51. Just A Request

Well then. Now that I was done talking with Kiryuu, shouldn’t I do what I needed to do for the first time in a while?
I sat down in front of a male student who was sitting next to the windows in the library while writing something and rested my chin on my hands. The boy who noticed my presence began to turn pale.

“Good day, Ebihara.”
“Ugh, Kumoruiwashi. I-I’ve already told you everything I know.”

Ebihara, a member of the literature club who brought Aoi into the literature club, was unreliable ,and his thick eyebrows made an upside-down v shape. His voice was trembling, and I could see that he was frightened.

I didn’t like it. Wasn’t it like I was bullying him? I think it’s okay since I gave him a warning not to tell it to Aoi, but if he told him, I’m sure Aoi would scold me.

“Yes, that’s right. Right. When you joined the literature club, which was completely inactive, one day you found a notebook in which it was written that it was the club’s president, right?”
“Y-Yes. After that, it just gave me advice on my stories, and we talked about books through the notebook. So, honestly, I don’t know much about the president….”
“It was the president who told you to let Aoi join the club, right?”
“Y-Yes, but….”

I’m a bit interested in the fact that no one knows the identity of the president of the literature club, but I’ve heard everything Ebihara knows about that matter. My purpose this time is different.

“Ebihara, you have a little sister in middle school, right?”
“Eh? Y-Yes. I do, but….”

I didn’t notice it because they didn’t look alike at all, but when I asked Amamiya those girls’ full names, I was surprised to find out there was a girl named Ebihara.

“I wonder if your little sister has changed recently?”
“Eh, wa-, what do you mean? Did something happen to my sister?”
“Ah, perhaps you don’t know?”

I truly feel like a villain right now.
When I raised the corner of my mouth and squinted my eyes in order to look down, I saw Ebihara gasping.
He was like a frog being stared at by a snake. He didn’t have to be so frightened.

“I was pushed into the pool by your sister and her friends.”
“What!?”
“I’m looking for the person who is manipulating them behind the scenes.”

Ebihara gasped while beads of sweat formed on his forehead. I don’t even know if he was listening to me because we didn’t make eye contact. That’s how confused he is.

“M-My sister, ugh, pushed Kumoruiwashi? N-No way…”
“Ah, it’s okay. I have no intention of making it public. But well, I would be happy if you could cooperate with me.”

I put my hand on Ebihara’s chin as he was looking downward and forced him to look up. After a full five seconds of eye contact and smiling, Ebihara’s cheeks turned pale instead of blushing.

That was weird. Even though I intended to fascinate him. It was supposed to be a plan to make his face red and weaken him there. Where did I go wrong?

“C-Cooperate, you said….”
“If you could, please investigate who your sister is communicating with.”
“I-Investigate you said? no way!”

I know. To investigate means to break into his sister’s bedroom. There is a possibility that their relationship as siblings might turn sour. But I wasn’t asking him to go that far. I was not ordering him to look at her phone without permission. I just wanted him to casually tell me if he saw any suspicious movement.

“It’s up to you how to do it. This is not coercion, but a request.”
“B-But.”
“It’s fine if you can’t identify who it is. I don’t mind, even if you can only tell me when there is suspicious movement. Someone is using your sister, you know.”

That’s right. It could not be the sole decision of Ebihara’s sister and the others. Someone was using them from behind. What I wanted to know was that person’s identity. Because that might be the one who would kill me.

“I want to stop this before it gets any worse. Will you help me?”
“…I-I don’t have the right to refuse, right?”
“Thank you”

I wasn’t particularly trying to threaten him, though. This was really a request, okay? It was difficult for me to get close to Ebihara’s sister. If I ask Kinoa, then even if something happens at the middle school, I, who would be in high school, might not be able to help her immediately. So, I wanted to have him, her brother, secretly find out what was going on.

It’s not because Ebihara was tanned, so he must have enjoyed the summer, okay? Did he go somewhere? Heh. I didn’t talk to him in a prickly way because I thought such a thing. Absolutely not.

After I exchanged contact information with Ebihara, he left the library in a hurry for some reason. I wonder if he wanted to go to the bathroom?

Phew. With this, I’ve achieved my purpose for today.

“Kumoruiwashi.”

When I turned around, a girl appeared from the shadows of the bookshelf, dressed as a male student. I hadn’t seen her since Kiryuu’s birthday party.

“Good day. Asami.”
“I’m sorry. It was such a great conversation that I missed my chance to leave….”

Ugh, that means Asami heard everything. Uh… Being seen lifting someone’s face by their chin in a seductive way is really embarrassing, though!

“It means you’re looking for the culprit, right?”
“Yes, well…That’s right.”
“If there’s anything I can do to help, please tell me.”
“…Yes.”

I guess Asami was also concerned about the pool’s incident. It was supposed to be because they didn’t like Asami, so they called her. Asami should also know that there must be something strange behind it. According to Amamiya, it seems she also saw that the middle-school girls had pushed me in the pool on purpose.

“Kumoruiwashi!”
“Y-Yes?”
“It looks like you’re always thinking about something by yourself. I’m always being helped, so I want Kumoruiwashi to rely on me even for a bit.”

It was surprising to hear her say something like this, and when I was in a daze, she said, “That’s right.”

“I was just thinking about contacting you, Kumoruiwashi.”
“Contacting me?”
“Yes. I want to invite you as a token of my gratitude.”

I wondered what she meant by ‘invite me’? I was a little excited because my summer schedule was so dull.

“Can you give me time on the evening of the thirtieth?”

Asami took my hand and smiled gently. Her expression and gestures were most handsome.