落とし穴１４５堀：夏の怪談リバイバル 彼女たちの野望 (Part2)
"Honestly, you're so bad at explaining things. Fine, I'll explain it for you. It seems she hitched a ride with some tourists from the Zilba Empire."
"Tourists? What do you mean by that?"
"You know, that 'possession' thing Yuki mentioned. I felt like she was about to curse those tourists to death, so I just peeled her off."
"Peeled her off...?"
Is it really that easy to do something like that to a ghost? I’ve heard of earthbound spirits that stay in one place due to lingering grudges or attachments...
"Well, I am a goddess, after all."
"..." "..." "..."
"What’s with the 'ah'?! Don't tell me you all forgot I'm a goddess!"
Honestly, I had completely forgotten. Certainly, no matter how hopeless she might seem, if she is technically a deity, such feats are likely within her power.
"Sigh. Well, whatever. She’s just a novice, anyway. So, there you have it—she didn't die here in Weed, so you don't need to worry."
If that’s the case, that’s a relief. Well, I mean, it’s unfortunate that she passed away and became a ghost, but still.
"Glad you're convinced. But if we left her alone, she’d turn into an evil spirit like Noriko, so Hairen decided to take her in."
"Who are you calling an evil spirit?"
"I mean, you *are* an evil spirit, aren't you?"
We couldn't help but nod at Seraria’s blunt retort to Noriko’s protest. Noriko is, without a doubt, an evil spirit. Since Master said she was fine now, we didn't press the issue, but the way she cornered Kagura and the others was definitely the work of an evil spirit.
"Tch, whatever. Today is my chance to get back at Yuki! I’ll scare him this time for sure! And Seraria and the others get to be happy because they’re helping out. It’s perfect, right?"
"I hope it goes well for you," Shera replied with a wry smile.
Well, Noriko has tried to scare Master many times before, but she has been soundly repelled every single time.
"This time it’ll be perfect. Usually, my presence is detected the moment I get close, but this Sasha is an unregistered ghost, so her presence is incredibly faint. Plus, even Yuki doesn't seem to have noticed her yet. The chances of success are high."
"Well, let's pray that's how it turns out. Besides, the main goal is for Yuki and the others to enjoy themselves. We’re strictly behind the scenes this time. Kirue and Sasari will be handling the inn's operations. I’m counting on you two."
"Yes, leave it to us."
"Indeed. We will provide Master and the others with the finest hospitality."
The inn where Master and the others are staying is still in its pre-opening phase, and since this is supposed to be a "summer vacation for the guys," we won't be showing our faces. We will, however, be monitoring them closely via video.
As we were discussing this...
"Oh, the car just pulled into the inn's parking lot."
"My, they’ve arrived already. Kirue, Sasari, go and welcome them. We’ll continue monitoring from here. Good luck, Noriko."
"Yes, understood!"
We watched Kirue and Noriko head out, and before long...
『Huh. It’s actually built quite solidly.』
『You said the wives designed it from scratch themselves, right? Isn't this amazing for that?』
『Yeah, it’s impressive how well they’ve recreated a high-class mountain inn. Well, I’m sure they looked at plenty of reference materials, but it’s still magnificent.』
We were peeking—no, *safely observing*—Yuki and the others' movements. It seems they liked the exterior. As Taizo said, it’s gratifying to see that the results of everyone’s hard work, based on all those documents we studied, were recognized. Though, to be fair, Firia and Narjia handled the finer details.
『The rest is the interior.』
『It might not be as polished inside. They might have just gone with Western-style furniture out of nowhere, you know?』
『That would be interesting in its own right.』
Alright, Taiki, that’s a point deduction. We put plenty of effort into the interior as well. I know he was just joking, so I’m not actually angry, but still.
As they chatted away...
『Well, we’ll know once we go inside.』
『That’s true. Oh, for an inn this nice, it would be great if they had a TV.』
『Agreed. And hopefully, there are outlets and extension cords in convenient places. It’s going to be a pain to boot up three PCs, after all.』
...Hm?
I feel like they’re planning on doing something inappropriate for guests at an inn. Surely they aren't planning on staying holed up in their rooms the entire time, right?
And so, the wives scouted a local ghost to confront Yuki and his friends. Well, mostly just Noriko. What will the wives gain from monitoring Yuki? It feels like the roles should be reversed, but I suppose we’ll just have to give up on that!
Thus, the terrifying inn experience began.