V2ch1: Enemies and allies

Translator: Soafp

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~Kotaro’s Point of View~

Ryosuke was a very sweet kid.

As a journalist, I’m never a good guy. Sometimes I go after more than I should and try to get a scoop. And if I don’t do that, I won’t be able to survive in the company.

I was in such an environment, and I think I was not normal. …… I was unable to judge right from wrong.

And while I was repeating such things, an incident happened…

That was 12 years ago.

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[C-committed suicide?]

It was a news that I couldn’t believe my ears — the news that someone I had written an article about in a weekly magazine had committed suicide.

He was a famous actor, so when I wrote the article it was well received within the company, and I was elated.

But the problem was to come.

To my surprise, other reporters who took advantage of my article began to hang around him and investigate his past.

The article I published was about the affair. That was it.

But the others published pictures of him having sex with aides, having a sex tape, and smoking when he was a minor.

That’s the information that I had destroyed …… before I put it out there, because I knew that if I put something like that out there, I would never be able to come back again.

—-And yet.

……I was worried about what would happen to him.

But sure enough, he passed away with no hope of living.

[H-How could this happen?]

I regretted my actions.

I thought I was a righteous person by exposing the black side of the actor who is said to be a person of character. …… I forgot that even though he is an entertainer, he is still a human being.

[─ ─ brother, are you all right?]

[…… yeah.]

I was visiting my younger sister Rinka’s house to take my mind off things.

She has a daughter in first grade and a son in kindergarten.

I told my sister about the situation.

She didn’t abuse me, but gently encouraged me.

I was very grateful for her encouragement, but it did not heal my heart. I don’t know how to apologize anymore.

My heart was in shreds after I had sent one person to the brink of death.

[Uncle Koutaro!]

[………Eh?]

Tap tap…… I was tapped on the shoulder from behind.

I turn around and there stands Ryosuke, patting me on the shoulder as I sit on a cushion on the floor.

[Ryosuke-kun……?]

[Uncle! Thank you for all your hard work!]

He tapped me on the shoulder in a rhythmic manner.

I really think that he is a very honest and kind child.

[….Ryosuke….. I don’t deserve to be treated like an uncle.]

But because I was being sarcastic at the time, I had dismissed the young boy’s goodwill.

Even so, Ryosuke tilted his head and would not leave.

[Treated? Deserve?]

I knew it was a difficult word for a child to understand. But I have no experience with young children,……, so I don’t know what to say.

[Ah, no,…… uncle is a bad person,…… so you should stay away from me,…… Ryosuke].

I’m sorry to Ryosuke who came all the way here to encourage me, but I want you to leave me alone for now.

[Eh, I don’t care about that.]

[…..Eh?]

[I like you, Uncle, that’s why I’m patting you on the back!]

[You like…..me?]

[Yes! I love you, Uncle! Oh, yes! Here, I’ll give you this!]

[…… Candy?]

What he handed me was a candy bar.

It was a cola-flavored candy ball that can be bought at convenience stores for 10 yen.

I took it.

[Uncle! Give me a ride on your shoulders!]

[…….Thank you]

I nodded at Ryosuke’s wish.

If I spoke now, I would not be able to stop crying —- in fact, I wanted to express my gratitude even more, but I was embarrassed to cry in front of Rinka, who was smiling at me from the kitchen, and most of all, I did not want to worry Ryosuke.

Thank you for telling me that you love me, such a human being. …… What an angelic, sweet, adorable child you are.

But I want you to know …… that “thank you” now has a lot of meaning…

…………

…………

I still cherish the candy ball that Ryosuke gave me.

It is the most precious thing in the world to me.

I’ve been searching for the scum that brought Ryosuke down for the past year. Rinka supports him at home,……, so I did what I could as a newspaper reporter.

I have the ability to gather information and the contacts I’ve built up over the years. If the police would not act, I would prove Ryosuke’s innocence!

I continued my frantic search for the culprits …… and finally succeeded in finding them.

[Found you!]

After I found them, I immediately set to work.

I hired a paid person to disguise himself as a high school student and sent him to their hunting grounds. I recorded the whole thing and left it as evidence.

Of course, the person I hired was not just a high school student. He was a professional who had proven himself in this kind of situation many times.

My contacts are well versed in this kind of illegal and criminal work …… and it all worked out well.

The police caught them.

After the arrest, the police were able to investigate the other crimes and identify the people who had been victimized.

Finally, Ryosuke was exonerated of his wrongdoing.

But it didn’t end there.

I immediately sold this information to the TV stations.

All the stations reported it so widely that it became a public incident, and to top it off, I put their personal information all over the Internet.

Their lives may be over, but I will never let them get away with it, even if they get out of prison.

The crime of disgracing Ryosuke must be atoned for with the price of his life.

[……Would you like to be a journalist after all?]

[That’s tempting, but no thanks.]

He told me that my job was appealing. I was very happy, but I didn’t want him to have this kind of job. Ryosuke is a serious person who takes jokes seriously.

He is going to do [something] to the school. Rinka might get angry if she hears about it, but I’m willing to cooperate.

I just want him to live a normal life when it’s over. I’m sure he’s a kind boy,……, and I couldn’t help but think so.

The first thing I noticed was that he had a very strange look in his eyes.

He had empty eyes, so I took him to the hospital and they told me he has schizophrenia.

My mind went into a panic.

I’ve been hearing a lot about Ryosuke’s condition from Rinka. I thought he was a man of strong spirit because she said he was so calm after such an incident,…………, but I didn’t think he had been holding back all this time?

[D….Damn it…….]

Thinking about that, I couldn’t stop crying.

When I think of the hellish daily life he’s had to endure, it really breaks my heart,…… Ryosuke endured so much, and I was going crazy just thinking about the terrible things he’s had to go through.

—-No, I’m actually going crazy.

I came up with a crazy plan…

[……The school pushed him to the point of schizophrenia?]

[Yes, I think that would be a scoop.]

[You really come up with some great stories!]

The chief is smiling happily.

He is like a mirror of a newspaper reporter. …… There is no way he wouldn’t bite on such a tasty story.

After all, it’s a story about the victim of a case that’s been making the rounds in the world,……, so it’s bound to get a bite.

It was already decided that Ryosuke and Mai would be transferred to a new school.

The only thing that worried me was the fact that Kaede was still in school, but that girl was always cursing my work as ‘filth’,…… and on top of that, she was the one who hurt Ryosuke.

I don’t intend to touch my sister’s daughter directly, but let her get involved in this mess.

Of course, I won’t mention Ryosuke’s name, and I’m working behind the scenes to make sure no one can find out my personal information …… and Mai’s, of course.

It took me almost a month to put that groundwork in place, but I have no intention of screwing up like I did 12 years ago.

Protecting Ryosuke after the article is the most important thing.

I wrote the article that led a certain celebrity to commit suicide, and now I’m going to take even more outrageous measures than that.

But I don’t care. ……I’ll fall into the path of the devil again for Ryosuke’s sake.

I clenched the candy ball in my pocket.

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〜Kaede Point of View~

“Takamiya Psychiatric Hospital ……”

I was finally able to locate Ryosuke, who had been hospitalized and not at home for a long time.

I had asked my mother and father, but they had been vague, but I finally succeeded in finding a clue by breaking into my father’s room, who was away at work.

“But father is too careless …… even though there were no clues at all in mother’s room. …… Well, thanks for saving my life.”

A month is too long to wait.　

It was really too painful not to see him for such a long time.

I felt like my heart was going to break.

I heard that he was in the hospital for a mental illness, but I didn’t think it would take a month for him to get treatment. …… No, not just a month, but he’s still going to be in the hospital for a while… It is still too painful to think about it.

If he was going to be in the hospital for such a long time, it would make sense for him to tell me, his sister, where he was.

Mom seems to think that Ryosuke and I are still fighting, but we have already made up. And yet, when I told her about it, she didn’t believe me. …… My mom is still stubborn and troublesome.

Since Ryosuke said he forgives me, there is no doubt in my mind that he is no longer angry with me.

That is why he should be fine when he sees me.

It is summer vacation now. This summer, I plan to stay with Ryosuke for the rest of the year, and the 10 minutes a day rule will probably be null and void after the summer break.

“Let’s go visit him.”

I packed my bags and left the house.

Of course, my destination was the hospital where Ryosuke was staying.