“Come here… Come here… Come here… Come here…”
Spider web tricks and
An unexpected ending that defies expectations

“K, who was in the second grade of elementary school, walked home from school with her classmates Y and E.
Miss K parted ways with Miss Y and Miss E and entered the alley alone.
It was only 40 meters from the entrance of the alley to K's house, but that day, K never opened the front door.
“There were no signs of anyone breaking into the interior or yard of the houses around K’s house, including hers, and although there were many people coming and going in the residential area around 4 p.m. when K went missing, there were no witnesses, so the case was closed as an unsolved case.” (From the text)

"About a Certain Place in the Kinki Region" is a story about mysterious disappearances and suicides, school ghost stories, urban legends, psychic phenomena, and ghosts. Each story unfolds in a setting that is directly connected to everyday life, making the horror feel all the more tangible.


As you read each episode that seems to have no connection at first glance, such as a woman peeking at me through a second-floor window in the middle of the night, an unidentifiable sticker stuck on the door, and an apartment complex where a series of suspicious suicides occur, the reason why editor Ozawa, who disappeared while reporting, dug into a certain place in the Kinki region known as the center of ghost stories ●●●●●, the unidentified group that lures women there, and the whole story of the bizarre incident that occurred there are gradually revealed.

Finally, when you realize the true meaning of the chilling words, "Thank you for finding me," that appear repeatedly throughout the work, you feel your breath catch in your throat and your hair stand on end, as if you have touched something that should not be touched.
"It's a story that could happen, and it's even scarier because it's a familiar horror story," "Could I be caught up in this incident? I couldn't watch it a second time because it gave me goosebumps," the responses of local readers are truly no exaggeration.

“Is it fiction? Is it real?”
Building an overwhelming reality
A vivid world of horror

Seth Ji posted a URL on his X (formerly Twitter) with the message, “If you have any information, please contact me.” The URL leads to the novel creation site Gakuyomu.
While Sesji was serializing a ghost story about a certain place in the Kinki region in Gakuyomu, he also randomly shared messages asking for help in finding a missing colleague.
This mockumentary technique, which makes it feel as if suspicious events are happening in the real world, has created an explosive response to the point where people say, "I looked to see if there was a similar place" every time a new series is posted.

Japanese horror films, which tend to use everyday spaces as a stage to create psychological tension and oppression rather than borrowing supernatural worldviews like vicious monsters or demons, are a great match for the mockumentary technique.
"About a Certain Place in the Kinki Region" not only features the author as the narrator, but also uses the setting of writing ●●●●● to replace actual place names, a cover design that utilizes real-life photographs, a text structure that includes excerpts from various articles, interview transcripts, and internet posts, and even a sealed copy of the research materials at the end. These perfectly calculated devices maximize the vivid effect that the mockumentary technique can provide.
This work, which received attention for its realism that made it feel like a true story, was actively edited to increase its completeness when published as a single volume, including adding episodes that added depth to the story and descriptions of important scenes.
Thanks to this, it was evaluated as “a harvest of Japanese horror works that are continuously evolving” (Osamu Kato, Asahi Shimbun book review committee member), and the translator of the Korean edition also did not spare praise, saying, “The moment the last piece falls into place, the fear that had been a two-dimensional puzzle suddenly comes crashing into my three-dimensional daily life.”

It is often said that horror novels are more popular in the summer.
However, since the emergence of author Sesji, horror has become popular in Japan as a genre that can be enjoyed regardless of the season.
The secret to this work's unusual popularity is the vivid sense of fear that arises from the fact that it is based on the real Kinki region and adds fictional elements to it, making people wonder about "which place" and making them wonder if the place that served as the model for the novel is where they live, even though they know it is fiction.