女妖The Female Demon

What you'll learn

Koichi, having stolen money from his uncle and spent it all, contemplates suicide on a beach. He hallucinates a giant naked woman. Later, he wanders Ginza and encounters a strange sandwich man. He follows a beautiful woman into a café, where she invites him to her apartment.

Koichi goes to Hitomi's apartment the next night. He finds a dead man on the floor. The man is still alive and begs Koichi to kill him. Koichi, feeling that he is being set up as the murderer, decides to fulfill the man's wish and kills him with a bronze lamp stand, recalling a childhood memory of killing a cat.

Key vocabulary

Grammar points you'll meet

• ～てならない N2Cannot help but feel; expresses irresistible feeling
  あの美しい女に呑まれたいと思った。鯨に呑まれるように、腹の中へ呑まれたいと思った。
• ～かのようだ N2As if; indicates something resembles but isn't
  サンドイッチ・マンが、大きなガラスの前で立ち止まった。ガラスの向う側には、白砂糖で出来た西洋館がキラキラ光っていた。

Cultural notes

• 浜離宮A large public garden in Tokyo, originally a feudal lord's estate. It is located on the waterfront and is a popular spot for viewing nature and the sea. In the story, Koichi sits on the lawn facing the sea, reflecting his isolation and contemplation of death.
• 銀座通りGinza is a famous upscale shopping district in Tokyo. In the story, Koichi wanders the Ginza streets, observing the crowd and feeling alienated. The sandwich man appears here, and the café where he meets Hitomi is also in Ginza.

Try a comprehension question

Read a sample in Japanese

Topics

Short Storymysteryghost storydeathnihilismdarkmelancholyaozora bunko