The little girl shuddered all over, continuously chanting Amitabha Buddha. "It can't be such a coincidence, can it? Did I run into something unclean?"
She cautiously poked her head out from behind the clay statue, only to discover that the wind had merely blown the door open.
"That scared me to death!" The little girl sighed in relief.
Just as she was about to close the door, she suddenly spotted a faint, eerie glow flickering not far outside.
Goosebumps rose all over her body. Could this be... the legendary ghost flame? Had she really encountered a ghost?
Wait, she was a Shinigami!
Everyone living in this world was a ghost!
Thinking about it that way somehow made it even scarier!
"Y-you... you... don't come any closer! I'm a Shinigami! I'm not afraid of ghosts!" the little girl cried shakily, trying to draw her sword. But no matter how hard she pulled, the blade would not leave its sheath.
Sure enough, this was a cowardly sword too.
That ghost flame drew closer and closer until it was practically pressed against the little girl's face.
At that most perilous moment, an aged face suddenly leaned right up to her. The little girl screamed and darted behind the Buddha statue in a flash, tears nearly spilling from her eyes.
"So there was someone here after all!"
It was an old man's voice. The little girl looked closely and realized it was not some evil spirit at all. It was an elderly man holding a lantern, smiling at her kindly and gently.
"You scared me to death! Grandpa, why are you here in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"
"I watch over this temple, so I often come by to check on it. But what about you? Why are you here alone?