I Became A Ghost In A Horror Game-Chapter 0: Prologue – Mirror Ella

I enjoy playing horror games.

If someone asked me whether I feel a thrill when being chased by something terrifying, I’d say... yeah, it’s something like that.

I’ve never actually been chased by a real monster, but I imagine it’s similar to riding a roller coaster. People who scare easily probably get a taste of near-death experiences that way. For me, horror games give the same kind of rush.

The thrill of survival. The secrets hidden within fear. They call out to me, drawing me deeper and deeper into these horror games.

But this...

This is way too deep.

The faint chirping of crickets tickles my ears. Dust, left undisturbed for ages, drifts through the stale air. Wooden floorboards creak under unseen pressure. Ornate furniture, the kind you’d only see in old Western horror films, stands eerily still.

Yeah. No doubt about it.

This is the Suspicious Mansion from [Mystery Exploration Club Summer Vacation Nightmare]. The °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° abandoned estate behind the school.

I’ve been pulled inside a horror game.

“Oh my! Who are you? Did you come to play with Ella?”

Standing before me is a beautiful girl.

Blonde hair, tied into twin buns. A red, flower-shaped accessory adorning her head.

Her skin is pale, almost like porcelain, and her ruby-red eyes gleam as they lock onto mine.

If I had seen her in the real world, I probably would’ve thought, Wow! Maybe she’s some famous cosplayer showing off in a perfectly styled Victorian dress.

The problem is...

She’s holding a knife.

And...

She’s talking to me from inside a mirror. [That’s the real issue here.]

“Why aren’t you saying anything~? I’m starting to feel annoyed~.”

I know exactly who this is.

She’s the first supernatural entity that the protagonist encounters in [Mystery Exploration Club].

The game’s first real monster.

And, in the story, she mercilessly kills one of the four club members right off the bat.

[Mirror Ella].

A vengeful spirit who loves playing hide-and-seek—the kind where the loser doesn’t just lose, but dies.

She’s still smiling, but I can see her expression stiffening. Ella enjoys watching her victims tremble in fear, but I haven’t reacted at all.

She must be getting impatient.

[But I just got thrown into the game! I have no idea what to do!]

It’s not like I’m staying calm on purpose.

I’m just completely frozen in terror.

God, why is this happening to me?!

All I did was fall asleep after playing this stupid game last night!

“Well, whatever. If I stab you, I’m sure blood will come out. Come on, big brother! Let’s play hide-and-seek! I’ll count to three, and then I’m coming for you!”

Her voice is playful, almost sing-song.

But I can’t afford to be distracted.

This mansion is filled with mirrors.

No matter where I run, Ella can use the mirrors to teleport and find me.

There’s nowhere to hide.

“Eins (One)... zwei (Two)...”

She twirls the knife in her hand, her gaze locked onto me like a wolf eyeing its prey.

My life flashes before my eyes.

A completely ordinary life.

I was born, I studied, I ate, I played, I wandered aimlessly. I succeeded at some things, failed at others. Nothing about me was particularly special.

Well... except for one thing.

I was horribly, catastrophically unlucky.

Flower pots falling from apartment windows. Slipping on banana peels and breaking bones. Stepping into electrified puddles by accident.

After way too many close calls with death, I started calculating all possible misfortunes in advance.

I lived cautiously.

I remember a conversation with an old friend.

(“Man, you have the worst luck. Did you piss off the universe or something?”)

(“Come on, I’m not that bad. There are way worse cases. Just turn on any documentary, you’ll see people suffering way more than me.”)

(“Nah. The only reason you’re still standing is ‘cause you actually deal with all the crap life throws at you. Most people would’ve given up by now.”)

Updat𝒆d fr𝑜m freewebnøvel.com.

(“Is that... supposed to be a compliment?”)

(“Eh. If you weren’t so stubborn, you’d be completely useless.”)

Yeah.

I’ve always been unlucky.

But I’ve always fought back.

I just need to do that now.

I take a deep breath and force my body to move.

I refuse to just stand here and die.

“Huh? This... Oh my! I’ve changed my mind. I’ll let you live, big brother.”

At that moment, I was desperately thinking of a way to escape, just like the game’s protagonist would. But then, Ella scanned my body and casually said those words.

She’s... going to let me live? This murderous ghost?

I had to ask again to make sure I wasn’t hearing things.

“...Y-You’re letting me live?”

“Yup! I’ll let you live. To be precise, I’ll let you exist. Inside this mirror.”

“...What?”

In an instant, my vision shifted.

When I came back to my senses, I was staring at... myself.

No way. No way! This can’t be—

“Kyahahaha! I did it! I finally did it! I’ve only ever been able to pull people into the mirror before! But I knew you were special! And I was right! Kyahahaha!”

...Ella and I switched bodies.

She could only exist inside mirrors—trapped within the mansion’s reflective surfaces.

Just looking at this place, it’s clear that it’s been abandoned for ages.

She must have been trapped for a long time, unable to leave.

And if the mansion ever collapsed, she’d die along with it. No wonder she was desperate for a body.

And now, she’s finally gotten what she wanted—a physical form.

Which means...

I’m the one who’s trapped now.

Forever.

“No... No, no, no—Give me back my body!!”

“Not a chance~! Your body isn’t as cute as Ella’s, but I never want to see another mirror again! Have fun in there~!”

I didn’t just get sucked into a horror game.

I lost my damn body in the process?!

This can’t be happening. There has to be a way to fix this—

Ella happily skipped down the stairs, practically bouncing with excitement.

God, I hate her so much right now.

But if she keeps jumping around like that...

“Huh?”

What happened next was so ridiculous that I feel the need to give you a fair warning:

Ella died.

Like, immediately.

First of all, she wasn’t used to having a real body.

I mean, she’s spent who knows how long floating around inside mirrors, so of course, she wouldn’t be used to things like gravity and balance.

And second...

The stairs were extremely old.

Do you see where this is going?

The staircase collapsed.

Ella lost her footing.

And since she had no idea how to control her actual body, she had no chance of regaining balance.

But did she die just from falling?

Oh no.

The real highlight comes next.

My cursed luck.

That’s what got her.

The impact of her fall sent a tiny vibration through the mansion’s floor.

That vibration shook the massive chandelier hanging in the hall.

“Ow, ow... That hurt...”

And then—

CRASH!

The ceiling gave out.

The chandelier came crashing down—right on top of her.

This all happened in less than a minute after she stole my body.

Even with all the crazy things I’ve survived in my life...

Even with how well I usually adapt to unexpected situations...

It still took me three whole minutes to process what the hell just happened.

“MY BODYYYYYY!!!!!!!”

If you’re going to steal something, at least take care of it!

And so, in the ruins of the once-grand mansion, the only thing that echoed through the night...

...was the shrill scream of a girl—who used to be a man.