Watching from the Shadows

Natsume Yu merely glanced at Sakayanagi Arisu's message, then casually locked his phone and slipped it back into his pocket.

Class A's princess?

A genius in a wheelchair?

Interesting.

But he had more important things to do now.

The prey had been chosen, and the trap had been laid. All that remained was to quietly wait for the fish to take the bait.

The setting sun after school cast the shadows of the academic building long across the ground.

Sakura Airi walked alone toward the dormitories with her schoolbag on her back.

Her head was lowered, and she hurried along, wishing she could shrink herself into a single point and escape everyone's notice.

But that feeling came again.

It felt like needles pricking her back.

A cold, clammy gaze was fixed firmly on her back.

It made the blood throughout her body nearly freeze.

She did not dare turn around.

She bit down hard on her lower lip, almost drawing blood. Her steps quickened until she was practically running into the dormitory building.

Only when the dormitory doors closed behind her, completely shutting that gaze outside, did Sakura Airi dare lean against the cold wall and gasp for breath.

Her heart pounded madly against her chest, nearly leaping out through her throat.

Who was it?

Who on earth is watching me?

The next morning.

Fear descended upon her in a more tangible, more brutal form.

The moment Sakura Airi opened her shoe locker, a photograph fluttered out and fell to the floor.

She bent down and picked it up.

The photo showed her from behind as she had walked home after school yesterday.

That lonely figure, fleeing in panic.

The angle was deliberately chosen, taken from a high window or some concealed corner.

It brimmed with the malicious intent of a voyeur.

Sakura Airi's hands began to tremble.

Shaking, she turned the photograph over.

On the back, a line of twisted words had been written in red ink.

[I've always been watching you, Shizuku.]

"Shizuku."

That name—the stage name she had long abandoned and buried deep in her heart—now burned against her eyes like a red-hot branding iron.

Fear seized her heart.

The nightmare that had harassed her online, forcing her to abandon her idol career and flee to this school, had caught up with her!

He had actually followed her here!

Inside the classroom.

Sakura Airi sat at her desk, trying her best to look as normal as usual.

She forced a smile uglier than crying at every classmate who greeted her.

But beneath the desk, her clasped hands were trembling uncontrollably.

Her knuckles had gone white from gripping too tightly.

Her face was pale, her lips bloodless, and though her unfocused gaze rested on her textbook, she could not take in a single word.

That man's face, that secretly taken photograph, and those blood-red words circled wildly through her mind.

He was in this school.

He was somewhere in a corner, staring at her with those eyes.

What do I do?

What am I supposed to do?

Should I call the police? But I have no evidence.

Should I tell a teacher? Would they believe me?

Tell my classmates? No, absolutely not! My secret as the idol "Shizuku" can never be exposed!

Natsume Yu leaned back in his seat, propping his chin up with one hand. His eyelids drooped as though he were half-asleep.

Yet from the corner of his eye, he took in every reaction from Sakura Airi, not far away.

That pale face.

That faint trembling.

That pretense of composure.

And the fear hidden deep in her eyes, nearly overflowing.

An unnoticed cold smile curved across Natsume Yu's lips.

"The fish has taken the bait."

He leisurely took out his phone, opened his chat with Kushida Kikyo, and typed out a message.

[Look into a clerk named Yamauchi Haruki at the electronics store in Keyaki Mall. I want all the information you can get on him.]

Of course, he knew who the stalker was.

As someone who foresaw the plot, he knew better than anyone what crisis Sakura Airi was about to face.

But he would not act directly.

Exposing the truth outright would be far too boring.

What he wanted was for fear to ferment and despair to spread, until the prey had nowhere left to run and willingly threw herself into the hunter's arms.

For now, he was merely following the steps.

After sending the message, Natsume Yu's gaze casually swept to his side.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka still wore that expressionless look. His eyes were as still as an ancient well, giving no hint of what he was thinking.

Natsume Yu's gaze deepened slightly.

This blade was the sharpest blade in all of Class D.

It was simply still hidden in its sheath.

He needed to find a way to make him willingly work for him.

The final bell rang.

The students left the classroom in twos and threes.

Sakura Airi practically shot to her feet, grabbed her schoolbag, and rushed outside. She did not want to remain for even one more second.

"Sakura."

A gentle voice suddenly called from behind her.

Sakura Airi's entire body stiffened, and her steps halted.

She slowly turned around and saw Natsume Yu, a classmate who usually had almost no presence in the class.

He was walking toward her.

Natsume Yu wore a warm smile, looking entirely harmless.

As though they had simply happened to be heading the same way, he naturally fell into step beside her and asked in a concerned tone,

"Sakura, you don't look very well. Are you sick?"

It was only an utterly ordinary greeting.

Yet it gave Sakura Airi a tremendous fright.

Her heart clenched sharply, and her pupils widened.

He... why is he suddenly concerned about me?

Did he notice something?

Or could it be...

A terrifying thought rose within Sakura Airi's heart.

Could he be...

She did not dare think any further. She frantically shook her head, her voice trembling.

"N-No! I'm fine! I'm completely fine!"

She denied it incoherently, feeling both frightened and at a loss over the sudden concern of this "invisible classmate."

After saying that, she no longer cared about politeness. Like a startled rabbit, she ran away in a panic.

Natsume Yu stopped walking and stood where he was, watching Sakura Airi's panicked retreating figure.

The smile on his face gradually turned playful.

"Don't be in such a hurry."

He murmured softly, his voice carrying the calm assurance of someone in control of everything.

"Soon enough, you'll come begging me on your own."

Night.

Deep and black as ink.

The lights in Sakura Airi's dorm room were off. She had curled up beneath her blanket, scarcely daring to breathe.

The darkness magnified every sensation.

The wind outside the window and footsteps in the hallway made her heart pound with fear.

Then.

A faint, soft, scalp-crawling sound came from outside her door.

Scratch... scratch...

It sounded like fingernails lightly scraping against the door, little by little.

Sakura Airi clapped a hand over her mouth, stopping herself from screaming.

Hidden beneath the blanket, her body shook into a ball, and she even stopped breathing.

It was him!

He had found her!

He was outside the door!

Meanwhile.

Natsume Yu's dorm room was brightly lit.

His phone screen lit up with a message from Kushida Kikyo.

Attached to it was a detailed file and a photograph of a man.

The man in the photo wore black-rimmed glasses. He looked ordinary, even somewhat sleazy. He was the Stalker Clerk who worked at the electronics store.

Natsume Yu's fingertip lightly slid over the photograph, his eyes cold and calm.

He set his phone aside, walked to the window, and looked in the direction of Sakura Airi's dormitory.

It was as though he could see through the walls and glimpse the girl trembling in the darkness.

He picked up the hot tea on his desk and took a light sip.

The warm liquid slid down his throat, bringing him a trace of comfort.

He spoke softly, as though making a declaration—or delivering a judgment.

"The game has officially begun."