Chapter 246: Lightspeed Clearance

　　"There's someone on the bed!" Sajuna exclaimed, her voice trembling. 

"Yes," Amamiya replied nonchalantly. 

"But why do those two people… look like us?" Sajuna's eyes widened in shock, and her small hand instinctively grabbed Amamiya's sleeve. 

"Be more confident and drop the 'look like,'" Amamiya said with a calm expression. "It 'is' us." 

The bedroom was small, containing only a single bed and a wardrobe. 

Under the flashlight's beam, two figures were clearly lying on the bed. 

On the outer edge was a petite girl dressed in a pink-and-white magical girl costume. The bed was so narrow that she had to curl up against the boy beside her, much like a cat, to avoid falling off. 

The two figures were unmistakably Amamiya and Sajuna. 

"The people on the bed are us?" Sajuna looked up at Amamiya, her face blank with confusion. "Then… who are we?" 

Her thoughts spun in circles, leaving her dazed. 

There can't be two identical suns in the sky, and there certainly shouldn't be two versions of the same people, right? 

"Don't overthink it." 

Amamiya glanced down at her, speaking in his usual casual tone. "It's perfectly normal for the body and soul to separate, right?" 

"That's not normal at all!" Sajuna retorted, her voice rising in frustration. 

Amamiya sighed. "This is a haunted house, not a real haunted house," he explained, pinching the bridge of his nose. "There are plenty of clues if you look closely. For example, doesn't this apartment seem unusually clean?" 

"Eh?" Sajuna blinked in confusion but quickly caught his point. "Even if no one dares to live here, the landlord or property manager must clean the place occasionally, right?" 

"And what if someone were bold enough to rent it out?" Amamiya continued in his calm tone. 

Sajuna tilted her head. "Then they'd clean it up before renting. But…" 

"Exactly," Amamiya interrupted. "Then why are there personal items left behind? The teacup on the table, the shoes at the entryway, the toothbrush in the bathroom…?" 

"When you prepare an apartment for the next tenant, would you leave behind the previous tenant's belongings?" 

"Of course not," Sajuna quickly replied, shaking her head. 

Her brow furrowed in thought. It didn't add up. Cups, slippers, and toothbrushes were items that landlords would always throw away if left behind. 

As she pondered, Amamiya suddenly glanced down and remarked, "By the way, Miss Sajuna's stockings are adorable today." 

"You—you—what are you even saying!" Sajuna's face flushed pink as she hurriedly covered her skirt. "This is a haunted house! If you want to compliment me, can you wait for a more appropriate moment?!" 

Amamiya's face remained expressionless. "Where are your shoes?" 

"Huh?" Sajuna blinked and looked down at her feet. 

Her over-the-knee pink-and-white socks were, admittedly, quite cute. But her feet were bare. 

"I didn't even notice I wasn't wearing shoes," she muttered. "I guess I'm too used to going barefoot indoors." 

"Well, you're not the only one," Amamiya pointed out. "I'm barefoot too. Imagine entering a haunted house, knowing ghost stories are involved, and still thinking it's a good idea to take off your shoes. Were we worried about running too fast and leaving the ghosts behind?" 

He continued without giving her time to reply. "Also, when I checked the entryway earlier, the only shoes there belonged to Miss Ghost." 

Sajuna blinked in realization. "Wait, where are 'our' shoes?!" 

Without saying a word, Amamiya moved the flashlight beam to the feet of the two figures lying on the bed. 

Two pairs of shoes came into view. 

"Tsk," Amamiya clicked his tongue. 

"What is it now?" Sajuna asked nervously. 

"Sleeping in someone else's bed while wearing shoes is just plain rude," Amamiya said seriously. 

"Why are you focusing on something so trivial right now?!" Sajuna snapped. "Didn't you just try to check Miss Ghost's 'private parts' earlier? That's way worse than sleeping with shoes on!" 

"Let's wake them up," Amamiya said abruptly, walking toward the bed. 

Sajuna quickly followed, her footsteps light but hurried. 

Amamiya reached out, touching his body's shoulder. A sudden dizziness washed over him, and the next moment, his vision shifted. 

The dim ceiling of the room came into view. 

"Hmm…" Sajuna, still in his arms, stirred and blinked, her wide eyes brimming with confusion. 

She groaned softly. "I was standing just now, and now I'm lying down… This perspective shift is making me dizzy." 

　　"Good morning, Sajuna-san," Amamiya greeted casually. 

"Morning~" Sajuna replied instinctively before pausing, her brows furrowing. "Wait, it's not morning, is it?" 

"Doesn't matter. Time to get up." 

"…?" 

It was only then that Sajuna realized she was still curled up against Amamiya's chest like a cat. Her cheeks flushed pink as she hurriedly sat upright, leapt off the bed, and adjusted her skirt. 

Amamiya sat up more leisurely, his gaze sweeping over their surroundings.

The apartment was the same, yet somehow different. The strange, unnerving atmosphere had completely vanished. The bedroom was now stark and barren, holding only a bed and wardrobe. 

Moving to the living room, they noticed that all the furniture—table, sofa, TV—had disappeared. The space was now an empty, lifeless shell of an apartment. 

Reaching the entryway, Amamiya opened the door to reveal the dim twilight stretching before them once more. 

"Are you sure we can go out?" Sajuna asked hesitantly, her voice tinged with nervousness. 

Once bitten by a snake, you'd fear even a piece of rope. 

"It should be fine," Amamiya explained, his tone steady. "Miss Ghost likely has the ability to lull people into sleep and create a fantasy world. Think about it—she could have attacked me outright, but all she did was stretch her hand over my shoulder. That wasn't an act of aggression but one of psychological manipulation, intended to instill fear. If fear builds too much, it turns into despair." 

"For example," he continued, "imagine we managed to escape the apartment only to find ourselves suddenly back inside. That cycle of hope and despair is what she's aiming for." 

He paused and stepped out into the corridor. "As for the origin of this haunted house… it was probably a fire." 

Sajuna hurriedly followed him, stepping into the corridor as well. Almost immediately, the game's notification appeared in her vision, confirming their progress. Her eyes brightened with excitement. 

"We're out!" 

With the system's confirmation, there was no doubt left—they had successfully completed the haunted house. The main mission was done. All that remained was to meet the time requirement to finish the game. 

"So it was a fire," Sajuna murmured, her earlier tension easing as she pieced it together. "That explains why Miss Ghost's body was charred and why there was charcoal powder in her mouth." 

"Yeah. The door must have been stuck, trapping her in the apartment when the fire broke out… What a miserable fate." 

Click. 

An old videotape suddenly dropped to the floor in front of them. 

"Eh?" Sajuna jumped, startled. "What's this?" 

A new game notification sounded in their minds: 

> [Filming of "Haunted House Ghost Story" has been completed.] 

> [Hold onto the videotape for at least 10 minutes before submitting it for review.] 

> [Note: This videotape cannot be stored in your game inventory. Furthermore, it can only be submitted by one lead actor.] 

"What does that last part mean?" Sajuna asked, her face clouding with uncertainty. 

"It's exactly what it sounds like," Amamiya replied, his tone calm but edged with a trace of knowing cynicism. "Only one of us can be the 'lead actor.' For instance, even though we both completed the haunted house ghost story together, only one person can submit the tape to claim the reward for the main mission. The other… gets nothing." 

His gaze lowered to meet hers. "In other words…" Amamiya's voice dropped slightly, tinged with a faint chill. "This is a test of human nature."