manynovel Page 91
Page 91
In the summer park, the cicadas chirped incessantly, and the lush green trees provided a tranquil retreat.
He found a bench and sat down. Not long after, he saw a familiar figure.
Yuzuru Nishimiya, dressed in a neutral T-shirt and shorts, with a neat short haircut, was walking briskly toward him. Her face still showed some anxiety, but the tension eased considerably the moment she saw Yuto.
"Brother Youdou." She sat down next to him, fidgeting a little with her trouser leg.
"Have something to drink." Yuto handed her a bottle of chilled juice he bought from a vending machine.
"Thank you." Yuzuru took the juice but didn't drink it; he just held it in his hand, feeling the coolness from the bottle.
"Tell me what you know in more detail." Yuto's tone was calm, but Yuzuru could sense that beneath that calm was a volcano about to erupt.
Yuzuru nodded and began to recount the events of the past few days in detail.
She described Ishida Shoya's behavior while stalking her—always keeping his head down, wearing a hat, and deliberately maintaining a distance.
She also described in detail the other party's evasive and silent reaction when she rushed up to confront them.
“I really don’t understand what he’s trying to do.” Yuzuru squeezed the drink bottle in her hand tightly. “If he wants to apologize, why doesn’t he dare to say it to my face? If he wants to continue bullying my sister, then what is his behavior now? It’s this uncertainty that is most frightening.”
Yuto listened quietly, his fingers unconsciously tapping lightly on the bench.
He could understand Yuzuru's confusion; Ishida Shoya's behavior certainly didn't seem like simple malicious harassment.
Based on his memories related to the simulated world, Ishida Shoya at this time should be in a period of struggling to atone for his sins.
He wanted to get close to Shoko, but he lacked the courage because of his past sins.
'No, he and Shoko must have already been in contact,' Yuto thought to himself.
It's highly likely that Shoko hasn't accepted Ishida Shoya's apology, leading him to devise this method to atone for his sins—playing the role of an invisible guardian.
It's really disgusting.
Yuto closed his eyes, rubbed his temples, and felt a wave of nausea.
This kind of behavior, which only cares about himself and doesn't care about the impact of his actions on Shoko, is, to put it bluntly, just self-indulgence, and is essentially a form of selfishness.
'This guy, he's only thinking about himself.' Yuto thought to himself with a sneer.
“I understand.” Yuto stopped tapping. “I’ll handle this. Don’t worry, he won’t appear in front of Shoko again.”
"Yuto-nii, what are you planning to do?" Yuzuru looked at him with some concern. "You...you're not going to hit him, are you? If you do, things will get really out of hand."
Yuto looked at her worried eyes and couldn't help but smile. He reached out and ruffled her slightly prickly short hair. "Don't worry, I'm not a child anymore. I won't use such impulsive methods. Violence is the least effective way to deal with this kind of person."
If someone had bullied Eriri like this back in elementary school, he would have definitely punched her twice, then excused himself by saying it was just kids playing around and that would have been fine.
We can't do that now.
Yuzuru felt a little embarrassed by his intimate gesture, her cheeks flushing slightly, but hearing his assurance made her feel much more at ease.
"Then... what do you need me to do, Yuto-nii?"
“Yes, I need Yuto to accompany Shoko out these next few days, just like usual, for things like going to the supermarket or the library. And please let me know your schedule in advance.”
"Yuto-nii, are you trying to... lure him out?" Yuzuru immediately understood Yuto's intention.
“Yes, I want to have a ‘talk’ with him in person.” Yuto’s lips curled into a cold smile. “Some things only carry more weight when said by an outsider like me.”
Yuzuru looked at Yuto and felt a strong sense of security welling up inside him.
Since her father left, she has been playing the role of protector, forcing herself to be as strong as a boy.
But at this moment, in front of Yuto, she felt that she could finally take off that heavy armor and become an ordinary little sister who could rely on others.
“Okay, I’ll listen to Youdou.” She nodded emphatically.
With the business settled, the atmosphere between the two became much more relaxed.
Yuto looked at Yuzuru and suddenly asked, "By the way, how's your photography going lately? Are you still shooting those... um, those kinds of things?"
He was referring to Yuzuru's past hobby of photographing animal carcasses.
When photography was mentioned, Yuzuru's eyes lit up, but then dimmed again: "I haven't been in the mood for photography lately, and... after listening to your advice last time, I also feel that always shooting those kinds of things doesn't seem to be a good thing."
Most importantly, she used to photograph animal carcasses to make her sister realize the horror of death and dissuade her from pursuing Zisha.
But my sister now would definitely not think that way anymore.
Rather, she felt that her sister was in an excessively good mood, often bursting into laughter for no apparent reason.
“I’m not saying it’s bad,” Yuto corrected. “I just feel that the camera can capture more beautiful things.”
"For example, Shoko's happy smile, Aunt Yaeko's back view when she prepares dinner for you, or Aunt Kotori's expression when she brings you snacks, as if she wants to treat you like her own daughter."
Yuto's teasing made Yuzuru laugh: "Aunt Kotori is much kinder to you than to me."
“Yes, that’s right.” Yuto nodded seriously.
"Tch." Yuzuru curled his lip, but his smile became even brighter.
The two chatted for a while about photography and interesting things at school, and Yuzuru's worries completely dissipated.
She found that chatting with Yudou was a very comfortable experience.
He won't lecture like an adult, nor will he be childish like his peers. He can always resolve your troubles in a humorous yet mature way.
"Yuto-nii, you're amazing." As he was leaving, Yuzuru exclaimed sincerely, "It seems like nothing can stump you."
“Because I’m a writer.” Yuto blinked. “A writer’s job is to solve all the problems in a story. Real life is just a bigger story.”
Watching Yuzuru's relaxed smile fade as he walked away, Yuto's smile slowly disappeared.
He took out his phone and dialed an unexpected number.
After the call connected, he said in a familiar tone, "Hello, is this Kangping? This is Wuhe. I need your help with something..."
Ishida Masaya, you'd better pray that you're just plain stupid and not plotting something else.
……
……
On Tuesday afternoon, a light drizzle fell from the sky, bringing a touch of coolness to the hot summer day.
As planned, Yuzuru Nishimiya accompanied her older sister, Shoko, out to a large bookstore nearby.
Yuto Itsuka, however, took the initiative and found a window seat in a café across from the bookstore. He ordered an Americano and casually flipped through a magazine while observing the street outside out of the corner of his eye.
Before long, two familiar figures came into his view.
Shoko wore a pale yellow dress and had her long hair down, while Yuzuru was still dressed in his androgynous style, walking cautiously beside his sister and glancing around every now and then.
About ten minutes after the two sisters entered the bookstore, a furtive figure appeared.
He was a tall, thin boy wearing a hoodie with the hood pulled down low, almost covering most of his face.
He walked with a somewhat timid gait and his eyes darted around. He hesitated for a moment at the entrance of the bookstore, but ultimately did not go in. Instead, he chose to hide behind a bus stop sign across the street, glancing at the glass door of the bookstore from time to time.
Yuto's lips curled into a cold smile.
That's him, Ishida Shoya.
Yuto didn't act immediately; he patiently drank his coffee.
About an hour later, the Nishimiya sisters came out of the bookstore carrying a shopping bag.
Ishida Shoya, standing across the street, immediately tensed up, instinctively shrinking back, but his gaze remained fixed on Shoko.
Yuto put down his coffee cup, got up to pay the bill, and walked out of the coffee shop at a leisurely pace.
Instead of heading straight for Ishida Shoya, he took a small detour and approached him silently from the latter's blind spot.
Ishida Shoya's attention was entirely focused on the departing Shoko, completely unaware of the danger behind him, until a calm yet oppressive voice rang in his ear.
"Is the scenery beautiful?"
Ishida Shoya froze, then turned around abruptly to see a slender, handsome face.
The other person's eyes were calm, but deep within that calmness seemed to lie a bottomless, icy pool, instantly chilling his hands and feet.
"Who...who are you?" Ishida Shoya's voice was a little hoarse from nervousness.
“Who I am is unimportant.” Yuto took a step forward, his height advantage allowing him to look down at his opponent. “What matters is that I know who you are. Ishida Shoya, right?”
Upon hearing his name spoken by this stranger, Ishida Shoya's face turned deathly pale.
He instinctively took a step back, his back hitting the bus stop sign, leaving him with nowhere to retreat.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he tried to argue, his eyes darting around nervously.
"Don't know?" Yuto chuckled. "These past few days, you've been following Nishimiya around. Don't tell me it's just a coincidence."
"Stalking? Tailing?"
Ishida Shoya's body began to tremble uncontrollably. His every move was known to the other party, and this feeling of being seen through made him feel like he had nowhere to hide.
"I...I didn't mean any harm!" He finally couldn't hold back and defended himself, "I just...I just wanted to..."
"What are you thinking about?" Yuto interrupted him. "Want to apologize? Want to atone for your sins? Or do you want to self-satisfy yourself by playing the role of a repentant guardian?"
Every word Yuto uttered deeply exposed the disguise deep within Ishida Shoya's heart. All his struggles, cowardice, and self-righteous "atonement" seemed so ridiculous in the face of this man.
"you……"
"How do you know about me?" Ishida wanted to ask, but he opened his mouth and couldn't utter a single word.
"Stop with your self-indulgent act." Yuto's tone suddenly turned cold.
"Your appearance has caused them great distress and fear in their lives. Do you think your 'protection' is noble? In my opinion, it is no different from that of a perverted stalker."
"You only think about what you want to do, but never consider how your actions will affect others. This selfish behavior is disgusting!"
"I didn't! I didn't!" Ishida Shouya retorted excitedly, but his voice sounded weak and powerless.
"Whether you are or not is not up to you to decide." Yuto took out his phone from his pocket and opened a video.
In the video, a man wearing the same hoodie is sneaking around behind the two girls.
The shooting angle was very clever, clearly recording all his movements.
“My friend took this for me. If we give this to the police, along with a police report for ‘harassing a minor,’ what do you think will happen?” Yuto Itsuka asked softly.
"Well, not to mention someone like you with a history of bullying."
"Even if the police can't convict you due to insufficient evidence, what about the school? What about your parents? What about your classmates? What about your friends?"
"At that time, your path to 'atonement' will probably be carried out under the scrutiny of everyone, won't it?"
Finally, Yuto Itsuka said, "Ishida Shoya, you don't want others to know that you're stalking underage girls, do you?"
As Ishida Shoya watched the video and heard these words, all color drained from his face.
He had considered countless possibilities, but he never imagined it would turn out like this.
The other party not only knew his identity, but also possessed evidence that was extremely detrimental to him.
"What exactly do you want?" he asked desperately.
"I don't want anything." Yuto put away his phone and looked directly into his eyes.
"I only want to tell you one thing: Nishimiya Shoko has her sister, her mother, her friends, and me by her side."
“I will protect her peaceful life. From today onwards, if you dare to appear around her in any form and cause her even the slightest unease…”
Yuto paused, leaned forward slightly, and whispered in Ishida Shoya's ear, "I promise you will experience a hundred times more despair than being ostracized by the whole class in elementary school. I mean what I say."
The voice was soft, but it carried an undeniable air of authority. Ishida could sense that the other person wasn't joking; those eyes told him that this person truly meant what they said.
Yuto Itsuka straightened up, regaining his calm and collected demeanor, as if the person who had just exuded a dangerous aura was not him at all.
"Oh right..." He was about to leave, but then turned back as if he had remembered something and walked up to Ishida Shoya.
"boom!"
With one punch, the unsuspecting Ishida Shouya was knocked to the ground.
"Consider this a little interest on the harm you caused her in the past." Itsuka Yuto took out a wet wipe, wiped his hands, and then tossed it onto Ishida Shoya's head.
He then straightened his collar and said calmly, "Get lost, and don't let me see you again."
Ishida Shoya collapsed to the ground, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth. He gasped for breath, cold sweat soaking his back. He didn't even dare to look up at Yuto again.
Yuto ignored him and turned to walk in the direction the Nishimiya sisters had left.
After taking a few steps, he stopped, turned around and glanced at Ishida Shoya, who was still slumped on the ground, a complicated look flashing in his eyes.