"The Human Chair" (人間椅子, Ningen-isu) is a short story by Japanese author and critic Edogawa Ranpo.
One day, after completing a luxurious sofa commissioned for the lobby of a new hotel, he realized that it was his masterpiece.
Reluctant to part with it, he reshaped the inner structure of the sofa to allow one human being to sit inside of it.
He even claims to be able to recognize people simply from the weight and shape of their bodies, as well as their smell.
He claims to have amassed a large fortune due to these extra activities and has extended his stay from a few days into several months.
The new administrators demanded a more frugal and Japanese aesthetic for the hotel, to make it more affordable.
In the final line of his letter, he states that he intends to title the story "The Human Chair".
[2] This short story is a sequel in which Ito re-imagines the ending of Ranpo's tale.