V6Ch5: The Savior part 2

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Translator: Soafp

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After Tojo-senpai told me that Kazehaya—or rather, Akari Toki—was the culprit, some time passed before I could even think about how to respond, and then she actually came to see me herself. Her eyes were swollen red from crying.

When I asked, it turned out she had already confessed her crimes to Sanjoji-sensei. All the harassment directed at me, and the harassment aimed at Sanjoji-sensei, had been the work of the same person—Akari Toki.

It felt like having the rug pulled out from under me. Everything had been resolved before I could do anything myself—but Akari Toki came to see me after I already knew she was the culprit. In other words, it wasn't technically a voluntary surrender.

Turning oneself in before being identified counts as a self-surrender, but going to the police after being identified is merely showing up. Naturally, the former is far more likely to result in a reduced sentence. Which meant Akari Toki had missed her chance for a reduced penalty by a hair.

That said, the fact that the culprit was a student meant we couldn't just immediately report it externally. I tried to coordinate with Sanjoji-sensei on how to handle things, but then I realized I couldn't reach her.

So, I used the location-sharing app to find out where she was and went there myself.

“…Sorry. I, um, kept you waiting.”

“…Ecchi.”

“I-It couldn't be helped! I didn't have anything else to wear!”

Sanjoji-sensei, standing there in a negligee, twisted her body shyly. Incredibly ecchi.

For some reason, Inukichi was pawing insistently at the closet door. Judging from the look of it, there were probably pajamas inside, but I didn't say anything. Because ecchi.

I couldn't just leave her standing in the rain, so we went back to her place and I had her take a hot shower to avoid catching a cold. She needed time to wash away not just the rain, but a lot of other things too.

—At that time, her body had been freezing. Probably her heart, too.

“Ah, I'll dry it for you. I always do this at home.”

“Th-thank you. I've never had a man do this for me before…”

I used the hair dryer, making sure to blow warm air evenly so there were no uneven spots. Hair cuticles open up when wet, and in that state, hair is prone to damage. Proper care is important.

She had long, glossy, beautiful hair—damage was unacceptable.

At home, this was my job, almost a daily routine. My mom had short hair, so it dried quickly, but my sister had long hair and it took time. Depending on the weight of the dryer, this could be pretty heavy work. If I thought of it as weight training with a dumbbell, it wasn't so bad.

Once her hair was dry, I switched to the cool setting to finish and smooth it all out.

“…You're good at this.”

“I'm used to it.”

Inukichi looked at us jealously. Well, fine.

I blew some air on Inukichi too, smoothing out his fur.

“Did you meet with Toki-san?”

“Yeah. She confessed. It's showing up after the fact, though, so I'm not sure how to handle it.”

I had made one thing very clear to Akari Toki—I wasn't going to just pretend none of it had happened.

The fact was, I had been harmed, and Tojo-senpai had worked so hard to find the culprit.

Saying “sorry” doesn't just make it all go away. Akari Toki was certain to face more than just suspension—most likely she wouldn't be able to avoid being expelled for a period of time. But she probably wouldn't be expelled outright.

Sanjoji-sensei wouldn't want that, and neither did I.

What was needed was accountability. We weren't innocent kids anymore who didn't know right from wrong.

Akari Toki accepted that. She had no choice—but she wasn't acting out of spite or desperation. By the time she confessed to Sanjoji-sensei, she had probably already prepared herself for the consequences.

I had been wary that the culprit might make another move, but now that was over.

So, case closed—except there was still one person left.

“Kazuhiro Okamoto, right?”

It had been so long that I could barely remember him even after hearing the name or seeing his face, but he was a seriously troublesome guy.

Akari Toki had been a handful too, but his level of trouble was on another level entirely.

“He's someone you won't ever forget… right?”

“No, I just always thought his name sounded too much like Kazunari Takahashi's.”

Isn't that confusing?

“Takahashi-kun… he's that first-year in the soccer club, right?”

“You know that? You have some connection to him?”

Could she really know every new student's name? That would take incredible effort and memory.

“No. Just that he's your classmate.”

I see. Well, my class was under teacher watch anyway, so that couldn't be helped.

“I didn't even realize who Toki-san was right away… I'm unfit to be a teacher.”

Sanjoji-sensei spoke bitterly. I waited for her to explain.

“He told me to take responsibility for ruining his life. And… he's right. He's completely right.”

Her voice was drained, her whole demeanor weakened.

“It's not just Okamoto-kun. I'm the one who made Toki-san do something like this. And you too, Kokonoe-kun—I twisted your life with my arrogance. I forced my ego on you and broke you.”

Tears spilled from her eyes again. She wasn't wearing her glasses, so I gently wiped them away.

“I'm sorry.”

Her words, full of sincerity—once, they never would have reached me. Now, they struck deep.

“He told me to quit teaching.”

A pained smile. When you're sad, you should just cry—you don't have to force yourself to smile.

“Maybe I was never cut out for it in the first place. I've never once thought seriously about any path other than teaching. That's negligence. I think… this might be a good opportunity.”

The words she let out cut into herself, almost like self-harm. But she couldn't seem to stop.

“If I'd handled things properly back then, Misaki-san could have stayed on her path to becoming a teacher. Okamoto-kun wouldn't have had to be unhappy. And you, Kokonoe-kun—”

She covered her face with her hands and sobbed. Inukichi patted her back with his paws to comfort her.

“And what about me?”

“…You're the only one I can't imagine.”

Hah… good grief. I was really mad at her—mad enough to compare it to when Emperor Yang of Sui was provoked into rage by the ‘Son of Heaven where the sun sets' insult from Ono no Imoko, one of Japan's most infamous masters of provocation.

“I'm disappointed in you, Sensei.”

“…Yes. I have no excuse.”

[Sanjoji POV]

“I'm disappointed in you, Sensei.”

So even Kokonoe-kun had finally given up on me. Of course he had. Okamoto-kun was right—someone like me has no business continuing as a teacher. After all, what could I possibly teach, when I'm the one who destroyed my own student's life?

This was my second major failure in life. The first was back then. I never truly made a comeback from it—I just looked the other way and let time carry me past it, all to protect my fragile, petty pride. Pure self-preservation.

Back when I interviewed for my teaching license, I had so much to say. I spoke fluently about ideals, purpose, lesson plans, passion for education… but none of it meant anything. Every word was just a façade, a lie.

The truth was simple—the Sanjoji family was a family of teachers. That was the only reason I ever set my sights on becoming one.

Former students who admired my grandparents and parents would shower me with praise. The crushing weight of their “expectations” was suffocating.

What part of me was so admirable? Every time I was praised, I wanted to cover my ears in shame.

So when Kokonoe-kun said those words, I could only nod in agreement. After all, they were my true feelings, the ones I'd been hiding all along.

“Yes. I have no excuse.”

Surprisingly, I found I could accept it without resistance. There was nothing left in me anymore. I was completely drained—just a pathetic old woman clinging to the pity of a student. Emptiness washed over me.

Once I accepted reality, it was nothing dramatic. I was simply too incompetent for the weight I had been carrying.

But my apathetic, throwaway attitude made Kokonoe-kun's eyes flash wide in anger.

“You've been humiliated worse than Canossa, and that's all you have to say? Now you've made me mad!”

Before I could react, he scooped me up and laid me face down across his lap.

“Uh… wh-what do you think you're—”

Smack!

“Hyai!?”

Smack! Smack! Smack! Smack! Smack! Smack!

“Why are you—doing a spanking—hyaaa!? It hurts—it doesn't hurt that much, but still!”

Kokonoe-kun's merciless chastisement continued. Not even my father had ever hit me!

“If this keeps up, my butt's going to look like a Japanese monkey's!”

“I'll put ointment on it afterward, so it'll be fine!”

“How on earth is that fine!?”

Just the thought of him putting ointment on my butt was unbearably embarrassing…

Even after all that, the spanking continued for quite a while before Kokonoe-kun's outrageous behavior finally came to an end.

“W-what's gotten into you all of a sudden?”

He lifted me up again, this time sitting me so we were face to face. The closeness made me tense.

Kokonoe-kun's eyes had always been beautiful—clear and glasslike.

“You're still a teacher”

“What do you mean by that…?”

I couldn't understand his intent and asked again. His expression was deadly serious—utterly sincere, utterly unshakable.

I couldn't help but envy that—his unbreakable will, the way he could choose solitude even when surrounded by isolation.

“When a student does something wrong, what should a teacher do?”

“I… well…”

I was at a loss for an answer. This was a teacher-student Q&A, but in this moment, our roles had completely reversed.

“Frankly? Corporal punishment.”

“Corporal punishment!?”

That was absolutely forbidden—something that could never be allowed today.

“Teachers in the old days understood that much.”

I didn't even want to remember—the me who had been self-righteous, arrogant, and swollen with pride.

“When a student does something wrong, why is it the teacher who apologizes? What you should have done was scold him, wasn't it? Wasn't guiding them toward the right path the very ideal you used to say you had? His life was ruined because of you? What, is Okamoto's life made of PMMA figurines?”

—!!

Suddenly my whole body flushed hot. Heat rushed through me like a fever.

“There's no such thing as a tiny little life that can be changed by just one person. If Kazuhiro Okamoto says he's unhappy, that's just the result of his own choices. Besides—why would a teacher who only knew him for a few short months have such a huge influence on him?”

Only then did I realize—he was right. I never had that kind of worth in the first place.

A teacher's duty—the duty I should have fulfilled—was to face Okamoto-kun as an adult and scold him when needed. Not to wallow in self-blame as if I had the power to dictate his fate.

“You're full of yourself, Sensei.”

“Yes.”

Simple. Direct. The blunt honesty of it made my heart feel suddenly lighter.

Maybe I had just wanted to believe I was a person of value. But Kokonoe-kun had flatly denied that—and he was right. There had been a perfect example right in front of me all along, yet I had learned nothing from him.

He was always surrounded by people, his influence far greater than mine could ever be—yet even he didn't change people's lives so easily.

I should have known my own influence was negligible. Just like my unsuccessful attempts at dating—I had overestimated my own worth, and thus, found no match. I had no value to overrate in the first place.

“Even if you curse someone else for being at fault, nothing changes. You have to change yourself.”

“Ouch… that's a bit painful to hear.”

“Well, Akane-san told me off the other day, too. Said I was forcing things on others.”

He slumped forward like a deflated balloon, and I couldn't help but smile. He wasn't perfect either—and maybe that was what made him so endearing. So lovable.

“If you're about to make a mistake, there will be people who try to pull you back. That's why… you really must like people, don't you? Even though you have the strength to need no one, you're always reaching out to others.”

“That's because I'm bottom of the barrel.”

Always bright yet negative—two opposites in one person. Light and shadow.

Of course people would want to fuss over him. Of course they couldn't just leave him alone.

Before I knew it, I was hugging him.

“You know, wearing something that sheer and holding me like this is going to cause certain… issues—BEEP-bzzzt…”

“Just this once is fine, isn't it? No one's around to see. Besides, Misaki-san used to do this all the time, right? I was jealous, you know. Consider this your reward.”

Ever since I consulted him about the photo incident, he had stayed by my side constantly, protecting me like a knight guarding his princess—even though this was a busy time for him. I didn't think a hug could possibly repay that debt, but I wasn't thinking with logic. I simply wanted to.

I forgot my position, gave in to the desire for warmth—an immoral, forbidden act. Enough that I could no longer laugh off the incriminating caption that had accompanied that photo. I knew full well what awaited down this road: ruin.

“I really am… a bad adult.”

Earlier I'd been shivering in the cold rain, with no strength left to pretend to be strong—just a stray dog in a cardboard box, waiting for someone to pick me up. The world outside the box was all gray. A river of indifferent strangers passing by. Crying out until my voice died, knowing no one would come.

I'd resigned myself to that reality—until I found someone I didn't want to hand over to anyone else. At my age, no less. A treasure. But I knew I could never be enough for him alone. He was a fragment of happiness, a shard of light that shone on all the darkness around him. I never wanted to keep that light to myself.

“Close your eyes for a moment.”

“Sorry—drawing on your forehead earlier was just a momentary lapse in judgment.”

“You need to rethink what counts as a ‘momentary lapse.' I could never pull something like that off.”

Kokonoe-kun tilted his head curiously but obediently closed his eyes.

“Oh, that PMMA thing earlier—it's short for polymethyl methacrylate—”

I leaned in and pressed my lips to his.

“…Eh?”

He blinked his eyes open in surprise.

The faint trace of shared saliva was proof our lips had touched.

It wasn't some beautiful, romantic thing. If anything, it was the act of a deranged woman—a middle-aged creep forcing herself on a younger man. Disgust would have been the natural reaction.

“This is actually my first kiss.”

I tried to cover for myself—a self-defense reflex to keep from tainting the only time in my life I'd ever done this.

I'd finally crossed the line for real. This was the kind of thing you couldn't undo. But… I had no regrets.

I had decided to stop being “pure and proper.” I had my contradictions—my light and dark—just like anyone else.

“So… if I asked for it again, would that make it my second?”

“I don't think that's how the counting works…”

The sweetness in the air suddenly made me self-conscious. Even Inukichi covered his face with his paws in embarrassment.

But without this moment, I really would have just quit teaching without a fight. He was my savior.

I'd simply given him a reward worthy of an indebted heart—or so I let myself believe.

“Oh? Oh-hohoho?”

Kokonoe-kun was staring at his phone, looking unusually intrigued despite his expression being as blank as ever.

“Something wrong?”

Maybe a message from his family. I'd kept him far too long as it was.

“Okamoto just sent me a message. Hoo… looks like he's feeling pretty pleased with himself for making you cry, Sensei. Fool. You're not even concave, you're convex.”

“Where exactly are you looking when you say that?”

“Like I could not look, dressed like that. What is this, the sacred Suzuka Mountain Range?”

“Entry is prohibited!”

It wasn't pajamas—it was a negligee. That was an airtight rebuttal. If this were about persuasiveness, the win went to Kokonoe-kun.

…Was the elevation… high? I had no idea if that was something to be proud of.

“W-well… I guess I don't mind that much…”

“Sensei, you're kind of weak to pressure, aren't you?”

Surprisingly enough, he was right. I guess I was weak when it came to being pushed—at least by him.

What I felt for him… maybe it was like being a devoted fan. And even if it was only a pretense, I'd follow it through.

“—But no, that's not the point. Why is Okamoto-kun…?”

“Aha, I see. Could it be… he doesn't even know you and I are childhood friends? Interesting. In that case, I'll prove to him what happens when I start feeling smug.”

“We're not exactly childhood friends…”

“Fine then—how about the bond of severed qin strings? Or better yet, the bond of neck-cutting comrades.”

“Enough with the poetic metaphors! And the first one means the same thing as the second!”

If only we'd really been childhood friends… then maybe I wouldn't have to wrestle with such an age gap.

“Then what are we, exactly?”

“W-well… a teacher and her student, aren't we?”

I hesitated, just a little. Maybe I didn't want to define it clearly. If there was another answer, it was a forbidden one—something I could never say.

“S*x friends and trainer-trainee? Ah, so you have no objections to us being s*x friends.”

“Not yet!”

“Not yet?”

I'd blurted it without thinking, and my face went boom—red all over.

“That's a misunderstanding! There is nothing indecent or immoral like that between us!”

“Eh? But we're student-and-friend, so that makes us s*x-friends. What does ‘immoral' even mean?”

“Grrr! Don't you dare trap me with such a wicked word game!”

The fake-innocent look on his face was infuriating—like he really thought it was an innocent question.

I was sure my ears were red by now, so I forcefully switched my train of thought.

“…Anyway, do you have any idea what Okamoto-kun plans to do?”

“Seems like he's up to something shady—but I'll twist him into a pretzel. Kyahahaha!”

“…Somehow, I'm starting to believe you could actually do that.”

I felt a little ridiculous for having taken the whole thing so seriously. Maybe this was the kind of easygoing attitude I needed.

“Thank you.”

“Being thanked for sexual harassment… that's pretty rare.”

“So you do realize what you're doing!”

If he spoiled me this much, I'd end up going straight down the same decadent path Misaki-san had.

“Don't melt me any more than you already have, okay?”

I am ‘　' with you. [TL: You can’t already tell, it is: “I am in love with you”]

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