Chapter 20: Journalist

Ryosuke Yamamoto met up with a man.

The place was a coffee shop where he often comes with Mai for lunch.

It was also the same coffee shop he and Usui had visited before, and Ryosuke liked its quiet atmosphere.

After waiting for about 10 minutes with a cup of coffee, a middle-aged man of about 40 years old entered the store.

When he saw Ryosuke, he waved his hand and approached.

“Yo! Ryosuke! Long time no see!”

“Yeah, it’s been a while!”

This is the man Ryosuke was waiting for, a slender, bearded, fresh man in a brown suit …….

His name is Kotaro Nakagishi. He is his uncle and a newspaper reporter by profession.

He is also his mother’s brother and Ryosuke thinks he is very handsome, but …… he is a bachelor who has never been married until this age.

He did not help Ryosuke directly, but he did not particularly hurt him.

While all the other relatives were demeaning, this Kotaro was one of the few who treated Ryosuke with the same distance as always,…… and never disrespected him.

And because of his profession, Ryosuke’s case could have been covered as a story, but he never once wrote about it.

Therefore, Ryosuke trusts him.

However, since there has been no specific relationship between the two, they are not close friends.

It’s been a long time since they’ve met like this, and until Rinka told him about it six months ago, he didn’t even know his contact information.

Ryosuke sat down across from Kotaro, who opened the menu and ordered a sandwich and pasta.

“Uncle …… eats a lot, huh?”

“Hm? The sandwich is for you?”

“Oh, thank you very much.”

“You can have dessert, too, if you like!”

“Yes, thanks for the food!”

It was a very friendly exchange.

They seemed to be relatives who hadn’t met in a long time.

But sadly, this is the true Ryosuke. Before the false accusation, he was always cheerful with everyone, polite to adults, and considerate to those around him at school.

The false accusation has changed all that.

And, not knowing Ryosuke at school or at home, Kotaro mistakenly believes that he has a spirit of steel.

He has no way of knowing that Ryosuke only treats people who haven’t hurt him this way with kindness.

“So? Did you call me up …… [about the case]?”

“No, this time it’s different. …… There are three female students I want you to look into a little bit.”

Ryosuke presented the information about the three girls.

The information is from where he got it,……, but the newspaper reporter, Kotaro, is completely unmoved.

This kind of thing is an everyday occurrence.

It was no different when dealing with his nephew.

Kotaro quietly received the document and looked over the contents.

“……Ummm… This girl named Chiaki Sunagawa is difficult to deal with.”

“Hmm? Is there something wrong with her?”

“Do you know that her father is a member of the Diet?”

“Yes, I looked it up. …… Is it bad if the other party is the daughter of a congressman?”

“No, it is not. But I’m going to take up Senator Sunakawa for corruption in the near future,……, so I don’t want to be noticed hanging around the area too much.”

“…What the hell,……, it’s going to fall down on its own.”

Ryosuke looks down happily.

“The other two aren’t a problem…… but are there any results from checking out these schoolgirls?”

“……drinking, smoking, driving without a license, no helmet, shoplifting, fraud,……, they’ve done quite a bit of that.”

“…..I see”

The fact that he prepared all this information in just three days after the incident…… shows his strong belief that he will not allow anyone to get their hands on Mai at any cost.

“…… you want to try your hand at being a newspaper reporter?”

“No thanks —- I just don’t know how to successfully capture evidence, that’s why I turned to uncle.”

“Right”

As is often the case with amateurs, it is surprisingly difficult to prepare evidence even if you follow someone. It is extremely difficult to record with a good voice recorder, and it also takes skill to take pictures with a camera so that you don’t get caught.

In fact, Ryosuke had also failed to take photographs.

That’s why he decided to ask the professional photographer, Kotaro, to do the job.

“It would be a waste of time because there is no profit in taking a picture of something like this, but I’m going to ask you to provide me with a ‘big scoop’ from now on, so I’ll take care of this much trouble for you!”

“Thank you.”

“No problem! It’s give and take! …… So my question is …… when are you going to start working on that case?”

“…… just wait a little bit longer. I haven’t been able to secure Mai’s safety yet — but if she refuses to go along with this, please just give up, okay?”

“I see. …… Well, I’ll wait patiently— Oh, that’s right! Actually, I overheard something good!”

Kotaro claps his hands with an exaggerated clap, as if he had just remembered something.

“The guys who framed Ryosuke and made you out to be a criminal, right? All of them had their names and addresses on the Internet, remember?”

“…… Really?”

The people who falsely accused me …… I’m in the middle of talking to the other side’s family about alimony, and it’s been such a funny thing.

“Yeah, four of them are students, and they’re going to have a very hard time — well, most of the adult ones are going to have a very hard time, too!”

“Yes, thank you.”

“……hhmm? Why the gratitude?”

“Uncle? It was you right?”

“……….Aah”

It was a figure of speech. It was Kotaro who leaked the information.

If he was lucky, it would work, but in the usual way, the information would be erased before it spread.

Using his contacts to prevent this from happening, Kotaro spread the information about them.

However, Ryosuke detected even that, and Kotaro was horrified.

“…..After all, why not become a journalist?”

“That’s tempting, but I’d rather not.”

“Oi, oi I’m just kidding…….Don’t find journalist attractive. …… hmm?”

After a casual conversation, Kotaro notices something unusual.

“You,……, have you been sleeping lately?”

“Eh?”

“You look kind of sleepy?”

His uncle gave me a hand-mirror to check. Indeed, my eyes are empty and I look sleepy. ……I’m not that sleepy, so why is that?

“Has Rinka said anything to you?”

“No,…… maybe, I’m so preoccupied when I’m with my mom and dad,…… that I wasn’t aware of it.”

“I see.”

So saying, Kotaro holds out his business card.

“You can rely on this doctor.”

“I’m fine, it’s just that I haven’t been sleeping well.”

“It’s fine, it’s fine! He doesn’t charge money and he’s close to here. I’ll give you a ride if you want.”

“……, if you insist.”

Uncle, you are a worrier, aren’t you?

But it’s been a long time since I’ve had anyone besides my mom and dad worry about me this much. ……I’m glad, even if he’s a little pushy.

“Sandwiches are on their way.”

“Sandwiches always come out so fast……… let’s eat, eat!”

“Uncle, you can have one, too.”

“”Oh, thank you!”

We enjoyed lunch while conversing, and then my uncle drove us to the hospital.

…………

…………

“──Is it schizophrenia…?”

[TL: Schizophrenia is a serious mental disorder in which people interpret reality abnormally. Schizophrenia may result in some combination of hallucinations, delusions, and extremely disordered thinking and behavior that impairs daily functioning, and can be disabling.]

The doctor who diagnosed him with the disease was completely unfamiliar to Ryosuke.

(Is it something like malnutrition?)

While I didn’t really understand the situation, my uncle, who was standing next to me, was aghast and holding his mouth shut.