The poster was too good to be true.

"Spacious apartment near central Tokyo. Furnished. Only ¥5000/month. (Haunted)"

Most people would wonder why it was so cheap. But Riku? He saw it as a once-in-a-lifetime bargain.

Riku had never been one to shy away from a deal, especially not when his bank account was staring at him like a judgmental parent. As a college student, his savings consisted of the loose change he found in his jacket pockets. The rent for his previous apartment had gone unpaid for two months, and now, his landlord had kicked him out. So, when he saw the listing for this place, his heart had skipped a beat. A furnished apartment for half what he’d been paying before? It felt like fate.

Two days later, Riku stood outside his new home, a slightly run-down apartment with a flickering porch light. He squinted at the address. No, this wasn’t exactly the “heart of Tokyo” like he’d hoped, but it was close enough. He was just happy to have a roof over his head.

Riku had exactly 320 yen in his pocket. In modern Japan, that meant he could afford one vending machine drink and exactly zero housing. So when he stumbled across an apartment listing for "¥5000 per month," he did what any broke college student would do—he ignored the warning and moved in. After all, what’s a little supernatural trauma compared to Tokyo rent prices?

The inside was just as expected—dusty, dimly lit, and had an eerie chill in the air. The perfect haunted house setting. But again, cheap rent. Priorities.

Riku tossed his bag onto the couch, exhaled deeply, and stretched his legs out on the floor. The weight of the past few weeks hit him all at once. Late shifts, ramen-for-dinner budgets, and the soul-crushing stress of balancing school and survival.

If a ghost wanted to fight him right now, it’d have to wait in line.

Then, the lights flickered. A cold gust swept through the room. The air grew heavy. A faint whisper echoed—

"LEAVE THIS PLACE…"

Riku groaned, pulling the blanket over his head. "Five minutes in, and you’re already pulling this? Can the haunting wait till morning?"

A pause. Then—

"LEAVE, OR SUFFER MY WRATH!" the voice shrieked, making the walls tremble.

Riku rolled onto his side, half-lidded eyes staring at the ceiling "Will your wrath pay my rent?"

Silence.

Then, a loud bang. The cupboard doors slammed open, and a shadowy figure floated out of the darkness. Long white robe. Pale face.

But in her rush to make a dramatic entrance, she tripped over her robe and tumbled straight onto the floor with a loud thud.

"AHHHHHH!" she yelped, her voice surprisingly high-pitched.

Riku blinked. He stared at the ghost, now tangled in her own robe, and couldn't help but smirk. "Oye, you okay?" he asked, his voice dripping with amusement.

Meet Yuki, the World's Least Threatening Ghost

The ghost—Yuki—hovered back up, hastily fixing her robe. "FEAR ME, HUMAN! I AM YUKI, SPIRIT OF THIS HOUSE! I HAVE HAUNTED THESE WALLS FOR A CENTURY!"

Silence. . .  

Yuki: "D-Don’t ignore me! I am a NIGHTMARE beyond comprehension!"

Riku: "A ghost which tripped over her own robe in air, Yes yes I comprehend that just fine"

Yuki huffed, crossing her arms and tilting her nose up, as if sheer indignation could restore her ghostly dignity. "T-That was just a miscalculation!"

Riku yawned. "If you are haunting. Can you haunt the neighbors instead? They’re kinda loud."

Yuki clenched her fists. Lifting her mood up and Pointing finger at Riku "Y-You should be trembling in fear!"

Riku : "I’m trembling from hunger. Got any ghost snacks?"

Her eye twitched. This was not how hauntings were supposed to go.

Determined to assert her ghostly dominance, Yuki launched her haunting plan.

Step 1: Poltergeist activity!

A cup on the table moved one centimeter.

Riku raised an eyebrow. "That's it?"

Step 2: Ominous whispers!

"Geeeeet ooooooouuuut…" she wailed in the most chilling tone she could muster.

Riku turned on his phone and played a podcast over her voice.

Step 3: Jump scare!

Yuki appeared right in front of his face with a terrifying shriek.

Riku didn’t even flinch. "You smell like old books."

Yuki stumbled back, horrified. "W-WHY AREN'T YOU SCARED?!"

"I’ve seen my GPA drop faster than my bank balance. A floating bedsheet won’t scare me."

For the first time in her afterlife, Yuki questioned everything.

She was supposed to be terrifying. A nightmare to all who dared enter. But now? She was getting ignored like an old power outage warning.

Was she... a failure as a ghost?

Meanwhile, Riku was already treating her like a roommate.

"Since you're here all day, think you could help with chores?"

Yuki gasped. "I AM NOT YOUR MAID!"

"Not even a little?"

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!"

"What if I pay you in ghost currency?"

"THAT'S NOT A THING!"

A long sigh. "Fine, fine. Can you at least haunt my professor so I get an A?"

"THAT'S NOT HOW THIS WORKS!"

The Beginning of a Haunting Rivalry

Yuki refused to be defeated.

"MARK MY WORDS, HUMAN! YOU WILL FEAR ME ONE DAY!"

Riku stretched and headed to bed. "Uh-huh. Just don’t wake me up while trying."

Yuki floated in the air, fuming. She had a new goal now.

She wasn’t just going to haunt him.

She was going to make sure he screamed in terror.

Determined even if it took her a hundred years.

The moment Riku left for school, Yuki rubbed her ghostly hands together.

"Alright," she muttered, pacing mid-air and floating in circles. "It’s time to show that mortal the true meaning of fear!"

She had all day to prepare. No distractions. No interruptions. Just pure, concentrated haunting energy.

The plan was simple. By nightfall, Riku would tremble before her.

She just had to make sure she didn’t mess it up this time.

Meanwhile, at Sazanami University…

Riku adjusted his bag and walked into the lecture hall, scanning the room.

New city. New school. New start.

No big deal.

He wasn’t nervous—just… mildly prepared for disaster.

The professor, an older man with glasses far too small for his face, cleared his throat. "Alright, everyone, settle down. Before we begin, we have a new student joining us today."

A dozen pairs of eyes turned toward Riku. Great.

"This is Riku. He just transferred here, so help him out if he needs anything."

Riku nodded, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Yo."

Silence.

The professor sighed. "Alright, take a seat."

He picked an empty seat near the middle and sat down. Within seconds, the girl next to him turned to whisper.

"You just transferred here?"

Riku nodded.

She grinned. "Good luck. The vending machines steal your money."

Riku paused. "Like… they don’t give change?"

"No, I mean they literally steal. You’ll see."

Before he could ask further, the professor began the lecture.

Riku focused, taking notes. He wasn’t here to slack off. He was going to make this new start work.

Lunch Break

Riku wandered outside, checking out the campus. It was bigger than he expected, with old, towering trees shading most of the walkways.

Just as he sat on a bench, peeling open a convenience store sandwich, he felt… something.

A slight chill.

"…Weird," he muttered.

Before he could think too much about it, a shadow loomed over him.

"Yo, new guy!"

Riku turned to see a guy with messy brown hair and a laid-back grin. He carried a sports bag over his shoulder.

"You’re Riku, right? I’m Daichi. Saw you in class."

Riku nodded. "Yo."

Daichi plopped onto the bench next to him. "Man, this place is full of weirdos, huh?"

Riku raised an eyebrow. "You included?"

Daichi smirked. "Obviously."

He leaned back, stretching his arms. "Anyway, did you feel that just now?"

"Feel what?"

Daichi shivered dramatically. "A chill. Like… an eerie presence."

Riku blinked. Then, he reached into his bag and pulled out the drink he had shoved in there this morning. It was warm.

"Yeah, definitely eerie," he muttered. "My drink’s supposed to be cold."

Daichi snorted. "No, seriously, though. I think something’s following you."

Riku shrugged. "Probably my debt."

Daichi burst out laughing. "Damn, man, you’re fun."

He nudged Riku. "Anyway, you joinin’ any clubs? There’s a bunch."

"Haven’t decided yet."

Daichi grinned. "If you want something exciting, try the Paranormal Club."

Riku blinked. "...Paranormal?"

"Yeah. Ghost stories, urban legends, real investigations… It’s fun."

Riku sighed. "You’re really into that stuff, huh?"

Daichi chuckled. "You could say that. Besides, with that weird aura around you, you’d fit right in."

Riku took a bite of his sandwich. "I’ll think about it."