Dong Yeyue reads a horror story

There’s nothing unusual with my brother, he’s still the same as usual.

This was a message sent by Amano Yuko. Since that day, we had been keeping in touch.

It seemed she couldn’t bear to see me fall into Amano Sora’s hands, so she had taken on the role of a spy.

[Thanks, Yuko.]

[It’s nothing. I have a good impression of you, Sister Xiaoyue. You’re not like those women who are completely bewitched by my monster brother. Those people are beyond saving anyway.]

Being able to leave a good impression on someone—it really feels nice.

I narrowed my eyes, feeling pleased.

Amano Sora seemed to have quieted down ever since I visited his house.

But even Ichijou Rikou believed that it wouldn’t end so simply.

Perhaps if I stopped appearing “perfect,” it might extinguish Amano Sora’s interest.

It sounded like a feasible method, but I wouldn’t do it.

After all, Dong Yeyue being “perfect” is the role I’ve always played—it’s not something I can break.

Even after learning about Amano Sora’s mindset, there’s still no clear way to deal with it.

But now isn’t the time to dwell on that.

[Each copy is only 600 yen! For 600 yen, you get literary appreciation, serialized novels, and Yueji—a book written by us students!]

It was the same kind of loud, straightforward street promotion.

At the same time, Hisateru Yoshiko was wearing a crocodile mascot costume, energetically waving the book in her hand, trying to attract more customers.

And indeed, quite a few people were drawn over—but after flipping through a few pages, they quickly lost interest and left.

So far, only a few people had bought it—mostly because their own works were published in it.

[President—]

Ichijou Rikou hesitated a little.

[Should we lower the price?]

In the end, it was still too expensive. At least for me—and for normal people, no one would spend 600 yen on a book of unknown quality.

[No, no. If we go any lower, we’ll be at a loss.]

But if we can’t sell it, isn’t that an even bigger loss?

Still, faced with this situation, I simply smiled and nodded without letting my composure slip.

[After all, everyone worked hard on this.]

Of course, I also hoped it would make money—but that’s not something I can decide.

[Would you like some tea?]

Nishimura Noriyuki had already habitually taken out teacups and looked at us while asking.

[—What should we do, Noriyuki?]

The previously confident Hisateru Yoshiko now looked completely on the verge of collapse, teary-eyed as she looked at him.

[Does this mean our Yueji really won’t sell?]

President, it will sell. Don’t worry.

But the way you say it makes it sound like there’s no hope at all.

[Ah, it’s fine. Even if it doesn’t sell, it’s fine.]

Noriyuki, don’t say things like that.

[—Anyway, not many people would read it.]

[That’s not true.]

Does she really think her book has no value at all?

But now isn’t the time to dwell on that.

I turned again to look at the entrance.

[—Is anyone else coming?]

[Yes, one last person.]

[—Really?]

They seemed a bit disappointed at the phrase “one last person.”

[Yes.]

I nodded.

He seemed to be the final visitor. And according to Hisateru Yoshiko, he knew Noriyuki.

Because of him, Noriyuki had also become nervous.

She sat there like a prisoner waiting for judgment.

[Sorry to keep you waiting.]

She bowed to him.

He simply nodded lightly.

Then she picked up a teacup and handed it to him.

[Thank you.]

He said calmly and accepted it with both hands.

The interaction between them felt like that of two strangers meeting for the first time.

No… more like classmates who hadn’t seen each other for a long time.

I kept observing them.

[—Why did you come here?]

Noriyuki looked at him with a strange, almost unfamiliar gaze.

[What kind of question is that?]

He looked puzzled.

[Didn’t you come here to see the books our school published?]

[That’s true.]

He put down the teacup.

Then he looked at Hisateru Yoshiko with a peculiar gaze.

[—Are you the author of this?]

He pointed at the book Yoshiko had handed me earlier.

[Yes.]

She lowered her head and answered softly.

[—Do you have any comments?]

[Yes.]

His reply was direct.

[—Is it… not good?]

She asked quietly, clearly worried about criticism.

[No, that’s not what I mean.]

He gently ran his hand over the book.

[—I think your writing stirs something in people.]

He raised his head.

[—It feels like I’ve returned to my student days.]

His gaze turned distant.

His voice trembled slightly as he spoke.

[—It’s like the first time I read “Song of the Moon.”]

I saw Noriyuki’s expression waver.

[—That feeling of wanting to immerse myself in it.]

He looked at her.

[—So please allow me to buy a copy.]

His tone was extremely sincere.

[—Is that okay?]

[Of course!]

Hisateru Yoshiko answered happily.

She picked up a book and handed it to him.

[Thank you.]

He took the book, then pulled out his wallet and took out a 10,000 yen bill.

[—No need for change.]

He handed over the money.

[—Thank you for your purchase.]

He took the book and left.

[—I’m so happy.]

Hisateru Yoshiko whispered.

Holding the 10,000 yen, she happily ran up to Noriyuki.

[—Noriyuki, Noriyuki!]

She waved the bill.

[—We did it, we sold one!]

Her eyes were full of joy.

Noriyuki’s expression, however, was complicated.

[—Yeah.]

She murmured.

[—He bought your book… that’s great.]

[Yeah.]

Yoshiko nodded.

[—I didn’t expect him to buy it.]

She seemed surprised.

[—Yeah, neither did I.]

Noriyuki was also surprised.

[—By the way, who exactly is he?]

I looked at the two of them.

[—He… is my—]

Yoshiko answered softly.

[—A very important friend of mine.]

Her gaze flickered.

[I see.]

I nodded.

[—Then, since he bought one, maybe we can sell more?]

Her eyes were full of hope.

[—Maybe.]

Noriyuki’s expression remained complicated.

[—Then let’s try selling more!]

Yoshiko said, picking up the books again and placing them on the table.

[—Okay.]

Noriyuki nodded and sat back down.

[—Then let’s try harder.]

Yoshiko clenched her fist.

[—Yeah.]

Noriyuki did the same.

[—Alright, let’s give it another shot.]

The three of us all clenched our fists.

[—Yeah.]

We answered in unison.

Then we sat back down again.

[—Alright.]

We resumed waiting.

[—By the way…]

Yoshiko suddenly spoke.

[—Did we forget something?]

She looked confused.

[—Forget what?]

Noriyuki was also confused.

[—Yeah.]

Yoshiko nodded.

[—Did we forget to invite you?]

She looked at me.

A rigid tone can sometimes make people think there’s no hope.

Heh—this is where I come in!

Tianshan Xun put down the loudspeaker, looking confident.

Could it be—you have an idea, Xiao Xun?

Everyone turned their attention to her.

It’s not going to be a bad idea, right…

Honestly, I didn’t have much confidence in her.

Most likely, she’d end up pushing the task onto us.

After all, we’re the ones free right now.

I flipped through Yueji earlier.

Tianshan Xun smiled mysteriously.

There’s one story that’s especially captivating.

What is it?

Yoshiko asked curiously—and then seemed to realize something.

Could it be—

Even those involved in reviewing manuscripts remembered it clearly. As the typist who converted it into digital form, there’s no way I wouldn’t remember it either.

That story… was a horror story.

It seemed like it was going to be serialized, so several parts had been submitted.

Because it was quite frightening, it left a strong impression on us.

My friend, Ishimura Mikiko, sent me a message at 3 a.m.

Ichijou Rikou seemed to have some talent for performance. His gentle voice read the manuscript steadily, yet it made people tense up.

Just a single sentence was enough to stir imagination.

The message was simple—just one short line.

Kenta, I found it.

Now it was my turn to speak. I didn’t even need the manuscript.

After all, I’m quite smart—and the story wasn’t long, so I remembered it clearly.

Found what? Back then, I was confused.

Perhaps I had already put down the script, and Ichijou did the same. It didn’t seem to affect him much either.

So… sorry about this, Ichijou, for dragging you into something I decided on my own.

Though honestly, I don’t feel that apologetic.

Ishimura Mikiko was my high school classmate. It had been six years since we last met. Honestly, receiving a message from her felt unbelievable.

After that much time, people usually forget each other and move on, even if they once had good memories.

But that’s all in the past, isn’t it?

So what exactly did she find? I tapped on my desk, deep in thought.

Mikiko was a very strange person. Not just me—even her friends thought so. She often said odd things, but that didn’t stop our friendship.

She was warm, generous, carefree, and cheerful—that’s why I liked her and dated her back then.

To me, she was just a cute, normal girl…

If not for that incident—

So unforgettable that even now, it makes me tremble.

[Kenta, I think I can feel where they are.]

[That’s what she said.]

[Mikiko, what do you mean?]

[Quietly… slowly approaching… without a sound.]

[She recited it, closing her eyes adorably.]

Ah—

Lowering my voice, recreating the moment—like a whisper right beside your ear.

[They’re coming~]

She looked in a certain direction, as if she saw something, and smiled.

[At that moment, I felt a chill for no reason. Even under the blazing sun, I felt afraid.]

[They’re coming—what’s coming? What are they? I didn’t know, and I couldn’t get any answers from Mikiko.]

[They’re just… them.]

[Such an innocent answer—but completely useless, unable to dispel my fear.]

Maybe it was just one of Mikiko’s jokes. She loved playing tricks.

[But that memory stayed in my mind—and one day, it came true.]

[That was a night I woke up suddenly.]

The door creaked open. The wind slipped through the gap, rustling.

No light. No presence. Total darkness.

[I only knew one thing.]

[They had come.]

Floating, invisible, silent—watching me.

Just like Mikiko said—approaching slowly, without a sound.

[They were like a welcoming procession, lifting me up, carrying me through rivers and mountains, silently—]

[It was a dream… but it felt incredibly real.]

[But it didn’t end there.]

His voice, laced with fear, fell silent—and mine rose faintly.

[Kenta, they really like you.]

She looked toward something. I followed her gaze.

[It wasn’t a dream. They came to me—and embraced my frozen body.]

[After that, I stayed in the hospital for half a month… and broke up with Mikiko.]

[That became the most unforgettable memory of knowing her—]

That’s how Ichijou and I took turns reading that passage.

And before we realized it, people had gathered around us.

[Why did you stop?]

Someone asked—and others agreed.

[Everyone, this is just a part of Yueji. If you want to read the rest, please buy a copy! Only 600 yen! Take it home!]

Tianshan Xun fully embraced the spirit of street promotion, shouting through the loudspeaker.

The atmosphere quickly grew lively.

I want one!

Me too!

People waved cash, rushing to buy.

Looks like popular fiction really drives sales.

Hisateru Yoshiko wasn’t satisfied with just that.

Xiao Xun, you said you’d make Noriyuki the spokesperson.

She demanded Tianshan Xun keep her promise.

Isn’t that easy?

Noriyuki, I’ll leave it to you to hand out Yueji to everyone.

No problem, Xiao Xun.

Remember to smile more—that way people will remember you.

Anyway, Yueji’s sales didn’t look like they’d be bad.

At least not bad enough to make Yoshiko come up with another bizarre idea.

So, Xiaoyue, I deliberately arranged for you and Ichijou to be together.

Tianshan Xun said excitedly.

She had already started helping me get closer to Ichijou Rikou.

Unfortunately… I didn’t really need her help.

Hmm, won’t Noriyuki be a bit pitiful?

Hey, compared to that, Xiaoyue is my best, best friend.

To make my best friend happy, it’s okay even if others have to suffer a little.

Xiao Xun, I’m really grateful that you think this way for me, but—

I paused, pretending to hesitate.

It’s better if Noriyuki stays with Ichijou.

Why, Xiaoyue?

Isn’t it good to cut off those thoughts?

Eh?

You can’t keep chasing Ichijou forever, right?

…Fine, Xiaoyue.

Dong, who are you chatting with?

Ichijou Rikou asked curiously.

With Xiao Xun.

I narrowed my eyes and smiled softly.

Just now, I practically handed you over to Noriyuki.

Making that decision was truly heartbreaking, Ichijou.

Ah… I’m sorry about that, Dong.

Hm.

What do you want to eat tonight, Dong?

Let me think… fried rice again.

You really never get tired of it.

Well, I can only achieve rice freedom thanks to you.

Alright then.

Still at 10 p.m.?

I’ll be there.

Come to think of it, that story we just read… was a bit scary.

So I’ll come earlier tonight, Dong.

Hehe.