his fingers with a ‘Eureka!’ expression.

““Hmm…””

But if that were the case, we should have noticed some correspondent traces or signs during our exploration earlier in the day. Besides, the ghost that was supposed to look like me started appearing a few months ago, so the timeline doesn’t match up.

“3) Maybe I’m prone to astral projection and unknowingly sent out a spirit form.”

Suddenly, Cestlavie and the other two all took a step away from me.

“…I’m just kidding. I only said it because I’m tired of thinking seriously.”

It’s saddening that they took it for granted.

“I mean, if it’s Jill…”
“She can do anything…”
“Yeah, it’s not entirely impossible…”

The three of them whispered among themselves, which was rather rude. It’s nice to see they’re getting along better with Cestlavie, but I’m not exactly happy to see it.

“Anyway, let’s go see the place where it happened! We can’t make any judgments without seeing it for ourselves!”
“Indeed, that makes sense.”

So, we decided to go to the place where Bruno saw the ghost, with him leading the way, followed by me and Cestlavie.

Lynn was to stay behind in case of emergency.

“I… I’m staying here alone…?”

A girl staying behind alone in a haunted mansion.
…It certainly feels like a death flag, doesn’t it?

“It’s alright. I’ve set up powerful protective charms in the corners of the room, and I’ll leave Vier here with you just in case. You’ll be much safer here than following us.”
“Vier will beat up any bad guys!”

Lynn looked at the energetic, tail-wagging Vier (now the size of a small dog) with a warm expression.

“…Understood. Please come back as soon as you can.”

After reassuring the teary-eyed Lynn several times, we left the room.

♦♢♦

“「Light」.”

The hallway was pitch black as the moon had hidden behind the clouds, making it hard to see our footing. It was both eerie and dangerous, so I immediately cast a light spell.

“I don’t sense anything suspicious… Where exactly did you see Jill’s ghost again?”
“Could you please not phrase it like that? It sounds as if I’m the one haunting this place.”
“Just a bit further ahead. Jill was standing at the corner past that bend.”

Are these two coordinating their stories intentionally?

As we walked towards the problem area, I suddenly realized something important. If we do encounter a ghost, how should I react? Should I scream “Kyah!” in a girlish manner? It seems necessary to maintain my femininity, especially considering how scared Lynn was earlier. But since I’m not actually afraid, it feels a bit insincere.

“…What are you mumbling about?”
“Uh, I was just considering what I should do if I encountered the ghost…”
“I’ll handle that part.”

Cestlavie responded brusquely. As expected of a boy, he’s trying to be very chivalrous.

“I’ll give it my all too!”

Bruno, leading the way with his sword drawn, declared earnestly. It sounded almost like the excuse of someone determined to prove themselves after a long period of inaction.

“Ha! The guy who pissed himself is acting all tough now.”
“You b̲a̲s̲t̲a̲r̲d̲! And I didn’t even piss myself in the first place!”
“Oh, come on! Why do you two always have to argue? You’re on the same team, would you please get along!”

Just when I thought the atmosphere was improving, here we go again. I don’t know why, but these two always seem to compete with each other over everything.

While they bickered, we arrived at the problem area.

“The ghost appeared from over there and floated silently towards me,” Bruno said, pointing to an unremarkable corner of the hallway.

“Here?”

I moved closer to inspect, but it was just a dusty corner of the hallway, nothing unusual.

“Yeah, it came from right there…”

As Bruno began to nod, his words trailed off into a stifled gasp, “—hng,” like a suppressed hiccup, followed by a shocked exclamation from Cestlavie, “What the…!?”

“—?”

I turned around, puzzled, to see Bruno and Cestlavie’s faces paler than the bright light of the full moon peeking through the clouds. They both stared at me with wide eyes.

… … …

Feeling a sudden sense of dread, I slowly turned to look behind me. Standing there was a woman with cherry blossom-colored hair, dressed in a pure white dress.

♦♢♦

“—?!”

A shrill, undignified scream —“Gyoeeeee!”— echoed from afar, making Lynn jump in surprise. Watching Vier, the celestial wolf, pricking up her ears, Lynn guessed that something had gone wrong with Jill and the others. She began pacing nervously.

“Okay, okay! I’ll go check just in case. V-, Vier, will you come with me…?”

Lynn, still nervous, moved toward the exit, with Vier following closely behind. But suddenly, Vier stopped, looked up at a corner of the ceiling with a fierce expression, and let out a howl. Without warning, she leapt straight into the burning fireplace.

“Ahhh! Vier is acting like the bad wolf in old tales!”

Leaving the stunned Lynn behind, the sound of Vier running across the attic echoed loudly. Then, a hoarse male voice yelled out:

“Whoa! What’s with this dog?! Ouch, ouch! Let go, you mutt!”

The noise of a human scrambling about could be heard amidst the chaos.

“What…?”

As Lynn stood dumbfounded at the exit, she suddenly heard a goofy exclamation, “Ah!” A small figure, along with Vier, came crashing through the ceiling, landing with a thunderous noise like a bolt of lightning.

“Kyaaaaaaa!”

Lynn shut her eyes and screamed, but through the commotion, she heard the voices and footsteps of three people rushing down the corridor.

“Lynn!”
“What’s going on?!”
“Ugh, now that’s a cute scream…”¹