Abstract

Mei Midorikawa, a Japanese high school student, is selected as an exchange student to a high school in Taipei, Taiwan. Initially excited for a sightseeing adventure, her plans take a turn when her best friend, originally meant to accompany her, is injured and unable to go. Mei sets off alone to a foreign land.

She arrives at a Taiwanese all-girls boarding school and, while she is warmly welcomed by the local students, she finds herself unsettled by her assigned classmate Lin Yongqin, a cold and inscrutable girl.

One day, Mei encounters a mysterious and eerily beautiful girl named Fengjun behind the dormitory at a crumbling old café. Though they don’t share a common language, Fengjun’s presence deeply resonates with Mei, drawing her in.

As rumors of an entity known as “the bug” begin to circulate on campus, Mei starts to experience hallucinations and strange physical changes. These events mirror Fengjun’s true nature and stir Mei’s buried emotions of grief and loneliness.

Is Fengjun truly a girl—or something else entirely?
Set against the damp and shadowy atmosphere of Taiwan, this is a story of two people drawn together by an unspeakable pain and magnetic force, unfolding in quiet but inescapable horror.

Author’s Information

Rokakoen debuted in 2020 with the short story “Honegami — A Certain Place's Ghost Report” published on Kakuyomu, which gained popularity through social media and was later printed. Known for portraying quiet dread and deep-rooted emotional fears, Rokakoen has cultivated a passionate fanbase.