Chapter 58: That’s All a Teenage Boy Can Think About

「What do you think, Ryoko-san?」

As soon as I left the principal’s office, Inspector Nakamura asked me.

「I think the least we can do is to confirm that the victims dropped by the club room」

「That’s right. That’s important. Because when Ninagawa-san went to the club room, she testified that it was locked. In other words, assuming that there are no lies or misrepresentations in the story so far, we can assume that the members of the….. club who disappeared went to the trouble of locking the door before leaving」

「You don’t think they were taken by force?」

「At least, not until the victims left the club room」

In the first place, the members of the track and field club did not enter the club room, but they entered Master’s “room” that was disguised as a club room, so the truth is that the club room was still locked, and they did not even enter the room, let alone leave it.

However, I should probably take this story.

If this is the way it goes, I think I can keep Inspector Nakamura’s eyes away from Master.

「So, someone must have led them…… It makes sense to think that way, doesn’t it?」

Inspector Nakamura nodded broadly. 

「There are no signs of a struggle inside or outside the clubroom. The question is who led them and to where? And does Ryoko-san know the boy named Kijima?」

「Yes, I have interviewed him before…… Frankly speaking, I don’t think he has anything to do with this. Because according to the other students, he is despised by being called “Kimo-jima” and so on, and his physical strength and energy are below the level of others. Inomoto-senpai also said that he was a typical bullied kid. So, it’s hard to believe that the female students would follow him」

「I see……」

I felt as if I were coughing up blood as I sneered at Master. 

Even though it is for the purpose of protecting Master, this must be reported to Master again and punishment must be given.

Haa~, Haa~… What kind of punishment will he give me?

「Ryoko-san…… your face seems to be quite red, are you suffering from a cold? Your breathing seems to be disordered as well」

「It’s no problem. It’s more of a reward」

「Reward?」

「Cough. It’s just a little miscommunication. Don’t worry about it」

I can’t. I was so excited that my innermost thoughts leaked out.

I pretended to think for a moment and opened my mouth.

「In any case, if they were led somewhere by someone, the person who led them there is someone they should follow」

「Well, that’s just an assumption at this point, but…… yes. Anyway, I would like to talk to the boy named Kijima」

「Eh? I don’t think he’s involved……?」

「Yes, of course he is. At the very least, it’s not something that the boy can do on his own, and if he can’t play a role in guiding the members of the club, he should be considered irrelevant to the matter」

「Then……」

「But if he was near the club room, as Fukuda-said said, he might have witnessed something. Whether or not he was actually there is not something that can be hidden if we investigate on that premise」

His story was perfectly legitimate.

So, if I resist any longer, I might end up instilling distrust in him.

「I understand. I’ll try to get in touch with him since I have his contact information from the previous interview」

He must be happy that there was progress in the investigation.

「Please do」

He nodded his head in satisfaction.

◇ ◇ ◇

After parting with Inspector Nakamura, I went into the women’s restroom and tapped the word “MASTER” in my phone’s address book.

The reason why the registered name is not “Goshujin-sama” is so that when someone sees it, I can excuse myself and say the name is the owner of my favorite bar. 

The sound of calls rang in my ears. Once, twice …….

After a very long call, Master picked up the phone.

「Good timing. Ryoko. Excellent」

As soon as he answered the phone, he suddenly praised me.

It made me wet.

「W-what happened?」

「No, I’m sorry. I was just talking about this. What’s more, what’s wrong?」

When I told him about Rin Fukuda’s tip and that I would like him to come to the school this afternoon, his voice was filled with an unpleasant emotion.

「I’m sure she’s watching me …….」

Certainly, it would be impossible for her to know that Master in that place just by guesswork. The question is, to what extent was Master being seen?

「At the moment, Master is not under suspicion, but in the interview, Master will be asked two questions: why he was there and whether he witnessed anything」

「What about denying that I was there?」

「I don’t think that’s a good idea」

「Well, that’s good to know. Keep me informed」

「Leave it to me」

（Ah, right now, I’m helping my Master……）

After hanging up the phone, I enjoyed the lingering sound of Master’s voice for a while.

◇ ◇ ◇

「Good morning, Kurosa-chan」

As I sat up on the sofa bed, rubbing my eyes, Kyoko-san walked up to me with a mug in both hands.

「Here, tea. It’s pure, do you want sugar?」

「Oh, no need. Thank you very much」

As I accepted the mug, I looked at the clock and saw that it was past ten o’clock. It seemed I had slept too late.

「Good grief」

Kyoko-san sat down on the bed, sounding like an old person. She was dressed in a sleeveless shirt and pink men’s boxer shorts.

It’s bold, or rather, it’s…….

「Umm… Do you always wear that kind of underwear?」

「Hmm? Oh, this? it’s so comfortable, you know. And the reason I wear it because when I tried on my ex’s underwear for fun, I ended up loving it. So, that’s what I wear most of the time now」

「H-hee……」

The idea of wearing men’s underwear is so bizarre that I honestly can’t comment on it.

If it were a man wearing women’s underwear, I could just put him in the category of “pervert”.

「Anyway, Kurosa-chan. It seems that you were up very late last night」

「Oh, yes. I was chatting with my….. boyfriend, and I didn’t know where to stop……」

「Oh, so fresh, so youthful」

「After all, we don’t have time to meet. and at school, I can’t even be…… close to him」

「Oh, you mentioned that. you have to be picked up and dropped off at school, also they won’t let you out at night」

「I guess it can’t be helped, though……」

Then Kyoko-san looked into my face and spoke.

「It’s okay. Why don’t you go see him today?」

「……Eh?」

「Onee-chan won’t be home until late at night, and your parents won’t be watching you」

「But the media is…….」

The reason I was allowed to stay here in the first place was because the media was following me and loitering in front of my house.

If I went out to play and the media found me, I’d be screwed.

「Don’t worry! You’re not a Hollywood star. With a little disguise, you won’t be recognized」

「But……」

「You are not a political activist either, right? If you don’t take this chance, who knows how long you might not see him again?」

「Uuuu……」

It’s true that I don’t know when I’ll be able to go on a date with Jun-kun at this point.

「So, you should meet him. Love has no boundaries. John Lennon says so too. It’s love and peace」

I don’t think it has anything to do with boundaries, John, or love and peace, but if I missed this day, I really don’t think I have a chance.

「Is it okay……?」

「It’s okay, it’s okay. If you want to disguise yourself, I can find you some clothes from Onee-chan closet. Then, all you need to do is cover your face with sunglasses and a mask and you’re good to go」

「Thank you very much」

I bowed my head and she clapped her hands happily.

「And if you’re going to meet a guy, you’ve got to do something about your underwear!」

「Oh…… yes. There is new one that Terashima-san prepared for me…….」

「But, that’s a little plain. So, let’s go to Onee-chan’s closet and find something more fierce」

「No, you don’t need that!」

（I mean, why don’t you do something about your own panties first?）

「After all, you’re going to do it, right? I’m pretty sure you’re going to need it」

「No, no, no! It’s just a date!」

「Even though, you say something like that, if you want to date without anyone seeing your face, you have to go to a love hotel」

「Ehhh!?」

「It’s okay! Take your time. If he wants to go to a secluded place, all the teenage boys will think of nothing else! It must be a love hotel」

「Really……?」

「That’s right. It’s not that Kurosa-chan doesn’t want to do something naughty with her boyfriend, right?」

「That’s…… well…….」

Kyoko-san seems to be enjoying herself.

I don’t know why she is so aggressive with me, but I can’t help but understand why she enjoys other people’s love affairs.

「Well…… I’ll send him a message anyway」

And the reply was absurdly fast.

It was as fast as a ping-pong rally.

『I’ll wait for you in front of Chobi statue at 3pm』

Kyoko-san looked over my shoulder and smiled as she looked at my phone.

「Though, I’m not familiar with the area. There’s probably a love hotel near the meeting place, right? I’m pretty sure he’s going to do it」

Certainly, there was a hotel named “Ravian Rose” behind the station.