When they moved to the entrance hall, Sayuri raised her voice and called out, “Haze-saaaan! Are you theeeere?”

  From the open atrium above, Shinobu looked down into the entrance hall, playing with the cloudling that repeatedly rose and fell.

  As if responding to Sayuri’s call, the haze gathered together and formed the faint outline of a white human-like figure.

  “Hey, is that little one one of Haze-san’s companions?”

  She pointed at the white mass playing with Shinobu as she asked.

  Haze drifted softly toward the cloudling, seeming to communicate with it about something.

  Curious, Sayuri floated after them and joined the circle, leaning in to listen to their conversation.

  After a brief exchange, Haze melted away as if dissolving, and Sayuri sat down on the second-floor railing and told Shinobu the result. “Haze-san doesn’t seem to know.”

  As if following after them, the cloudling floated over, and when it noticed Shinobu’s outstretched hand, it landed in a slight hurry and trembled all over.

  Smiling happily, she said, “Cloudy is a cloud, after all.”

  As they laughed together like that, a voice called out to the two of them from the entrance hall.

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  Turning their eyes in that direction, they saw the blonde woman with a ponytail who came to visit almost every day, waving her hand.

  When Sayuri floated down and explained, she got excited and said, “I wanna see too!” then dashed up the stairs in one go.

  The moment she saw the cloudling quietly resting in Shinobu’s hands, her eyes sparkled as she said, “Whoa— it’s seriously a cloud.”

  When Shinobu asked, “Would you like to hold it?” she excitedly replied, “Yeah, yeah, I do!”

  Then, when it was gently handed to her, she enjoyed the sensation.

  “I’ve never touched one before, but… it’s so fluffy and soft.”

  When she was told, “Its name is ‘Cloudy,’” she smiled without reservation and said, “Cloudy, nice to meet you. I’m Yuka.”

  As if responding, the cloudling gradually changed its shape, but before long it floated softly over to Shinobu’s shoulder and nuzzled against her cheek.

  When she was told, “Its name is ‘Cloudy,’” she smiled without reservation and said, “Cloudy, nice to meet you. I’m Yuka.”

  As if responding, the cloudling gradually changed its shape, but before long it floated softly over to Shinobu’s shoulder and nuzzled against her cheek.

  “Come to think of it, I got a message from Misaki-san saying, ‘Buy a spray bottle,’ but… does it have anything to do with Cloudy?”

  Following the cloud with her eyes, Yuka asked the two of them with a slightly disappointed expression.

  “Its food is water, so she spray it on,” Sayuri explained, and “Seriously?! I wanna feed it too!” Yuka exclaimed, rushing into the washroom in a flurry before heading to Misaki’s room.

  “Go on ahead!” Yuka called out, but the two ghosts were so absorbed in the cloudling that her voice did not reach them.

  Upcoming Releases

  Short story: "10μm Droplet"

  ?Chapter 5-8: February 24 at 8:00 PM (PST).

  ?EXTRA & Author's Note: February 27 at 8:00 PM (PST).

  Update Schedule & Related Links

  : Contains the full update schedule and all related links.

  : Get early access and support the project here.

  : Read the Japanese version here

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