Chapter 20

A message came from Aira on Saturday night.

Here’s a summary of the back-and-forth we had, listed point by point:

- Ayuri is angry at the excessive actions taken to monitor her every move and to interfere with male students who try to talk to her, even using junior high school students for this purpose.

- Ayuri is also angry at the violent actions, such as kicking other school students who confessed to her.

- Ayuri intends to forgive once she understands why Ayuri is angry and sees genuine repentance.

- In that case, Ayuri must respect her wishes and swear not to engage in excessive monitoring or interference.

And this is the important point:

- Do not involve other people for Ayuri’s sake.

This naturally includes me as well.

In fact, when Aira told Ayuri that Daitoku had made me spy, Aira said she felt sorry for me.

Aira also suggested that if I had lied about not having a phone, we should have this conversation early Monday morning. Aira, as always, is considerate.

With this spy report in hand, I went to school with high spirits.

I thought I could just hand it over to him during lunch break or after school at the salon, but I had forgotten about his impatient nature.

Not long after I arrived at school, Daitoku barged into my classroom.

My classmates were in an uproar, especially the girls, who were a mix of jealousy and envy.

After all, Daitoku Masaya, who usually shows no interest in girls, had come to see a girl (me) in another classroom.

What is he doing…?

"Hey, how did it go?"

Without even a morning greeting, he just jumps right in.

"Good morning, Daitoku-sama. This isn’t the place, so let’s talk during lunch break."

I tried to maintain a calm demeanor so as not to reveal my unease to those around us.

Please, don’t say anything unnecessary here.

This stalker is an idiot and might say something dangerous. What if everyone finds out I’m his errand girl? I’ll lose my standing!

"No, let’s talk now. I can’t wait."

Wait a minute!

Don’t you realize that your impatience is what made Ayuri angry? If you don’t, you’ll never be forgiven.

"Alright, but we can’t talk here. Let’s go somewhere else."

We need to get to a place where no one can hear us. If Daitoku says “errand girl” here, I’m done for.

Besides, the stares from everyone are terrifying.

"Alright, follow me."

He’s as bossy as ever.

As we left the classroom together, I could hear the girls behind us shouting, "What’s going on?!"

My peaceful daily life is over.

Ugh, my head hurts…

"Alright, give me the results."

We didn’t have time to go to the salon, so we ended up in a corner of the hallway.

Of course, with the emperor’s glare, even during the busy morning rush, people cleared out of this corner.

I can feel the intense attention from a distance, but it’s painful.

"Alright."

I took out the folded report from my pocket.

Seriously, who would think that saying, "I’ll hear it on Monday," means he’d want the results first thing in the morning? Is he really that clueless, or does he think everyone will prioritize his orders? The latter is even worse.

Stalker Daitoku is reading the report intently.

…He’s single-minded, I guess.

When I saw a primary school boy who was madly in love with his first crush, it seemed sweet and bittersweet. Now that I’m involved, he’s just a troublesome stalker.

"…If I reflect on what’s written here and promise not to monitor Ayuri anymore, she’ll forgive me, right?"

"It seems so."

Daitoku is deep in thought.

"When is that?"

"Huh?"

What is he saying?

"Once you reflect…"

"I’ve reflected. A lot. And I promise to respect Ayuri’s actions. See, I’ve met Ayuri’s demands. Today? Tomorrow? Or right now?"

Ugh…

What a troublesome guy.

Was the emperor like this as a child?

He’s always cool and aloof, and everyone thinks he’s amazing, but I thought he was just jaded and unchildlike. There’s nothing cool about him. He’s just an idiot.

I was completely fooled.

"Masaya."

Jushiro Enjo appeared.

"What are you doing here? All the way to Kichijoji?"

Oh, another troublesome person.

"Hey, Jushiro! Look, the spy did a great job!"

"Really? You already heard from Aira? You’re quick."

Enjo peeked at the report Daitoku was holding.

"Hmm, I see. Isn’t this what we expected?"

"I was just telling him that I’ve reflected and I’ll accept Ayuri’s conditions. So, Ayuri will forgive me right away, right?"

He’s such a simpleton.

"You’re an idiot, Masaya."

Whoa, I thought my inner thoughts leaked out for a moment.

"Jushiro, are you picking a fight?"

"Come on, reflect. That’s what Ayuri is angry about, your short temper."

"That’s not written here!"

"Read between the lines, like they teach in language class. Here, about kicking a student from another school. Ayuri is angry about your short-tempered actions. Got it?"

Daitoku fell silent, looking regretful.

"Anyway, just saying you’ve reflected won’t be enough. You need to show it through your actions."

"Then what should I do?"

"Hmm, Kichijoji, do you have any good ideas?"

"Huh?"

Why me?

I did as instructed and found out how Ayuri feels. I should be off the hook now, right?

With a reliable friend here, I shouldn’t be needed anymore.

Besides, I don’t want to be involved anymore.

Just then, the bell for the start of class rang.

"Oh, I need to get back to my classroom. See you."

I hurried away.

"Wait, spy."

Daitoku stopped me.

"Come up with a plan. It’s your homework until lunch break."

What…?

Why should I do that?!

Isn’t plotting the spy’s job?

Please, enough already…

Enjo was smiling wryly.

No, it’s your fault for bringing it up.

This is really the worst…

When I got back to the classroom, the teacher came in, so I managed to avoid the classmates’ questions for now.

It’s a brief reprieve until the first class ends.

How should I explain my relationship with Daitoku?

I can’t say I’m his errand girl, even if my mouth were to split open.

Maybe I can just say, "I was doing a favor." But I’ll be in trouble if they ask for details.

Ugh, this week is starting off badly.