Mash-Up: Anything for Money

The moment Utaha stepped inside, a foul, musty stench hit her—like a pair of socks worn for a week and then left to soak in water for several days.

"Why won't the light turn on?"

As soon as she entered, Utaha instinctively reached for the light switch, but no matter how many times she flipped it, the ceiling light remained completely unresponsive.

"Looks like the native resident doesn't welcome us." Hakuto turned to glance at Utaha, making sure she had followed him in before continuing.

"Take out your phone and turn on the flashlight. At least we'll have some light."

Hearing this, Utaha gave up on the idea of using the room's light. She reached into her bag, pulled out her phone, and a bright beam shone from the rear camera, giving her a small sense of security.

By now, the motion-activated light in the hallway had turned off, leaving the only sources of illumination as the phone flashlights in their hands.

Utaha instinctively turned around to look at the dark hallway behind her. The pitch-black void, where even an outstretched hand would be invisible, made her momentarily freeze.

But when she turned her head back around—

The classic horror cliché happened.

Hakuto was gone!

Vanished!

The sudden disappearance sent a chill through Utaha's entire body. Just as she hesitated on whether to call out to him, a familiar voice from above reassured her.

"Senpai, why are you just standing there?"

Hearing his voice, Utaha immediately looked up and finally spotted Hakuto, letting out a breath of relief.

Turns out, this apartment had two floors. 

The moment the door opened, a staircase leading to the second floor was on the left, while the right side was occupied by a shoe cabinet and miscellaneous items.

The reason the door had been blocked earlier was because the shoe cabinet had fallen over.

At this moment, Hakuto stood on the staircase with his phone in hand, completely unaware that his sudden disappearance had nearly scared Utaha out of her wits.

"Nothing, I was just checking the apartment layout."

Utaha was not about to admit she had been scared. She composed herself and casually walked over to Hakuto's side, acting as if nothing had happened.

"Layout?"

Hakuto hadn't expected her to still be interested in the apartment itself. Aren't we here for a haunted house exploration? Why is she still thinking about real estate?

But since his boss was talking about it, he decided to play along.

"Since this is a two-story layout and the staircase is right at the entrance, the apartment practically has no foyer."

"I took a quick look earlier—downstairs should be the living room, and the empty room on the right is likely the bathroom."

"As for upstairs, that should be where the bedrooms are."

Just as he finished speaking, the two of them arrived on the second floor. As expected, it consisted of two rooms.

Or rather, it would be more accurate to call it one extra-large room. One side had a double bed, while the other featured a space that resembled an alcove.

"I've seen this layout before," Hakuto said, pointing to the alcove on the left. "That space is usually meant for floor bedding."

The apartment had clearly been vacant for a long time—the double bed was reduced to a bare wooden frame, and the floor was nearly covered in debris. 

Hakuto and Utaha had to carefully find spots to step on.

He had no idea what kind of person had last rented a place like this, but then again, the current person renting it was standing right behind him.

Hakuto walked up to the bed and pulled back the curtains. Behind them wasn't a window, but a balcony.

He slowly stepped out onto the balcony. He had to admit, the lighting and the view from here were excellent. 

If not for that incident, this apartment would have been quite desirable.

Even though Utaha was still scared, she hadn't forgotten her original purpose.

As she was considering what exactly should scare her next, Hakuto suddenly spoke beside her.

"Senpai, do you think if we turn on this air conditioner, something… unexpected might fly out?"

At this moment, Hakuto was staring at the air conditioner mounted on the wall, his tone full of eager anticipation.

"Hm? What do you mean, Kouhai-kun?"

"You know, like… bits and pieces of body parts or something."

"Think about it—the news said that person was hacked up with a knife. What if some… leftover fragments got sucked into the AC and are just waiting to be blown out?"

The moment those words left his mouth, Utaha seemed to have already pictured the horrifying scene in her mind.

"Can you not say such disgusting things, you damn simp-kouhai?"

Even though Utaha had nerves of steel, she was still a girl. Just imagining that scene made her stomach churn.

Hakuto had noticed by now—whenever Utaha got mad or really serious, she would switch to calling him simp-kouhai.

It was an interesting discovery. After all, she was one of his potential clients. 

Their first collaboration had already generated thirty thousand yen in revenue, second only to his biggest shareholder, Sawamura Sayuri.

"Alright, alright, I'll stop.

There's nothing interesting up here anyway—let's head back down."

Saying that, Hakuto turned toward the staircase. But before he could take more than a couple of steps, Utaha's voice suddenly stopped him.

"Wait, Kouhai-kun, I'll go first."

"Hm? Alright."

Although a little confused, Hakuto obediently stepped aside, letting his boss take the lead.

Seeing this, Utaha quickly rushed ahead of him.

She definitely didn't want to experience another horror movie moment. Everyone knew that in those films, the ones left behind were always the first to go.

Hakuto stood behind her, subconsciously glancing back at the balcony.

Even though he had been acting carefree, the eerie sensation in his chest hadn't disappeared.

He just didn't want to show it in front of his boss.

Just as he was starting to think it was all in his head—

Utaha suddenly let out a shriek and pounced on him, clinging tightly to his neck.

Utaha: "WAAAHHH!!"

Hakuto: "HOLY SH—!!"

Her infamous nickname Fat Utaha wasn't for nothing. 

With her generous figure, her ample chest pressing against him, and thighs that not even goji berries could save, she wasn't exactly light.

Sure, Hakuto had great physical endurance. In theory, even if Utaha were a bit bigger, he could still carry her and run a whole kilometer.

But this situation was different!

The oppressive atmosphere of the place had already left his nerves on edge. 

Add to that the fact that she had jumped onto him out of nowhere, and there was no way he could react properly in time.

"K-Kouhai-kun, there's a ghost!!"

"Wait, wait, wait—Senpai, don't move!!"

Hakuto didn't care whether there was a ghost or not. All he knew was that he was about to lose his balance.

And considering they were on the stairs, if he fell now… well, Apartment 1202 might just get two new permanent residents.

With his left arm wrapped tightly around Utaha's waist and his right hand gripping the stair railing for dear life, Hakuto desperately tried to steady them both.

But even so, momentum wasn't on his side—

And before he could stop it, he was already toppling backward.

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Check out the other translations too: [Mash-Up: I'm Not A Substitute]

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