“I’m the victim of a stalker…”
“A stalker? That’s unusual, for a boy.”
“It’s true that according to recent survey results, eighty percent of stalking victims are female, but conversely, the remaining twenty percent—in other words, one in five cases—are male. Statistically, it’s not that unusual.”
“Well, this kid is super cute, so I can see why…”
“That’s not the point. For now, please continue.”
“Y-Yes.”
The boy with the adorable looks began to speak with a solemn expression.
“Until now, it was just the occasional date invitation from a strange man or an obscene picture sent as a direct message on RootSpeak.”
“Wait, are we talking about dating apps?”
“Dating apps? I believe he said he was talking about RootSpeak.”
“Sorry, it was just a figure of speech…”
That one was my fault for making a flippant remark. However, it’s clear that getting obscene messages so often is already a pretty terrible situation. The internet is often compared to bathroom graffiti, but it’s not just the graffiti, it’s the whole toilet.
“Lately, I’ve had strange letters put in my mailbox, or I’ve been secretly photographed on my way home from school and had the pictures sent to me via RootSpeak direct message… I’ve started to feel like I’m in physical danger.”
We were sitting on the guest sofa, listening together.
The professor, placing a hand on her forehead, let out a smoke-tinged sigh.
“Honestly, what is the deal with that service’s security? Have you consulted the police?”
“I did. However, their response was somewhat passive, you could say.”
“Hmm… Although the anti-stalking laws were revised to strengthen enforcement, there are quite a few police officers who are poorly informed about it. Especially the older ones. Furthermore, the fact that you’re male is likely one of the reasons they’re not taking the situation seriously.”
“…I did get that impression.”
“That’s terrible… To be so scared and have no one to help you.”
Just as I spoke up, sympathizing with his feelings, the professor cleared her throat.
“Himari, how about you get off the boy now? It must be stifling.”
“I thought he might be feeling lonely.”
“Aren’t you just trying to cling to a boy?”
“I’m not that easy, you know!?”
“But your words and actions don’t match, do they?”
Called out, I hugged the boy blushing in my arms even tighter.
“The professor is saying that, but what do you want to do? Should your Onee-chan let go?”
At my words, he squirmed.
“…U-Um. In the first place, why have I been sitting on your lap this whole time?”
“I thought it might help you relax. Is your Onee-chan’s lap uncomfortable?”
“It feels a little childish…”
“Should we stop if it bothers you? Would you prefer a lap pillow?”
“Eh… uh… no, um…”
Seeing the boy blush and shy away, something wicked inside of me felt like it was about to burst.
How should I put it, he gives off a vibe somewhat like a nephew. Though I don’t have any relatives, so it’s just an image I have.
So I figured that giving him a gentle embrace would be an effective way to ease his anxiety.
That’s when the professor cleared her throat.
“Himari, while it is indeed important to relieve the client’s anxiety, have you forgotten that this is a sacred place of learning?”
“Sorry, it’s a rare chance to earn ‘Onee-chan Points’, so I couldn’t help myself.”
“Don’t create concepts nobody has ever heard of.”
“In order to emit an ‘Onee-chan Aura’, you need to accumulate ‘Onee-chan Points’.”
“Don’t use a concept nobody knows to create another concept nobody knows. Besides, what you’re supposed to be collecting are required course credits… Are you saying those are a secondary priority?”
“No way, the cost-performance is way too bad!?”
Faced with a threat brandished with her authority, I instantly leaped away. Required credits—that is what a university student must protect above all else. I can’t afford to lose them over a small blunder.
“…Kuku.”
At that, the visiting boy brought the sleeve of his hoodie to his mouth and laughed under his breath. Combined with his appearance, it made him look even more like a girl. I wonder if he’s what they call a ‘genderless boy’ these days?
“Now then, before we get to the main topic, I’d like to ask for your name.”
Seeing that the visitor had opened up to us, the professor immediately threw out a question.
Come to think of it, that’s important but we hadn’t asked. I also waited for the boy’s answer.
“My name is Nakamura. Nakamura Mayuki.”
“Hmm. Nakamura Mayuki-kun, a third-year at Yamabuki University Affiliated High School. Is that correct?”
“Eh?”
It’s no wonder he was surprised.
After all, he had only just given his name and hadn’t revealed any detailed information.
“Eh, but, how…?”
Towards the flustered boy, the professor quickly began to reveal her trick.
“You used the open campus event to come and consult with me, didn’t you?”
Today is the first day of Golden Week.
And at the same time, it’s the day of the open campus event for prospective students. It’s an event where they can tour the university campus and observe seminar activities.
“Himari, you must know that about half of Yamabuki University’s students are made up of those who entered through internal admission. Around this time of year, the affiliated high school’s third-years are surveyed about their future paths. As part of that, participation in the open campus is mandatory. Since the students don’t really want the school to ruin their long holiday, they naturally have a strong tendency to gather on the first day.”
She rattled it all off in one breath, then paused. The professor stretched deeply and continued.
“Although, Mayuki-kun, you probably came to visit today for a different reason. Am I right?”
The correctness of that deduction was made clear by Mayuki-kun’s words.
“You’re exactly right. I learned about the Shirasagi Seminar from a pamphlet that was handed out as part of the open campus materials and came here. I was careful not to be noticed by anyone around me… The reason I came on the first day of the holiday is because I wanted to talk to someone as soon as possible.”
“…Professor. What kind of introduction did you write for the seminar in the pamphlet?”
“I put down, ‘Consultations for SNS troubles, accepted at any time.‘”
“You wrote it that directly…?”
“You can never have too much research material or too many case studies. High school and university students in particular have a high rate of social media usage. Besides, there’s no point in using roundabout expressions for the younger generation.”
“Judging by the text alone, it sounds like a totally sketchy organization. We’re not some shady detective agency…”
Ignoring my point as if it hadn’t been made, the professor turned back to Mayuki-kun.
“With the police being unreliable, the stalking has been escalating. You must have been scared.”
She stood up straight and moved behind Mayuki-kun. Then, she placed a hand on his shoulder as if to comfort him.
“But Nakamura Mayuki-kun, you are admirable. You took action even while being cornered. That’s quite something. You didn’t give in to the injustice brought upon you; to break through your situation, you thought for yourself, devised a solution, and arrived at this place, clutching at straws. And you did it on your own two feet. Not everyone can do that. I commend your courage.”
I could feel each and every one of the professor’s words gently piercing my heart.
The corners of Mayuki-kun’s eyes slowly distorted, and a transparent drop trickled down his cheek.
“—Hk, ugh, sob…!”
A trembling voice escaped him.
I couldn’t just stand there, so I hugged Mayuki-kun tightly again.
“There, there, you were scared, weren’t you? Let’s stay like this until you calm down.”
“Thank, you, ver, m… Ugh, I-I was so, scared…”
The terror of being stalked by a faceless person on the other side of the internet.
A high school student, still in his teens. Surely, no one else can fathom how that feels.
I held the sobbing Mayuki-kun to my chest, and decided to thoroughly enjoy… no, to stay by his side.
“There, there, don’t worry. You can be spoiled by your Onee-chan as much as you want, okay?”
“Aren’t you taking advantage of the confusion for your own benefit, Anesaki Himari-kun, with your taste for younger guys?”
“I have no impure intentions, so please spare me from failing… this is therapy…”
Yes, it’s therapy. Probably. …Though I can’t deny my taste for younger guys.
A sweet vanilla scent wafted gently from Mayuki-kun’s long hair again.
Is this creature really a boy…? As I was thinking that, the professor pouted.
“Isn’t it great? You finally found a use for those needlessly huge breasts of yours.”
“What a bitchy thing to say!”
“Comforting a cute younger boy with lumps of fat overflowing with maternal instinct… Ah, a truly fine use for them indeed.”
“What a lewd and bitchy thing to say!”
“In the first place, in an age where decluttering is trendy, minimalists are praised, and they say ‘those who have not are righteous,’ I can’t understand the trend that bigger breasts are better. Even cell phones, which were gradually becoming more compact, started getting bigger in the smartphone era. It makes absolutely no sense.”
“You’re still going!? Professor, please stop acting like a girl only when you’re talking about boobs!”
Well, we’re both women, though. I just don’t want to get all tense with someone I respect over a topic like this.
And in the end, her hate seemed to be heading in a completely random direction anyway.
“Now then, Nakamura Mayuki-kun.”
Reacting to the professor’s call, Mayuki-kun lifted his face from my chest. As if to break the tension—though he probably didn’t intend to—the professor spoke to him, as fast-paced as ever.
“How did you contact the police? Did you call them? Or did you go to a police station?”
“Eh… ah, um, I went to the nearest police station…”
“These days, there’s a movement towards emphasizing the acceptance of diversity, but humans still evaluate others intuitively. The fact that you are male, and as I said before, have an unusual appearance for a male, might be diminishing the credibility of your appeal.”
I looked at Mayuki-kun’s appearance again. His fine, long hair that reached his shoulder blades, his skin as translucent as white porcelain, his slender limbs and small frame, combined with his mannerisms, you wouldn’t know his gender without actually talking to him. In fact, I also thought he was a girl at first.
“Also, if it were a highly urgent situation, they could probably act immediately, but it must be difficult to allocate personnel when the culprit hasn’t even been identified. Depending on the person who handled your case, it’s also possible they’re underestimating the situation because the victim is male.”
“So… since the stalker contacted me through SNS… I was thinking that if Professor Shirasagi could put in a good word with the police for me, maybe their response would change.”
“Hmm.”
The professor, without even blinking, placed a hand on her chin, thought for a moment, and then spoke.
“To state the conclusion first, the situation is unlikely to improve even if I intervene in negotiations with the police.”
I cut in, almost reflexively.
“W-Wait a minute, Professor. Isn’t that a bit cold?”
“There’s no point in evading the facts. The police are an organization, and organizations are made of people. You can’t move it so easily just by poking at one corner of it. Expecting too much from others will only lead to you getting hurt in the end.”
“But… he’s so scared—”
“Hear me out.”
She cut me off sharply.
And then the professor looked at Mayuki-kun, her tone of voice unchanged.
“Nakamura Mayuki-kun. You are still a high school student. You are physically and bodily approaching adulthood, and there are probably people your age who are already out in the working world. However, in the eyes of society, you are still nothing more than a youngster. You can voice your desires more intuitively. It’s a privilege of the young. And also—”
Her way of speaking might seem blunt, but its content was changing into something gentle.
“—I have a duty to answer your hopes. That is because you are a student of Yamabuki University Affiliated High School. In other words, you are indirectly my student. A moment ago, I said, ‘Expecting too much from others will only lead to you getting hurt in the end.’ However, this is an exception. Because I am a university professor, and I believe it is the duty of one in the teaching profession to live up to their students’ expectations.”
“Ah…”
Mayuki-kun let out a breath, then sent a glance my way.
I nodded silently.
The professor’s presence was reassuring, even just watching from the side.
The breadth of character to accept all who seek salvation.
A brilliant mind that can solve any problem in an instant, and the demeanor of a saint.
Having been accepted by the professor myself, I understand it so well it hurts.
Mayuki-kun, as if driven by instinct—.
“Please. Could you protect me?”
“Leave it to us.”
Figuring he would say that, I was the first to cut in.
“Let us Onee-chans help you!”
A fading voice. Teary, upturned eyes. I was moved by the sight of him truly wishing for help.
And—it overlapped.
──Himarin, don’t worry about it. I’m fine now.
Deep in my ears—a voice that had penetrated even my eardrums flashed back in my mind.
The professor, with a look on her face as if she saw through everything, rose from the sofa and headed to her desk.
“Let’s outline the next steps for now.”
She took a tablet from the side wagon and began typing something on a wireless keyboard.
“First, we’ll interview Mayuki-kun about the damages. Himari, I’m sure you understand, but,”
“What is it?”
The engrossed professor spoke without looking away from her device, just like when she’s writing a paper.
“Don’t talk to me for a while.”
“Okay~”
I might as well finish up the shopping while I’m at it.
She’ll probably start throwing a tantrum saying “There are no snacks” once she reaches a stopping point anyway.