Chapter 50 - The Enemy of Evil is a Different Evil
Just as the enemy of justice is a different justice, the enemy of evil is also a different evil.
The more inhuman the opponent, the less restraint I have.
Kana has stepped into a territory she should never have crossed.
And as I chase after her, I too am straying from the path of humanity.
Though I hate myself for it.
I was attempting to take a hostage.
After all, when dealing with an opponent holed up in their own camp, this works with incredible efficiency.
Unlike a siege by water or a siege by starvation, the cost-performance ratio is excellent.
If I were to threaten Kana, the one to kidnap would be her older brother, Yuta.
Initially, I thought about taking her parents hostage.
Since they have to leave the house for work whether they like it or not, I thought they would be easy to capture.
However, Kana's parents were having a nasty marital spat even early in the morning. If they behave like that on a daily basis, there is a possibility that their children aren't very attached to them.
If so, their value as hostages drops.
It is meaningless unless it is someone Kana holds dear.
As I thought, Yuta is better.
Yuta was going for a morning jog as part of his physical training.
If he does that every day, I should be able to capture him then.
But Kana might not allow Yuta to go out. The current Kana should be wary of me.
Or perhaps Yuta himself might voluntarily refrain from going out.
For a former shut-in boy to proudly walk out the front door while his home is surrounded by the media, it would surely require courage.
First, I need to flush Yuta out.
I want him to definitely come outside the house.
Furthermore, I want him to leave his home and head toward a place without cameras.
To achieve these conditions, catching him while he happened to go for a jog might have been impossible from the start.
That is why it can't be helped.
Making excuses to myself, I headed to an electronics retailer.
Yotsuboshi Camera.
It is a chain store that stays open until ten at night and carries various products, mainly focusing on cameras and lens accessories.
There are two things I am looking for.
An instant camera and a telescope.
I found the former immediately. Apparently, there is a resurgence in popularity among young women, so the shelves were lined with nothing but roundish designs.
The price was just under seven thousand yen.
As for the telescope, I purchased one in the ten-thousand-yen range.
There is a reason I went out of my way to buy an instant camera.
It develops the film immediately after shooting and spits out the photo.
I heard that nowadays you can print images taken with a smartphone using unmanned machines, but there was a fear that a history would remain as data.
I don't actually know if a history remains, but what I'm anxious about is anxiety.
There is no harm in being cautious.
After all, from here on, I will be photographing antisocial things.
When I returned to the apartment, I immediately handed the camera to Keisuke C.
Then, I beckoned to Ayako-chan. Once she hurriedly approached me, I confirmed her intent once more.
"If you don't want to, I'll stop, but what do you want to do?"
"No, if anything, I'm happy."
She answered immediately with a flushed voice. Reliable.
Since I had obtained her permission, I held Ayako-chan in a bear hug without hesitation.
I thrust my arms around her collar, creating a composition that looked as if I were about to commit an assault right this moment.
"The guilt is immense."
While saying that, Keisuke C pressed the shutter.
"Let's also take a photo of me pointing a blade at her."
"...It's okay to pull down your underwear too."
To the high-spirited Ayako-chan, I declined, saying I wouldn't do that.
"I see..."
"I don't think this is something to be disappointed about."
He continued to photograph cautiously from an angle where my face would not be reflected.
The photos were developed immediately, emerging from the camera with a whirring sound.
"Yeah, this is good."
The results were beyond reproach.
Any man who harbored feelings for Ayako-chan would have been driven mad by the images captured.
I am the worst.
To ensure no fingerprints were left, I pinched the photos through a handkerchief.
I softly placed them in an envelope.
Next is the letter. To ensure this also isn't identified by fingerprints or handwriting, I have Angelica write it.
The words I spoke were penned in a unique handwriting.
With the [Skill: Language Comprehension], her reading and writing of Japanese should be perfect, but when it comes to kanji, it is somewhat awkward.
I decided to view it positively, thinking that might conversely make the identity of the writer harder to discern.
"I've finished."
Angelica set down the pen, looking somewhat proud.
Once you have finished reading, burn this along with the enclosed photos. Come alone to the summit of Mount Sagara at nine o'clock on the morning of January 27th. If you inform the police or your family, Ayako Otsuki will not live.
A job well done.
All that's left is to send this to Yuta Saeki via express mail.
When I looked up the postal code online, it seemed it would undoubtedly arrive tomorrow morning.
It is currently January 25th. If he receives it on the 26th, he will likely spend a full day agonizing over it.
From there, it will depend on Yuta's sense of manliness.
What if he reports it and everything is exposed?
In that case, arrangements have been made so that Ayako-chan will testify, "I thought I'd tease him in retaliation for being dumped by Saeki-kun a long time ago."
But that is not something to be thought about now.
If you shrink back in fear of failure, you won't be able to win even things you could have won.
A contest is always a gamble.