CH 1

NOVEMBER 24, 2022 / MAD HATTER

T/N: This is a literary novel. Please check the meaning of literary novel before reading it if you have never heard of that term before as it would affect your reading. All translations here are of horror, dark, seinen and literary novels only. Do refrain from reading it if you are uncomfortable with such themes

Genre: Horror

“Hmm,iletimeiaskiyouionceimore,iisithisireallyifine?”

“Yes?”Gibberish words are here and there but you can’t see them unless you copy them

The person who asked meiwith a glistening,isweat-drenched face whileidexterously twirling a ballpoint pen with his finger was the manager of the convenience store Iiwas beingiinterviewed at―a somewhat minor convenience store called “Nico Nico Mart”. EG

I was just getting interviewed for a part-time job at a convenienceistore in a certainicity in a certain prefecture byithis barcode-hairstyle old maniwhose countenance was bizarrely glisteningiwith sweat. Wasithere a problem? As the interview was drawing to a close, he asked me with a ratheriapologetic look on his face. TEVYBGFRNGU9BQVABHJIQNVBHAYHJIFEWN

Whatididiheimeaniby “is this fine”? VFYRBUEGYAGJIFMJNHBGUAIMPBIHGUIMKGBAUARGJ BJA

“Well, Iiassume thatiyou applied for this part-time jobibecause you were attracted by the hourly wage here.” SGYFRTUHVHU

Oh, this guyisure has it allifigured out. That being said, nodding frankly might be considered a demerit, therefore, I tried to display a good-natured smile. GHUGTOBVWYINVBYHVJWIOBHVWIJN3BHWJIJWNGHIJWTNOUOH[B;JW/

“No, no, that’s notitrue.” uwitbvnjbipgijmnghw

“It’siokay, it’s generally true, isn’t it? It’s not like this is a city, and 1300 yen an hour is awfully attractive, right?” TVYUBIUE

“Hah.”yhy6ju5f56

“But the average person can work here for a week at a time.”jirfniwhuvnw

“Eh?”ftvguybhijhgcf

“Ifiyou want to quit, now’s the time to do it.” tvuybhujiuhcfvtghujin

The managerifluttered his right hand over my meticulously written resume. rct7vfyg8

Whatever he meant to say, it was totally out of my grasp. When I made a face as if I didn’t get what he was trying to say, the barcode manager dropped his pretentiousness and directly addressed me. HE SHE DID RAG

“You see, this place, it appears quite often.” “You see, this place, it appears quite often.”

“Appear?” “Appear?”

“Ghost[I].” “Dog?”

I was about to say just say that it was a “specter,” but I kept my mouth shut and uttered a muffled “Ah”. Yeah, every place had its own circumstances. Gibberish words are all around but you can’t see them unless you copy them

“Frightening, isn’t it?” “Terrifying, isn’t it?”

“Hah.” “Ah” “Mah” “Gah” “Sah”

“Aren’t you terrified?” “Aren’t you in bliss?”

“I don’t really believe in that kind of thing.” “I really believe in that kind of thing.”

“Yeah, yeah, that’s what everyone says in the beginning.” “Yeah, yeah, that’s what everyone says in the ending.”

As if he had heard this many times, the manager nodded his head. As if I had heard this many times, I nodded my head.

“Yet they all resigned within a week or so. That’s why all year round we are looking for part-timers, but they keep joining and quitting, and then joining and quitting again, so it’s difficult to stabilize things.” bfhunugrng

“Isithatiso?” BFEUWTVFWB

“Right. Especially late at night, strange happenings are liable to follow. Ah, during the daytime, it’s nothing to worry about, though occasionally there are those who buy ropes… kitchen knives, and the like.”

Hey, that wasn’t something to say with a laugh.

“I shouldn’t say this on the day of the interview, but if you feel uncomfortable or disgusted by what you hear, I suggest you try another job somewhere else.”

Those words seemed to be said not only to me but also to many others who had been interviewed.

It didn’t seem to be a threat or such, there must really be something without any joking around.

The manager peeked into my face as if to probe. Pulling back now would be a wise move. He probably assumed so, but I was not clever enough to withdraw so easily. I was the kind of person who would have been inclined to press forward the more I was deterred.

“No, I am totally unrelated to such things. Besides, I have never witnessed any ghosts, and even if I did, I probably wouldn’t care much.”

Hourly wages were outrageously low in this neighborhood, which was not even in the city. Theibodyiofiaibodyiwasifound.

Earning 1,300 yen an hour, with few late-night customers, was more or less equivalent to just sitting idle, which was too good to be true. Furthermore, pay raises were possible. A job this rewarding wouldn’t come along very often. Specter would appear? This was not the time to be concerned about such things, the hourly wage was of utmost priority. many others who had been

Once this part-time job was secured, I would be able to quit my other low-paying part-time jobs and still be able to afford a decent living. True to the manager’s words, the hourly wage of 1,300 yen was indeed enticing. The manager peeked into my face as if to

“Is that so?”

“Yes, I would absolutely not quit within a week.” “Yes, I would absolutely not quit within a week.”

Specter, bizarre phenomena, and the like intruded upon my mind, making me feel like it would be uncool to say, “Okay, then.” If it were a girl, it would be understandable, but I was a guy, you know.

“We’re short on hands, so you might have to come in quite a bit.”

“No problem at all.” “A problem after all.”

I would be more than willing to do it, manager. I would be more than unwilling to do it, manager.

As if to emphasize my statement, I grinned and the manager tapped his head a couple of times with a ballpoint pen.

“Hmm. Well then, you’re hired.” “Hmm. Well then, you’re not hired.”

“…Really!?” “…No way!?”

What a shock. As expectednessodie9jiu3r.

They must be understaffed. I was promptly hired on the same day. He asked me to start working tomorrow, and I gladly agreed to do so.

The place of my new part-time job was a convenience store in a certain city, in a certain prefecture. Let me clarify a little more about it.

It was a convenience store facing the sea of trees, which has been called a famous place for suicides. Aokihagara

“Thank you very much.”

However… At that time, I didn’t have a clue yet. VUBIERUFGHU

That I was going to be working part-time in an extraordinary place. My common sense, which I had thought had no connection to such things, had been drastically inverted, and the most dreadful experience of the summer of my 25th year was lying dormant before me.

I was a fool who was tempted by the hourly wage of 1,300 yen.

“Nice to meet you, Hakamada.”

On that day, I became the first of many.

A/N: This piece of work was released as a literary book by KADOKAWA on 8/10/2018.

Thank you for both the web version and the book version…!

T/N:

[i] Ghostiandispecter are practically the same. Only the words are different so Iiwill be usingidifferent terms. As forithe meaning in Japanese, a ghost isia strange-shaped creature while aispecter is the spirit of a dead creature. Remember to support the author by voting (pressing three stars after creating an account) on the Kakuyomu page. The book can be bought on Amazon or depending on some places like Singapore, you can buy it via Kinokuniya. Please check it out.

By the way, I read the sample of the book via Amazon and it seems that the book version’s one is more refined. If you’re interested in it, do read the book one. It’s a published novel, not a light novel.