I became Hokage in Tokyo

Chapter 19: The Moving Human Model

Off-camera, Katori touched the mannequin's limbs and joints; they were movable and detachable, and could be pried off with a little force.

A slight sneer appeared on her face. The quality was terrible, much worse than the organ and human body models she made in the abandoned elementary school.

Moving mannequins are a classic example of school ghost stories in Japan.

Although this ghost story existed in the last century, it was still very well-known even in the Reiwa era. It has remained popular for many years and can be considered one of the most representative school mysteries.

Inspired by this, Katori Amami created a human model that could crawl short distances on the ground and eject organ props.

It was that video of her at the abandoned elementary school that established her fame.

Because of the seemingly endless economic downturn, the live streaming industry is becoming increasingly competitive, with all sorts of beautiful young women flocking to the field. However, simply by lowering their necklines and raising their skirts to expose more skin, they are not attracting much popularity.

Although her haters all criticize her for only being flirtatious, who knows the hard work that Katori Amami has put in behind the scenes?

Of course, Amami Katori is not a shrine maiden apprentice as her character suggests. She is actually the daughter of a small machinery factory owner in Wakayama Prefecture, and grew up playing with screws with her father from a young age.

When it comes to Wakayama Prefecture, it has a relatively low profile among Japan's 47 first-level administrative units. Although it ranks around 20th or 30th, many Japanese people will have several questions when Wakayama Prefecture is mentioned. Wakayama Prefecture exists, but where is it? Is it in the Shikoku region or the Kinki region?

When Katori Amami was in high school, the economic environment became increasingly sluggish. The 20 years that had disappeared became 30 years, and it looked like the 30 years would become 40 or 50 years. The small factory that was already operating could not bear the burden and went bankrupt. Her family also went bankrupt. Since she could not afford to go to university, Katori Amami simply ran away from the countryside to Tokyo to look for opportunities.

Young people like her are as numerous as fish in a river in Tokyo, and are hardly noticeable.

Although I found a job as a prop maker, I can't save much money. My life is predictable.

Tokyo is not a city that belongs to her. If Katori Amami wants to stay in this city, the only feasible way is to find a good husband while she is still young.

Just then, she met a few childhood friends who had come to Tokyo earlier and were working in the live streaming industry. After discussing it, they realized that behind-the-scenes staff could only earn a few dollars, and since Amami Katori was also good-looking, they decided to debut as a YouTuber.

After a lot of hard work and struggle, I finally gained some popularity and made some money, and now I have some free time to think about the future.

Perhaps I can establish myself in Tokyo on my own?

Amami Kanon's current dilemma is whether or not to accept the confession of Kogiso, who is in charge of script design in the team.

Kogiso was also her companion who followed her into the abandoned mall today, but they got separated during the initial commotion. Now she's probably with Hayama.

She wasn't particularly attracted to Kogiso, treating her as just a friend. However, Kogiso was an indispensable member of the team, and refusing her might sow the seeds of division within the rising livestreaming team.

At this moment, a series of screams could be faintly heard, followed by the sounds of ping-pong balls and rummaging through drawers coming from afar, but upon closer listening, nothing could be heard.

Katori shook his head, holding the penhold grip in one hand, and continued his live stream.

Amami Katori explored the clothing section for a while. According to the script, there should have been a horror scene set up here. However, after Amami Katori circled around the designated area several times, the scene that should have appeared still did not materialize.

"Takagi has messed up again."

Helpless, Katori Amami could only pretend nothing had happened and walk out through the back door of the clothing section.

"Katori-chan explored the entire clothing section, thankfully without any mishaps. Should we go meet up with Hayama-kun next? But this mall is so big, I don't know where they are. I'm afraid of getting lost, and I'm also afraid of finding other scary things..."

Amami Kaori adjusted the selfie stick's angle, pointing it at herself, and put on a delicate, tearful expression.

Of course, this was all an act. She knew the entire underground structure of the abandoned shopping mall by heart, and Amami Katori knew exactly where she was and what rooms were nearby.

Amami Katori is now walking down the corridor to the back door of the clothing section. Just a few steps from the entrance, there is another mannequin.

"The mannequin behind Katori-chan looks like the male mannequin that came in; both of them have lost their eyes."

A comment flashed by.

Katori Amami didn't pay any attention and continued walking forward. After a few steps, there was a click, and a soft sound like footsteps came from behind her.

"Who?"

Tenkai Kaori turned around and shone her flashlight into the dark corridor, but there was still nothing there except for the mannequin.

Thinking she had misheard, Kaori Amami turned around and took a few more steps. Click, click, this time she heard the footsteps clearly, as if something was following behind her.

"Hayama-kun, is that you? Or is it Takagi, Kogiso? Come out now, I'm getting angry."

Amami Katori swept the flashlight between the floor and the ceiling, but found nothing unusual. There was nowhere to hide in the corridor. She was usually a bold person, but even so, she felt her scalp tingle and her heart pounding.

Finally, the flashlight shone on the male mannequin standing in the corridor.

Is the mannequin getting closer and closer to me?

Perhaps it was just my imagination. After all, it was in a dark corridor with extremely poor visibility, where it was difficult to see any landmarks and judge distances.

"It seems I'm being a bit paranoid. After all, I'm just a weak woman, all alone in this kind of environment, it's inevitable that I'll have wild thoughts."

This time, Katori Amami was more careful and readjusted the selfie stick, raising it so that the camera was pointing at her.

This way, the live stream audience can clearly see her and the scene behind her, and if anyone is secretly following her, the fans will also be able to see it.

She continued walking forward, and this time she finally stopped hearing footsteps following her. Just as Hikari Kaori breathed a sigh of relief, she saw that the comments in the live stream had exploded!

"Run—!"

"Run—!"

"Run—!"

She turned around and saw the mannequin's limbs and skull joints twisting strangely and violently, making creaking noises. Then it fell face down to the ground, its limbs flailing wildly as it crawled up in a bizarre and terrifying posture.

An unprecedented chill rushed up her spine to Amami Katori's brain, making her tremble and her scalp tingle.

As if someone had started a race, a group of mannequins filed out of the back door, crawling and running on the floor in a rush, and pounced on Tenkai Katori!

(End of this chapter)