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And
so, as I leaned against the wall of the hotel in a corner of the entertainment
district, I gulped down a 60-yen Coke from a vending machine labeled "Very
Cheap".
It's
almost eleven o'clock. Three hours have passed since Kizuna entered the
convenience store.
Maybe
it's a bad location, but during those three hours, I was asked four times by
dirty-looking old men, "Nee-chan, how much?" but each time I just
pretended to be a tourist who didn't understand Japanese to get by.
As I
observed the hotel closely, there are many people coming and going from the
hotel. Some of them are probably my classmates, after all, some of their faces
looked familiar to me.
Then,
looking up at the towering hotel, I felt a ridiculous feeling as I thought, “Everyone
is having sex in this hotel...”.
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↓ Continue to Read ↓
The
fact that facilities dedicated to that exist without a care in the world makes
me feel the depth of humanity.
But
while I was thinking about such unimportant things, I saw Kizuna coming out of
the convenience store.
She
had her hood pulled up tightly to cover her eyes. And with her hands in the
pockets of her hoodie, she starts walking down the street of the hotel towards
the station.
Her
steps are slow, as if she's gauging the distance between her and the person in
front of her. As I follow her, I look beyond Kizuna's gaze to the person ahead
of her.
There is
a couple walking close to each other. Rather than cuddling, they are holding
each other in their arms.
As I
saw it, I realized that Kobayashi-sensei is dragging the woman, who is walking
unsteadily as if she is drunk, by his side.
（...What
kind of situation is that?）
The
person Kizuna is following is Kobayashi-sensei. That's for sure. But the
woman's face is not clearly visible from here.
However,
when I saw a passer-by who passed Kobayashi-sensei and the others looking at them,
they have startled expression.
（...What’s
wrong? Is he a celebrity or something?）
After
following them for a while, Kobayashi-sensei and the others went into a narrow
alley.
However,
Kizuna stopped at the entrance of the alley they had entered, and instead of
entering the alley, she began to walk quickly down the street toward the
station.
It was
as if she is running away from this place.
◇ ◇ ◇
「Ggh,
guagh!」
「Kyaa!」
I
heard Sensei's groaning voice, but due to the impact of someone knocking into
him, I, who couldn't even stand on my own, separated from Sensei's hand,
staggered, and fell on my buttocks.
It's
like a fender bender. If I had bit into a piece of bread, I would have fallen
in love with him. That's what I thought.
「It
hurts...」
As I
put my hand on my bruised hip, I look up.
But my
eyelids are swollen and my vision is narrow.
So I
look into the darkness of the back alley with a blurry scene, and there are two
men fighting each other, illuminated by the neon lights coming from the street.
One
is, of course, Kobayashi-sensei.
The
other is a slender man in an aloha shirt.
Oddly
enough, the man's face is hidden by a wooden mask that looks like a folk art
from Southeast Asia.
（Eh!?
Eh!? Wh, what!? What is this?）
My
mind is in chaos. After all, it's not like someone came to save me from
Kobayashi-sensei's hands. It must be a knockout robbery or something. Or so I
thought.
「Gugh...
W-Who are you... bastard...」
With a
look of pain on his face, Sensei punch him, and the mask of the man who had
been knocked away bounced off the ground with a clank, clank!.
Seeing
the face of the man who appeared from under the mask, Sensei's expression
showed a hint of confusion.
「Huh...
seriously, who are you?」
In the
flickering neon lights, the man's face is illuminated for a moment. Short,
unkempt blond hair, scorched skin the color of deep coffee. He had a strong
face with a bit of gills and a strong chin... that's what the man looked like.
Apparently,
Sensei doesn’t know him. Of course I don't know him either.
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↓ Continue to Read ↓
The
man's eyes are bloodshot and his chest is up and down as he breathes hard. He
doesn't seem to be used to this kind of thing. Rather, I saw more desperation,
as if he was in a panic.
Without
saying a word, the man made an effort to force himself, and Sensei screamed,
"Guuagh!".
With
that act, Sensei collapses to his knees. But, as I watched in amazement, I saw
a bloody knife in the man's hand.
Is it
a survival knife? It is a heavy knife with a blade nearly 20 centimeters long.
Seeing
it, I realized for the first time that Sensei had been stabbed.
He
fell to the ground, moaning and shaking. I could see a dark-red stain spreading
around his side.
「No...
no way, eh...」
I
couldn't keep my mouth shut. My head is in complete confusion from the sudden
event.
But
the man, who is breathing hard, looks at me. And then--
「You
saw my face, huh...」
He
spat bitterly and started to walk towards me with his face tense.
◇ ◇ ◇
I
stopped at the entrance of the alley.
（...I
thought she was following Kobayashi-sensei...）
I
looked around confusedly at Kizuna's back, which was moving away quickly, and
the dark alleyway that Kobayashi-sensei and others had entered.
But
just as I turned my eyes toward the alleyway, I saw something shining in the
dim darkness, reflecting the flickering neon lights.
（What
is it?）
As I
stare at it, I see the figures of several people.
A
shadow of a person lying on the ground, a person cornered against the wall, and
another person with a knife in hand approaching. Such a scene.
（Ueeeeeeehh!?）
This,
as expected, made me panic.
No
matter how I looked at it, it’s the scene of a murder. A murder is about to
occur right in front of me.
（Wh-Wh-Wh-What
should I do?）
But
I'm a saint, I can't let this go unnoticed.
Before
I could think of anything scary or dangerous, I started to run towards the man.
However, I'm in charge of the rough stuff. I'm not as strong as others. There's
no way I could win in a fight.
「You
murdererrrrrrrrr!」
I
shouted at the top of my voice as I rushed towards the man and I jumped up in
surprise. And then, the man ran away to the back of the alley as if in a hurry.
（Thank
goodness...）
To
tell the truth, I was relieved. My heart is pounding like a fast bell. It's
really fortunate that the other side ran away.
The
one lying on the ground is Kobayashi-sensei. I don't know if I should call him
lucky, but he's letting out a groan. Still breathing.
Then,
I sat down and turned my eyes towards the girl who is in a daze. Because it was
dimly lit, I couldn't make out who she was, but her face is swollen to a pulp,
as if she'd been beaten up pretty badly.
（Anyway...
police and ambulance...）
I pull
my phone out of my hip pocket and tap the number 110.
Outside
the alley, a crowd of people must have heard me shouting. After all, there is a
noise, which sounds like the rustling of awn in the wind.
