Episode 1: The Ghosts of Halloween

---

Having just arrived at the haunted house, Yuuki and the others were looking around for any staff members.

Matsuri
Excuse us! Is anyone here?

Tsumugi
It looks like nobody's here...

???
Whoa! Everyone! Customers! Get ready! Come on, hurry!

Matsuri
I feel like we came at a bad time.

Rei
So it seems. Perhaps we should wait.

???
Welcome to our haunted house!

Matsuri
Oh, good. Someone's here to show us around.

???
You didn't get scared of me...

Matsuri
Huh? Did you say something?

Machu
No, nothing! Nothing at all! My name's Machu, and I'm here to guide you!

Tsumugi
The cast here seems so adorable, they could serve as mascots for something... But he's a real will o' wisp. I wonder if he can use magic.

Rei
I wasn't sure at all if anyone would show up. Maybe they were taking the time to prepare their magic here. A haunted house enchanted with magic... It could be fun.

Machu
There are tons of scary ghosts in this haunted house! Do you guys think you can stomach it?

Matsuri
H-Huh? Machu, where are you going? He disappeared...

Rei
Maybe that means we can move ahead.

Tsumugi
Let's give it a try.

Rei
Yeah, sounds fun.

Matsuri
Ah, don't leave me behind! Hey, Yuuki, quit spacing out -- let's go!

Later.

Werewolf
W-Welcome to our haunted house...

Werewolf
It's super scary here...

Tsumugi
W-What's going on here...?

Werewolf
You should be scared! Be scared... Scream or something...

Matsuri
It just seems like he's singing, doesn't it?

Rei
Y-Yeah...

Tsumugi
What was that about this town's haunted house being super scary...?

Matsuri
I bet they're just trying to get us to let our guards down, so that they can really scare us. We can't get complacent!

Later.

Mummy
... Oh.

Tsumugi
Oh?

Rei
Are you still in the middle of preparing?

Mummy
Whoaaaaaa!

Rei
It's okay, don't get all flustered. We just came at a bad time. Should we back out and come in again?

Mummy
What are you saying? Aren't you scared of me?

Tsumugi
No, no, no. You won't scare anyone with that boring entrance. Come on, let's do it over again.

Mummy
Boring? What do ya mean?

Matsuri
I mean, you weren't hidden at all!

Mummy
But if I'm hiding, I won't be able to know when the guests come.

All Three
......

Tsumugi
Um, this is really a haunted house... isn't it?

Mummy
That's right! So folks should be scared of me just like this! Anyway, that's it for me. You all go on ahead.

Tsumugi
S-Sure... All right, let's just move on.

Later.

Little Devil
You have done well to make it this far. I offer my congratulations.

Matsuri
Oh! This is looking more like it!

Tsumugi
Yeah. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens.

Little Devil
There are two paths before you. One leads into the light, and the other into the depths of hell. Proceed wisely.

Matsuri
Huh? Is that it?

Rei
Well, maybe the path into the depths of hell will be scary. Let's have a look.

Later.

Matsuri
We're back outside... I guess that was the right path...

Rei
I-Is that it?

Tsumugi
What kind of haunted house was that?

Matsuri
I'm sure the other path was scarier! Let's check to make sure!

Tsumugi
I can't say I have high hopes at this point...

Rei
Yeah...

Matsuri
Then, I'll go check by myself! Uh, wait, actually, I'll have Yuuki come with me! N-Not 'cause I'm scared or anything!

Yuuki
1. "Let's go!"

Matsuri
Thanks! Then, here we come!

Tsumugi
I feel like this is a waste of time, but... Have fun.

Matsuri
H-Huh?

Tsumugi
Welcome back. Was it super scary?

Matsuri
No, um, even though we picked the other path, we wound up back outside... What's going on?

Little Devil
Ahaha!

Matsuri
Y-You're the person from before! What's going on here?

Little Devil
No matter what path you choose, you end up outside! Scary, huh!? Ahaha!

Matsuri
Oh, so that's what it is. You really got me good!

Tsumugi
No, hang on, Matsuri only found out because she went back for a second time. Normal guests would just think they picked the right path, right? What's scary about that?

Both
......

Both
You're right!!!!

Rei
Ahaha...

Tsumugi
Sigh... What's with this haunted house? It wasn't scary at all, and I have no idea what they were even going for.

Machu
It wasn't scary...?

Matsuri
Oh, that voice -- isn't that Machu, from the entrance? Where are you?

Machu
I'm right here!

Tsumugi
Ah, Machu. Sorry, I didn't see you there.

Machu
I-I mean, I just appeared out of nowhere...

Tsumugi
Huh? What do you mean?

Machu
Look, like this!

Matsuri
Wow! Machu disappeared!

Rei
So he has magic to turn invisible... That really is remarkable.

Machu
It's not magic! Ugh! Why isn't anyone scared of me!?

Matsuri
You appeared from nowhere just now, too! How did you do it?

Machu
I can change the shape of my body, you see? Because I'm a will o' wisp!

Tsumugi
I see. That's a pretty good trick. Suits the haunted house setting pretty well, I think.

Machu
It's not a trick! I'm an actual ghost! Back me up here.

Edy
Yeah. We're all real ghosts, you know? I'm the prankster devil, Edy.

Tsumugi
Huh...

Machu
Do you still not believe us!? Hey, everyone, come out!

Mummy
What's up?

Werewolf
What's going on?

Machu
This here's Hughes the mummy, and Victor the werewolf!

Matsuri
Hughes and Victor, huh. Nice to meet you.

Machu
See? We're ghosts! Isn't that scary!? Doesn't it make you wanna scream!?

Tsumugi
No matter how many times you say it's scary...

Rei
I really can only describe you all as cute.

Machu
No way...

Tsumugi
Honestly, I'm not really sure why you're so disappointed...

Hughes
Machu, c'mon, let's give it up. We've tried this a bunch, and it ain't ever worked out.

Edy
Yeah... We're never gonna scare anyone, so let's just go back to the spirit world...

Yuuki
1. "You came here from the spirit world?"

Machu
Yeah! You know about the spirit world, mister!?

Tsumugi
Yuuki, don't get carried away with... wait, huh? You don't look like you're joking around at all. You seriously know about this spirit world?

Yuuki
1. "It's a long story."
2. "I've been there."

Option 1.

Tsumugi
You know, you can be strangely convincing -- when you say it's a long story, I know you really mean it... Even if I have know idea what you're talking about.

Rei
R-Right. But then, from what he's saying, are these children really... ghosts?

Option 2.

Matsuri
You went to the spirit world!? Yuuki, you really have been around a lot.

Tsumugi
How can you say something that crazy with a straight face!? Wait, really? Does that mean these kids are really ghosts?

End of branches.

Tsumugi
I want to say that's impossible, but I'm starting to believe it myself.

Tsumugi
It doesn't seem like you're wearing a costume, Machu. Here, let me check.

Machu
Ha ha, that tickles!

Tsumugi
It's true. It isn't an artificial costume.

Rei
W-Wait... What do you mean by ghosts, anyway? Are you different from monsters?

Machu
We're different! Monsters are evil guys who attack people! We'd never do that!

Hughes
Yeah! We ghosts just like to scare and feed off people!

Rei
... Huh?

Tsumugi
So you mean...

Matsuri
You mean, you're super evil! You don't belong in this town! Prepare to taste justice!

Machu
Whoa! No! No! He left out the important part! We feed off of the screams that people let out when they're scared!

Victor
But we... haven't ever gotten to eat a single scream...

Edy
I wonder what screams even taste like...

Hughes
They've gotta be delicious...

Matsuri
I guess... it's time to taste justice...

Rei
Uh...

Tsumugi
I guess we can abide by Matsuri's judgment, since she's from Nightmare and all.

Machu
Nightmare!? W-What do we do!? They're the one group we definitely can't afford to be found by!

Edy
Y-You were the one who went out and said we were ghosts! Don't go blaming us for being found out!

Machu
I-It was just because I thought, if I said I was a ghost, they might scream!

Victor
S-Stop, please, don't hurt us...

Matsuri
Um, somehow, I'm starting to feel like I'm the bad guy here...

Rei
For now, I'd just like to ask you a few more questions.

Machu
I'll talk! I'll talk! I'll spill everything!

Later.

Matsuri
I see. So, because this town makes such a big deal out of Halloween, you ghosts come here every year to see if you can feed off some screams and grow a bit more mature.

Hughes
We set up that haunted house so that we'd be able to eat some screams!

Tsumugi
Though, the haunted house wasn't scary at all.

Machu
Yeah... In all the years we've been doing this, no one's ever been scared. So we've never been able to grow into full-fledged ghosts... What are we doing wrong...?

Matsuri
I mean, you ask that, but...

Machu
I don't wanna be made fun of by the other ghosts anymore! Please! Tell us what we did wrong!

Tsumugi
Are you sure? I feel like that's not something you should ask a guest to do. Shouldn't you try to work on it yourselves?

Hughes
We've tried, but...

Edy
What you've seen is all we've been able to come up with...

Tsumugi
Oof...

Machu
B-But we really want to get at least one scream! So...

Ghosts
Please!

Tsumugi
Now they're all asking at once... Sigh... Fine, fine. I'll go over it with you.

Machu
Thank you!

Tsumugi
First up, Victor the werewolf! You've got claws and fangs, so you should be menacing people with those! And cut the singing! You should be howling instead!

Victor
Sure, okay.

Tsumugi
Next, Hughes the mummy! Don't just stand there spacing out! You've got an especially scary appearance, so use it -- act like a prop when people come in, so that you can scare them by suddenly jumping out!

Hughes
I get it! That way, I'll be able to see when they come in, too!

Tsumugi
Then, Edy the prankster devil. Instead of pulling weird pranks on the guests, you need to put in the effort to prepare a genuinely scary path for people to walk down.

Edy
All right!

Tsumugi
Last up, Machu.

Machu
Gulp...

Tsumugi
You need to take advantage of your ability to morph your appearance. I think there are a lot of ways that you could use it to keep people unsettled.

Tsumugi
All right, that's all I have.

Ghosts
......

Tsumugi
Then, it's time for us to...

Machu
W-Wait!!

Tsumugi
What is it? I've said everything I had to say.

Machu
Um, well... Do you think you could help us scare people?

Tsumugi
What...?

Machu
Your advice is really good! None of us had ever thought about anything like that...

Tsumugi
Well, you need to start thinking on your own. Why do I have to do this in the first place...?

Machu
We want to eat screams and become mature ghosts! That's why we have to become scarier no matter what!

Yuuki
1. "I'll help."

Tsumugi
Yuuki!?

Matsuri
I'm gonna help, too!

Tsumugi
You, too, Matsuri!?

Matsuri
I can't just ignore people who are in need! Even if they're ghosts!

Tsumugi
I guess that's a natural reason, but...

Matsuri
And also, I think it'll be fun!

Tsumugi
There's the real reason. Do you two even know anything about running a haunted house?

Matsuri
I don't, but I feel like we'll be able to help Machu and the others anyway.

Tsumugi
I guess I can't deny that.

Rei
Ahaha... Well, we already know some ways they can improve.

Tsumugi
Y-You couldn't be thinking of helping, too, could you, Rei?

Rei
I do want to help, but... This isn't really my area of expertise.

Matsuri
I say, the more the merrier.

Machu
Yeah! I'm really glad!

Rei
A-All right. Then, I'll help, too.

Tsumugi
Reiiii!?

Matsuri
Tsumugi, why are you so hesitant? You're the one who'd be the most suitable out of all of us.

Tsumugi
No, it's not about being suitable or not...

Machu
Tsumugi? Tsumugi? I feel like I've heard that before... Tsumugi... Tsumugi... Tsumugi... Ahhhh!!!!

Tsumugi
Whoa!? What'd you do that for!?

Machu
No way, are you Tsumugi from Carmina!?

Tsumugi
I-I mean, yes, I am...

Machu
I went to a Carmina concert once! It was, like, super fun!

Tsumugi
W-Well... Thank you.

Machu
But, I see... I guess there's no way you'd be able to help... You're probably really busy with Carmina's work.

Tsumugi
N-No... There's a gap in Carmina's schedule right now, and I've just finished up with my tailoring work, too, so I can't say that I don't have time...

Rei
I'd be glad if you were there with us, too, Tsumugi.

Tsumugi
Now Rei's asking me... No, but... Ah!!

Rei
T-Tsumugi? What's going on? You're staring at me.

Tsumugi
It's nothing. Worry not.

Tsumugi
In any case, Machu. I'll agree to help out with your haunted house. But I have one condition.

Machu
What is it!? Whatever it is, let me hear it! We'll do anything, if it's within our abilities!

Tsumugi
No, the one who has to agree to the conditions isn't you. It's...

Later.

It was a few days after the chance encounter with the ghosts in Halloween Park. Yuuki was waiting in front of the haunted house.

Tsumugi
Understand, Yuuki? No peeping allowed. Absolutely none.

Yuuki
1. "I understand."

Matsuri
Then, we're gonna get changed now.

Rei
Sigh... I never thought your condition would be this, Tsumugi...

Tsumugi
Don't worry about it, Rei!! C'mon, hurry up, Rei! Yuuki's waiting for us!

Begin animated cutscene.

Tsumugi
How does it look, Yuuki? The concept of my outfit is a vampire!

Tsumugi
I tried to work in some of Rei's usual motifs! For instance, this spot...

Tsumugi
Hey, don't look at anywhere weird! Keep your eyes on the outfit!

Matsuri
Roaaar!

Matsuri
How do I look? Just like a tiger ghost?

Tsumugi
It looks good on you! It really brings out your innate qualities!

Matsuri
W-What're you talking about? I'm a human, you know!

Tsumugi
Huh? I was talking about your vigor.

Matsuri
O-Oh, okay! Yeah, I'm just a vigorous human over here! Ha ha...

Tsumugi
Um... Is she really trying to hide it?

Matsuri
Rei sure is taking a while, though. She should definitely be done changing by now... Let me go check on her!

Rei
(... Hey, stop it! Don't grab me!)

Matsuri
(It's not like I'm touching you anyplace weird! C'mon, hurry up and let them see!)

Rei
Okay, okay! I'm going out now, so don't push me.

Rei
This outfit is wonderfully made, but Tsumugi, why did you pick this one... It's not very befitting a haunted house, is it?

Tsumugi
Rei!!! You look like the most beautiful person ever! You're exactly the charming ghost maiden I'd imagined! You think so too, right, Yuuki?

Tsumugi
... Actually, let's not hear your opinion.

Rei
Wait. I think I'd like to hear his opinion. H-How does it look? It's not strange, is it?

Yuuki
It looks good on you.

Rei
I see... Thank you. I feel a little more comfortable now.

Tsumugi
... Grr... What're you staring at her for? I think you've got some jobs in the back that you need to take care of right now...