T/N: This is a literary novel. Please check the aning 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 thes
Genre: Horror
T/N: If anyone experiences a problem with the visibility of the text, read here. Your problem will not be dealt with if you choose not to follow the given solution.
Hmm, let ask you once more, is this really fine?
Yes?
The person who asked with a glistening, sweat-drenched face while dexterously twirling a ballpoint pen with his finger was the manager of the convenience store I was being interviewed ata sowhat minor convenience store called Nico Nico Mart.
I was just getting interviewed for a part-ti job at a convenience store in a certain city in a certain prefecture by this barcode-hairstyle old man whose countenance was bizarrely glistening with sweat. Was there a problem? As the interview was drawing to a close, he asked with a rather apologetic look on his face.
What did he an by is this fine?
Well, I assu that you applied for this part-ti job because you were attracted by the hourly wage here.
Oh, this guy sure has it all figured out. That being said, nodding frankly might be considered a derit, therefore, I tried to display a good-natured smile.
No, no, thats not true.
Its okay, its generally true, isnt it? Its not like this is a city, and 1300 yen an hour is awfully attractive, right?
Hah.
But the average person can work here for a week at a ti.
Eh?
If you want to quit, nows the ti to do it.
The manager fluttered his right hand over my ticulously written resu.
Whatever he ant to say, it was totally out of my grasp. When I made a face as if I didnt get what he was trying to say, the barcode manager dropped his pretentiousness and directly addressed .
You see, this place, it appears quite often.
Appear?
Ghost[I].
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.
Frightening, isnt it?
Hah.
Arent you terrified?
I dont really believe in that kind of thing.
Yeah, yeah, thats what everyone says in the beginning.
As if he had heard this many tis, the manager nodded his head.
Yet they all resigned within a week or so. Thats why all year round we are looking for part-tirs, but they keep joining and quitting, and then joining and quitting again, so its difficult to stabilize things.
Is that so?
Right. Especially late at night, strange happenings are liable to follow. Ah, during the dayti, its nothing to worry about, though occasionally there are those who buy ropes kitchen knives, and the like.
Hey, that wasnt sothing to say with a laugh.
I shouldnt 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 sowhere else.
Those words seed to be said not only to but also to many others who had been interviewed.
It didnt seem to be a threat or such, there must really be sothing without any joking around.
The manager peeked into my face as if to probe. Pulling back now would be a wise move. He probably assud 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 wouldnt care much.
Hourly wages were outrageously low in this neighborhood, which was not even in the city.
Earning 1,300 yen an hour, with few late-night custors, 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 wouldnt co along very often. Specter would appear? This was not the ti to be concerned about such things, the hourly wage was of utmost priority.
Once this part-ti job was secured, I would be able to quit my other low-paying part-ti jobs and still be able to afford a decent living. True to the managers words, the hourly wage of 1,300 yen was indeed enticing.
Is that so?
Yes, I would absolutely not quit within a week.
Specter, bizarre phenona, and the like intruded upon my mind, making 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.
Were short on hands, so you might have to co in quite a bit.
No problem at all.
I would be more than willing to do it, manager.
As if to emphasize my statent, I grinned and the manager tapped his head a couple of tis with a ballpoint pen.
Hmm. Well then, youre hired.
Really!?
What a shock.
They must be understaffed. I was promptly hired on the sa day. He asked to start working tomorrow, and I gladly agreed to do so.
The place of my new part-ti job was a convenience store in a certain city, in a certain prefecture. Let 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.
Thank you very much.
However At that ti, I didnt have a clue yet.
That I was going to be working part-ti 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 sumr of my 25th year was lying dormant before .
I was a fool who was tempted by the hourly wage of 1,300 yen.
Nice to et you, Hakamada.
On that day, I beca 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] Ghost and specter are practically the sa. Only the words are different so I will be using different terms. As for the aning in Japanese, a ghost is a strange-shaped creature while a specter is the spirit of a dead creature. Rember 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 so 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 versions one is more refined. If youre interested in it, do read the book one. Its a published novel, not a light novel.
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