Chapter 11 Chapter 05 Late Detachment Syndrome

After arriving at Professor Shirai's house, there was a little commotion. No, it can't be said that it was just one thing, it should be said that there was a lot of commotion one after another.And the situation is completely beyond our expectations. To get to Professor Shirai's house, one had to go through the intricate alleys because of the dense residential area.Perhaps thinking that people who have never been here before will get lost, the professor deliberately picked us up at the intersection of the most prosperous shopping street in this residential area.The reason why I say it was before is because most of the shops on both sides of the shopping street have pulled down their shutter doors during the daytime on weekdays, and they are closed and no longer open.Later, I heard that due to land development, a main road was opened on the opposite side, and after the banks, post offices, etc. were all moved there, this area became very depressed.

As soon as he left the national highway and entered the shopping street, he saw the figure of a man in his forties or fifties standing at the first intersection, wearing a crumpled white Y-neck shirt and short gray trousers.There are deep eyes on the slightly slanted nose.The shaggy gray hair at the temples curled like a fishhook from frequent scratching behind the ears.Wearing clogs barefoot.The whole body is the image of the informal scholar - he is Professor Shirai Tsujio. The car driven by Gao Qian in front of us parked next to the professor.Senior Drifting slowly stepped on the brakes and parked the car behind their car.The professor said something to Gao Qian in the driver's seat, and then walked towards our car.Tell the senior that he is coming to show us the way, and then sat in the back seat where there was still a vacant seat.Probably because they had never met before, both the professor and Kanon showed a slightly embarrassed expression. After the two greeted each other, the senior said to the professor:

"——I'm sorry to arrive only now. In fact, I encountered a little trouble on the way." "Huh? What's wrong? Did you blow out a tire?" What, I am obviously sitting in this car, and the car has already started, but there is such an unexpected reaction.But it is because of this off-line character that he and Jiang Zai get along better.In short, it seems that there is not much time to say hello to the professor. With the guide, our car surpassed Gao Qian's car.Pass through the shopping street, enter the residential area, and finally arrive at the door of the professor's house.The professor's house is located in the innermost part of the residential area, and it looks like a large old house.You can see a Western-style building inside the wall (I learned later that this house is a library), and the whole house is characterized by a combination of Japanese and Western styles.There is a gentle downhill leading to the house. At the end of the slope is a river. If you look at it from the house on the other side of the river, it looks like a house on a high platform.On the opposite side of the road and opposite the front gate is a monthly subscription parking lot, and we parked our car here, as if this piece of real estate was also owned by the Shirai family.Speaking of which, the professor can be regarded as a big landlord in this area, but there is no time to admire this kind of thing now.

Gao Qian and his party who got off the car also felt that the atmosphere at the scene was very tense from the appearance of the senior and us.In short, after entering Shirai's house, I first asked Xiao Ru whether our assumption was correct.Then Xiao Ru couldn't help crying.It seems that Xiao Ru was threatened by K—that is, the stalker (in fact, there are some details that are contrary to our guess), and the senior guessed it right. I briefly explained what happened to Professor Shirai who was a little confused, and then borrowed his phone to contact Xiaoru's hometown.Let Xiao Ru come forward to answer the phone first, and ask her mother to hang up the phone first, and then let her call, but it is from a public phone.The reasons for taking such measures should be understood by everyone.Because when Xiao Ru returned to "May Apartment" yesterday, the red car had already parked illegally in her parking space, so there was no way to deny the possibility that her home phone had been tapped.It was our oldest (and currently the most understanding of the current situation) senior who answered the call from Xiaoru's mother, explaining the situation to her mother.

The key to the apartment may have been stolen; and the phone at home (maybe even the "May Apartment" phone) may have been tapped.At first, Xiao Ru's mother was a little dubious, but after Xiao Ru answered the phone and cried about what had happened, she finally realized the seriousness of the situation.So I made an appointment with her to contact Xiao Ru's father who was working immediately, and then contacted experts to remove the bug and make preparations for replacing the keys of the "May Apartment". However, it was Takumi who suggested that the key to Ruu's house in "May Apartment" might have been stolen.And, just before contacting Xiao Ru's mother.Senior Floating and Hanano are asking Xiao Ru to confirm whether she is really being targeted by a stalker, and at this moment, Carpenter Zai said, "—that, Kinoshita-san," he interjected in a rare way, " Can I see the keys to the apartment?"

Probably because she was a little shaken, Xiaoru took out the key with slightly angry eyes.The craftsman who took the key asked again: "That—about that spare key—wouldn't happen to be on you, too?" "Ah, as for the spare key, here I am—" As she said that, Kanon took out the bunch of keys that she showed the senior and me in the car just now.Then remove the apartment key from the key ring. Taking the key from Huayin, Jiang Zai put the two keys side by side for comparison.I don't know what he wants to do, everyone is silent, just staring at the movements of his hands.The key of Xiaoru's house is completely different from the key of the ordinary cylinder lock. It is not the jagged one, but a thin pattern like snow crystals is carved on the key body.

"—When you returned to the apartment last night, which key did you use to open the door?" "I used mine..." Xiao Ru pointed to the key on Jiang Zai's right hand. "So, which key did you use to lock the door when you went out today?" "It's the same, it's mine too." "That is to say," Jiang Zai raised his right hand, "this one is the real key." Hey, everyone muttered softly, and then looked carefully at the two keys in Jiang Zai's hand again, and then everyone looked at each other in blank dismay.Looking carefully, it is obvious that they are keys to the same room, but the engravings on the two keys are subtly different.

"Mushita-san hasn't actually used this key to open the door of Kinoshita-san's house, has he?" "Well... well, that's right." "That is to say, this key is fake. It seems that it was replaced at some time." "Then, then, the real spare key..." "It must have been taken away by someone else. It must be the stalker." Xiaoru's mother called Shirai's house again about four hours later.It's from May Apartments.What is reported is quite surprising.As a result of entrusting specialized practitioners to investigate, bugs were actually found in the phones of Kinoshita's hometown and Xiaoru's apartment.Immediately entrust the on-site dismantling, and then the door locks on both sides are ready for replacement.

Xiao Ru's mother said she wanted to report to the police, but Xiao Ru disagreed.The ostensible reason is that she probably won't be taken seriously because there is no actual victimization, but she seems to have other real reasons.That is to say, Xiao Ru has a good idea of ​​who this stalker K is, and she thinks that if the police intervene (in fact, it doesn’t matter whether the police will actually intervene in the investigation) it may cause counterproductive effects, but I was very hesitant to tell my mother the real situation, so I objected——it was only later that I realized that this was actually the case.

Like Xiao Ru, Senior Piao Piao seems to think that calling the police is not a good idea.The reason for this is, of course, that the senior already knew who K was at this time and didn't think about it.However, I probably judged that my suggestion as a student was not convincing, so I whispered to Professor Shirai and asked him to listen to the phone.The professor's personality should be relatively indecisive, and at this time, the senior who is usually very trustworthy (in other words, the senior is actually a middle-aged killer who is very good at pleasing the uncle), please, immediately Xiao Ru took the phone from Xiao Ru's hand and said to Xiao Ru's mother: "It's better to change the lock as soon as possible, do the necessary corresponding work, and then look at the situation first." It's like expressing his own opinion.

Since her daughter's supervisor has said so, even the mother has to listen to his opinion.But the uneasiness could not be completely eliminated (of course), so she persuaded Xiaoru to move out of the "May Apartment" and stop living alone. Although it would take more time on the road, it was better to commute to and from her hometown. Ok.But on the other hand, no matter how honest Xiaoru is, she will still resist the student life living with her parents, so she tried her best to persuade her mother that there is absolutely no problem. It was Kanon who put an end to this continuous offensive and defensive battle. "Please don't worry." She answered the phone and said, "It's our first meeting. I'm Mushitatsu, a third-year student from the School of Education. I will temporarily stay at Kinoshita's home for a while, and I can also serve as Kinoshita's bodyguard." Sure enough, Hanyin's selling point of "has some experience in judo, and has a black belt level" must have worked, and Xiao Ru's mother finally felt relieved.I, too, finally felt relieved.When she said to her senior and me in the car just now, "It's a good time to have me here", I didn't realize it all at once. After knowing that the situation has become so urgent, Kanon's existence has really become very reliable. . After finally arriving at Shirai's house, I didn't do anything, just waited for Xiaoru's mother's investigation report for a long, long time, and then talked to her on the phone for a long time. The moment the phone was hung up, everyone sighed deeply at the same time, and finally felt at ease—this time they really thought so. "——Why didn't you say it earlier, Xiaoru?" It was Gao Qian who broke the lingering sound of the sigh, "under such circumstances, it is really irrational to go back to the apartment last night. Even if there is Hanane together , what should you two do if something goes wrong?" Gao Qian's admonition is very reasonable, but for Xiao Ru, the situation at that time can only be described as clouded with suspicion, and it is not easy to tell others about this kind of thing before she can be further convinced.By the way, when Xiao Ru went to look at the hallway parking lot this morning, the red car seemed to be parked there again.Xiao Ru plans to find someone to discuss with if the car is still there when she returns tomorrow. "That's right, at least," Huayin put her hands on the petite Xiaoru's shoulders very pitifully, "it's best to tell me first." For Xiao Ru, there is no solid evidence, only a little suspicious, and it is really not good to get Hanon or the people around her into trouble, so she didn't speak up.I deeply understand that this kind of too rational and serious character will backfire in this situation.This is a lesson. "—Even so, Carpenter, and you!" The senior tilted his head, "Why do you know that one of Xiao Ru's keys has been transferred?" Yes, there is still this problem.How did the craftsman know?No, first of all, how did K do this?Even if you want to change the package, but the key of Xiao Ru's house is made by login, it is almost impossible for others to make a spare key by themselves.Of course, strictly speaking, this fake key cannot be said to be the spare key of the same key, it just looks very similar.But even so, I don't think it's easy to get such a key. How did he get it? "That's right!" The voice came out of my mouth with an excited tone that even frightened me, "Besides, Jiang Zi, you seem to have known about this last night." "Well, speaking of it," Gao Qian also recalled what happened last night, and stared at Jiang Zai, "Since he has already noticed such an important incident, why didn't he say it earlier? Fortunately, nothing happened, just in case What went wrong, what face do you have to meet Xiao Ru's parents." "No, wait a minute, misunderstood, misunderstood. I just thought that one of the keys to Kinoshita's house might have been transferred." "This must be nonsense." Like Gao Qian, I also had a bit of reproach in my tone, "Didn't Jiang Zai ask Xiao Ru last night: Has anyone lost the key in the apartment recently? I remember it very clearly. .” "Ah, yes, yes," it seemed that no matter how he answered, he would not be forgiven, even Hua Yin pressed Jiang Zai tightly, "I did say that, I heard it too, I heard it with my own ears. " "No, that's why I said it was just a misunderstanding. I didn't mean Kinoshita-san when I said that last night, but the other residents—ah, but if you use this switch, then judging from the results It's hard, could it be that it's Kinoshita-san's..." "What are you muttering all by yourself?" The senior patted Jiang Zai's chest lightly with his backhand, "Explain clearly to me." "Then let me start from the beginning. At the stage of last night, I really didn't know anything. I just simply thought that someone in the household had lost the key, and there was no basis for it. This kind of speculation came to my mind Li, and then I just said it without thinking about it. Really, really, last night was really just that. Then, today's situation turned into this extraordinary situation, and I realized that speculation last night There seems to be something in it. If I guessed right last night, then it becomes very possible to exchange this lost key for Xiao Ru's house, and suddenly it occurred to me. Although it is possible I was thinking too much, but I can't let go of any clues, so I asked Kinoshita to confirm. Everyone knows what happened next, it's really like this, it's really just such a simple matter .” "After such a long list, what do you want to say, in other words, it's just that you just guessed it right?" "To put it bluntly, that's what it means. It's just a coincidence, or a lucky guess." "Okay, okay, I see, let's forget it first, then, then again, how did you think that some residents lost their keys?" "It's because of that little stone incident." Speaking of this, in order to explain what happened to Professor Shirai who was completely unaware, the topic was interrupted for a long time. "—And then, I thought, the character who will continue to do this kind of thing for such a long time..." "Well, that's K." "Huh?" The sudden appearance of the code name we used, Jiang Zai, was frightened, and he paused for a moment, and then it became clear immediately, "——it's hard to imagine that K is someone inside the building. About it Senior and Xiaotu have talked about the reasons for this a lot. For example, the reason for throwing out trash without a key is really unimaginable. Every time I deliberately find small stones of the right shape and size, and even though Kinoshita-san He would throw away the small stone every time, but he would continue to persistently find a stone of the right shape and size, which would be more convenient than carrying the key, and it’s not just once or twice.” "Yes, we already know all of this." "Then, K should be someone from the outside. However, this is also difficult to convincing. Because if you don't go into the apartment building first, it is impossible to put a small stone in the back door. If there is really another way to go smoothly If you sneak into the building, the reason why you deliberately made the back door so that it can be opened freely from the outside is incomprehensible." "Didn't you say that we already know all this, what is the point you want to say?" "Thinking about it like this, I suddenly thought of another possibility." "There is another kind?" "There is no way to simply classify him as an internal person or an external person, maybe there is such a person—" This is the same as Kanon's hypothesis just now——I thought of it right away.According to Kanon's hypothesis, this actually refers to Xiaoru's brother, and the senior must have left this idea in his mind. "Jiang Zai, what you want to say is that he used to be an insider, but now he doesn't live in the apartment anymore. You mean this kind of person?" "Ah? No, that's not what it means at all." "what?" "At first he was an outsider who had never lived in the 'May Apartment' and had no relatives who lived there. A pure outsider in that sense. However, he held the apartment building The key—that's the possibility I'm thinking of." "Although he is a pure outsider, he has a key... What's going on here?" "On this occasion, first rule out the possibility that someone you know gave him a spare key for safekeeping. This is definitely not such a legitimate source. It must be that this external person obtained the key to a certain room through improper means. For example Said it could be considered that he stole—" "Wait a minute, Carpenter, hey, what do you want to say? This guy K already got the spare key of Xiao Ru's house through some method when we were entering school?" "No, that's not what I meant—" Huayin said angrily: "As expected, you knew about this last night!" "No. Didn't I say it just now? Last night, I didn't think so deeply. It's just that if someone from the outside wants to enter the apartment building, then it is possible that he happened to do it through some improper means. I got the key to a certain room——I only thought about this floor. I really only thought about this. If I really got into the building through this method, then why did I use the small stone to make it About this kind of thing that the back door is caught, I didn’t know the whole story at that time.” Probably trying to sort out the context, the senior folded his arms to smooth things over, "——the so-called certain room, which room is it referring to?" "I'm not sure about that. However, it should be in a room other than Kinoshita-san's house. I think it might be K. Until now, I don't know which family's key the key belongs to." "I don't know until now... I still don't know the point of what you said. What's going on here?" "As we just discussed, K's stalking behavior may not have started this spring, but a long time ago. Then in the spring, somewhere around the apartment, such as parking in the hallway In the field, I accidentally found a lost key of a certain family, so I picked it up—" "accidental……?" "I'm afraid so. Please consider it from the standpoint of K who picked up the key by accident. Judging from where it was picked up, it is easy to guess that this is the key of the 'May Apartment'. In fact, maybe he I used this key to try the door of the entrance, and the automatic lock was opened smoothly." "However, he doesn't know which room the key belongs to." "I don't think it's possible for K to investigate all the residents in the building. However, he should have checked whether this is the key to Kinoshita-san's house, and when Kinoshita-san is not at home. As a result, although It proved that this is not the key of Kinoshita-san's house, but K thinks that this key can be used. So he just kept the key and did not hand it over." "It can be used... how to use it?" "Use this key to get the key of Kinoshita-san's house——he must have thought so." "So what to do?" "It's very simple. When Kinoshita-san is out, for example, on the university campus, or in 'I·L', take the opportunity to bump into her, and then steal the real key." "What... what, this is?" The senior seemed to be frightened, and suddenly yelled.Probably he didn't expect that Jiang Zai would say such a simple and not special technique at all.And everyone else, including me, seems to think so too.Only Xiao Ru nodded with a livid face, "Is that so...then K handed over the keys to the apartment manager, right? Put the keys you picked up by accident on my key ring—" Speaking of which, when talking with Jiang Zai, Xiao Ru once said that she, who has always been careful, also had the experience of accidentally losing her keys.I remember it seemed to be at the beginning of this year, and someone handed it over to the apartment administrator the next day. Thinking of this, I unconsciously let out an "ah".In fact, it wasn't that she accidentally lost it, but was stolen by K.It turns out that the keys in this building, even if the rooms are different, cannot be distinguished from the outside at once.If it is hung on a familiar key ring, then it is natural to mistake it for the key of your own house.This method of switching packages is too clever... No, wait a minute, if this is the case, but... "After K stole Kinoshita's key, he pretended to be a kind person passing by, and handed over the keys of other rooms he held to the apartment manager. Kinoshita knew that there was a lost and found key from the manager. The classmate took a look at it with a fluke mentality, and when he saw the familiar key ring, he felt that it was indeed his lost key, and it was great to have a kind and kind person send it over—Kinoshita-san was so relieved." "Wait, wait a minute." I interrupted Jiang Zai, "Even if I return it, this is the key to another room, right? You can't open the door of your own room with this key, Xiao Ru will immediately Will you notice—" "However, she didn't notice it right away. After K stole the key from Kinoshita's house, he handed over the fake key the next day. This is the point of this technique, that is to say—" "I think the key has been lost and I can't get it back." Xiao Ru took over the conversation and explained, "Take out the spare key, put a new key ring on it, and start using this key. So return the returned one The key—that is, the fake one, just put it directly in the shoe box as a spare key, and it has been kept until now..." Carpenter nodded: "In this way, the work of changing the key bag is so skillfully completed." "—Speaking of which, last night when Carpenter asked if some residents had lost their keys, Xiao Ru seemed to have thought of something. What's going on?" "It's because I remembered that the housewife who lives on the same floor and I usually see it seems to have said last year that she lost her key in the parking lot or somewhere, and couldn't find it no matter how hard she tried..." Xiao Ru was a little bit He shifted his eyes from me to Jiang Zai in horror, "I'm just surprised how Jiang classmate knew about this... But I don't know what other meanings there are." "However, craftsman," Senior Piaobao still couldn't seem to be completely relieved, "In this case, it sounds as if K initially expected that Xiao Ru would directly use this key as a spare key after she got the returned key. It is impossible to use the same key. It is also possible for Xiao Ru to continue to use the returned key with her. If this is the case, she will immediately know that the returned key is fake." "There is nothing wrong with what you said. So, for K, this is a big bet. It may go well, or it may not go well at all. It can even be said that the possibility of failure is a little higher. But if everything If it goes well, from the standpoint of a stalker, this is a very big gain." "Of course. I got the key to the target's house without realizing it." Moreover, it is a login key, which cannot be duplicated by others and can be used by residents with peace of mind... Thinking of this, his behavior can be explained. "Maybe K went to check whether Kinoshita-san used the fake key as a spare key after switching the keys." "Confirmation? How can such a thing be done?" "It's very simple, because K has been able to freely enter and leave Kinoshita's house." The senior groaned.Once again felt the seriousness of the situation. "On the second day, or the next day, after handing over the fake key, sneak into Kinoshita-san's house while she is out, and then find out where she put the spare key, and confirm it as Is the spare key real or fake?" "It was very lucky for K, the fake one was used as a spare key... That's it, this guy's bet won." "No matter what happens in this gamble, he has nothing to lose. Even if Kinoshita-san puts the real key in the shoe box as a spare key, maybe K is planning to make a comeback." "A comeback? How to curl?" "For example, take out the real key from the shoebox, catch up with Kinoshita-san who is out, and then aim at the timing, and exchange the real key from home with the fake one she brought—" Professor Shirai shook his head lightly and sighed.The sigh at this time seems to represent the mood of all of us at that time-in every sense. "Although it took a long way to do this, it can still complete the work of changing the key bag—but if you use this method, you have to remove the key from the key ring on the spot, and you have to hide it from Kinoshita-san. Let her know that you need to have enough time, so you need to do more complicated preparations, which is a bit like talking on paper. Without actually trying, there is no way to guarantee success. However, if Kinoshita-san did not put the fake If that key is used as a spare key, then it is very likely that K is planning to implement this method. No, maybe he has actually implemented it or maybe..." "But..." Xiaoxi tilted his head, "Why didn't K use the key that he got so hard to get? Ah, no, it can't be concluded that he must be useless." It's not impossible to determine, it should be said that he should have used it for sure.When Xiao Ru is not at home, sneak into her house secretly.A bug was installed on the home phone, which is the best evidence.As for why the home phone was also bugged, I must have found the key of her home in Xiao Ru's room, so I borrowed it.Xiaoxi probably thought of these too. "Yes, yes. It should have been used. It's just that he didn't force enter the room when Kinoshita-san was at home. Of course, it's unlikely that he would do that." "One of the reasons for not doing this is probably because Kinoshita-san not only locks the door when she is at home, but also puts a chain on the door. After all, she is a girl who lives alone." Carpenter asked with his eyes, Xiao Ru nodded. "Moreover, with the key, you can enter and exit her room at any time. It is the last trump card for stalkers. If you use it so casually, it is very likely that Kinoshita will know that he has this trump card in his hand. gone." It was New Year's when K handed over the key that Xiao Ru accidentally lost (she thought) to the apartment manager.K, who got the real key, held the key and stood still until spring.This was because (as it occurred to me later) he had been waiting for Ru's older brother to graduate from college, which must be true.It was calculated that when Xiaoru almost started to live alone, K started to act, and that was the way it was.For this dark obsession, I once again felt the chills. "So at the beginning, I just saw the moment when Xiao Ru came out to throw out the trash, and used a small stone to clamp the back door, peeping at her." "I'm afraid so. While holding this precious key, he asked the woman who assisted him to pretend to be the chairman's daughter, and asked the residents in the apartment to help open the automatic lock of the door. He was looking forward to this kind of development: as long as the If you do this repeatedly, sooner or later this matter will reach Kinoshita-san’s ears.” "He is sending a message to Xiao Ru in a tactful way: I am following you closely. On the other hand, it can also be interpreted as he is secretly emphasizing: If I don't do this, there is no way to enter the apartment building ——In other words, no matter whether it is the key to Xiaoru's house or someone else's, I don't have the key to the 'May Apartment'." "That's it. But then things took a fatal turn for K." "Variety?" "Mushita-san is going to live with Kinoshita-san for the time being. In other words, Kinoshita-san no longer lives alone like before. It is conceivable that K, who knew about this, felt some kind of crisis. " "Wait, wait a minute, Takumi. How on earth does K know about this?" When Xiao Ru returned to her hometown, K must have chased her and went there together. In order to set up a base nearby to tap her phone in her hometown, that's why she knew in advance that Xiao Ru had a plan to return to the apartment.It is none other than the wiretapping of my phone calls to her hometown from "I·L"... Thinking of this, I can finally explain it clearly.However, the fact that Kanon will temporarily stay at Xiaoru's house for a period of time should not have been discussed at that time, but... "I don't know about this. If K has been chasing Kinoshita-san, it might be easy to know. For example, the car Kinoshita-san came from his hometown has been followed by K. Then when the senior picked up Mu Xiajin and returned to the apartment, he was also seen by him—” "This is...impossible." Suddenly I remembered something, and my voice lowered, "This is, impossible. Because, when the senior's car arrived at the apartment, the red car It's already parked in the hallway parking lot." "But if there is another car..." "Even if this is the case, it's okay. It's definitely impossible!" I was so anxious that I didn't know how to say it, and stamped impatiently, "Because, because, if Jiang Zai's hypothesis is true, yesterday The two times that the daughter of the director pretended to ask Xiao Ru to open the automatic lock were K's assistants. Then, he deliberately did this twice in a row, just to make people think that he can only enter the building in this way ——that is to say, you are emphasizing that you don’t have a key. Is that what you mean, Mr. Carpenter?” Although he was not confident, Takumi seemed to be about to say something, but I blocked it with both hands. "That is to say, that is to say, why did you deliberately perform this kind of behavior last night? It's like Jiang Zai said just now, K feels a crisis about the existence of Hanyin, right? Since Huayin is staying here, so he will naturally give her the spare key. There are two spare keys, and he doesn't know which one will be given to her. However, maybe he will give the fake one to Huayin Use. If this is the case, then when Kanon goes in and out of the room alone, he will find that the key has been changed. So K became anxious, thinking that he had to do something. But he couldn't think of any good ideas for a while. .Because there is no other way, so he first emphasized that he entered the building through this method, right? But...but, the timing of his emphasis—” I was just reviewing what I just said in Jiangzai. I missed the point at all. I was a little angry with myself. Finally, Xiao Ru realized what I wanted to say. "Ah, this is it, Miss Yupo. Speaking of which, at that time, when the doorbell rang twice..." "That's it. Senior didn't bring Hanane to the apartment at that time." In other words, K didn't guess that Kanon would temporarily stay at Ruu's house just because she saw the scene of Kanon arriving at "May Apartment".Rather, it was already known about this matter before this-and it became like this.But if that's the case... "But, but..." The senior panicked, "The first time I asked Xiaoru to let Hanyin live with her temporarily was on the way back from picking her up from her hometown yesterday, so that means... ..." "That is to say..." There was a silence that made people sweat, and no one could speak for a while.They just looked at each other with dumbfounding expressions. "That is to say," Gao Qian who broke the silence, "Xiao Piao's car has also been bugged - now there is such a possibility." right.And it's really very simple to do.Because the door of the driver's cab of the senior's car is broken until now, and there is no way to lock it. "But why is that? Why is my car bugged?" “谁知道呢。估计是他预计到小瑠会有机会做小漂的车吧。不过，如果真的是这样的话，那么K就会在任何小瑠有可能去的地方都装上窃听器，这也不是不可能——” 高千的这句话让我想起一件事。第一次提出让花音借住到小瑠家这件事，严格上来说并不是昨天，而是前天，在学长家里提到的。当时小瑠并不在场，如果那个时候的对话被偷听到的话—— “那、那个，说不定，学长的家里也被装了窃听器——” “不会。”学长突然之间恢复了冷静的口气，“这不可能。” “……咦？但、但是——” 很奇怪学长这次居然否定的那么彻底，我想要提出异议，却被他举起手制止住，然后他摆出了思考的架势，之后终于开口了：“这，不可能，应该不会。不对，等一下，这样啊，那个时候……”学长不断地敲着自己的头，从头巾的顶上一直敲到他自己的额头，然后他抬高视线，“——原来是通过其他途径的啊，，说起来，我的车里应该也是。” "Huh? What's going on here?" 高千这么问到，学长也不回答，就好像无视她一样，这样的情景实在是太少见了。不过后来才知道，学长并不是无视高千，而是就算想回答也不能回答。 “……就算我的车上也被装了窃听器吧。但是就算装了窃听器，如果远离电波所能到达的区域也没办法听到对话吧。昨天，我们可是从很远的小瑠的老家开车出来一直在移动啊。” “与此相对应的，说不定K也一直在移动着啊。当然，是开着车。” “那辆红色轿车吗？那么那辆车比我们先一步停到穿堂停车场的事实又该怎么解释呢？” “有可能他在听过了对自己有用的消息后，就果断放弃继续跟踪而是超过小漂的车子先回去了。也有可能就像刚才提到过的，说不定有另外一辆车。K不是有一个女性的协助者嘛，说不定跟踪时用的就是那个女性的车。” 学长紧紧皱着眉头。好像关于这个女性是谁他心里已经有数，正在想她到底有没有车的样子。 “……也就是说，今天到这里来的时候，我们在车里的谈话——” 全部都被窃听了……？ “确实有这个可能性。” “但、但是，高千，如果真是这样的话，那么K就已经跟着我们到了这里来了啊，因为如果不这样的话，他就收不到窃听器的电波了啊……” 我们又给“五月公寓”打了个电话，幸好小瑠的妈妈还在。小瑠拜托她妈妈去穿堂停车场看一下，之后她妈妈回来答道，“什么红的白的，根本没有车停在那里嘛。” 前面说过白井家宅正面玄关的对面是个包月停车场。包括学长的车在内，在那里停了好几辆车。不过没有看到有红色的轿车。细长的道路由于穿梭在住宅区内，视野狭窄，从屋里向外看过去能看到的区域有限。 我假装去便利店买东西，在周围找了一圈。要问为什么是我去的话，因为见到过那辆红色轿车的除了漂撇学长和小瑠以外就只有我了。不过如果只有我一个人去的话，一个人看到的区域有限，而且被对方看到的话还会因为不自然而引起对方怀疑，所以就让匠仔陪我一起去。根据现场的这些人，从客观上来安排工作的话，负责出去买东西最自然地情况下最好还是带上小瑠一起去，不过作为当事人的她，果然还是不太方便外出吧。 我和匠仔一起一边假装很高兴地谈着话一边假装迷了路，尽量把周围的广大范围都看了一遍。由于无法彻底拂去可能被某个人在什么地方看着或者谈话被某个人偷听着的不安，匠仔（以及说不定我也一样）的表情非常僵硬。 沿着白井教授告诉我们的路绕了一圈，终于到了便利店。进到便利店里，由于里面没有其他客人，终于可以不用担心在这里被人偷听了，我们缓了一口气，都忍不住说出泄气的话，“……事情变得越来越严重了啊，之后到底会变得怎么样呢。” “还真的会发生这种事……啊。” “真的是，我都不敢相信。虽然不知道他是谁，不过K这个家伙其实就是个笨蛋吧。竟然这么费时费力，而且还花那么多钱，就为了紧盯着另外一个其他人不放，实在是想象不到有理性和思考能力的正常人类会做这种事。” “……不过说起来也难怪，毕竟木下同学是非常有魅力的女性。” 这种时候匠仔居然说这种话，真是的——不对，就是因为在这种时候，所以我才会特别来气。真是的，连匠仔都这样。所以才说男人靠不住啊。这种说法，弄不好就是“跟踪狂那边”的理论。像他这种脑子好的，有常识的人居然连这么简单的道理都不知道——真是受不了。从本质上来说，匠仔毕竟也是“加害者”那一边的人啊。那个时侯我就只想到这些，真的非常非常生气…… 我就趁着这怒气，把买好的酒啊、零食之类的东西全都塞给匠仔拿着，一边继续暗中观察着周围的情况，一边返回白井家。根据教授所画的简易地图，走了一条跟出来时稍微有点不同的路回去，在回去的路上也没有发现那辆红色的轿车。 不过，一回到白井家就发现现场的气氛有点不对。一问之下才知道在白井家后面的河边发现停着疑似那辆红色轿车的车辆。从厨房的窗户可以看得更清楚，之前高千已经假装去准备茶水，若无其事地往外看了一眼，去确认过到底有没有可疑车辆。 我又被大家拜托去确认一下是否就是那辆车。一边感觉到背后大家的视线，我一边走进厨房，拿着刚刚买的便利店的袋子。 “我来帮忙吧。”匠仔出声说到，不过我还在生刚才的气，“不用。”就冷冷地回了一句。 厨房比想象上更加宽广明亮，洗碗池那里有一面很大的窗户，如果从对面用望远镜往这里看的话，这里连手上在干什么都能被看得一清二楚。我没有自信能够做到像高千那样的面无表情，所以先拿了个杯子洗了洗，然后把刚刚买来的啤酒到了一杯，喝了一大口，真是在拼命演戏啊。 我把买来的东西都塞到冰箱里装做很忙的样子，若无其事地往窗外看着外面的风景。一眼望去可以看到河对岸的住宅区。现在时间是下午六点左右，现在这个季节白天还很长。靠这边的河岸边停着的正是那辆红色的轿车。朝这边的驾驶座上有个类似K的人影。是不是只有他一个人就看不太清楚了。 我缓缓地喝光啤酒，回到了大家那边，“……我想应该没错，就是那辆轿车。” 漂撇学长露出很复杂的表情，沉思了一会儿，终于说到：“对不起，各位，稍微在这等一下。在我回来之前，希望大家什么事都不要做。” “——你准备干什么？小漂？” 高千抱着双手站在学长面前，今天的她穿着高龄的无袖长衫，配灰色的短裤，仿佛在阻止学长出去。 “……稍微有点事。” “什么叫稍微？” “我去跟他谈谈。” “谈谈？”白井教授狼狈的声音插了进来，“但是，这样不行吧。这么说或许不太好，不过我觉得不会有用。像这种异常执着的人，不是能正常沟通的对象。这里还是交给警察来处理吧……” 教授虽然是个好人，不过果然有点不懂世事。这种时候如果报警的话，不仅不一定会有什么好的后果，说不定还会形成反效果。 “不行，像这种事想要和平解决，还是不要通过这种途径比较好。” “不过，到底能不能和平解决呢。” “这就要看对方的态度了。总之，这里还是先交给我来办吧。” “我和你一起去吧，小漂。” 这样最好，我重重地点点头。这种场面没有比高千更能靠得住的人了。前天雁住君乱入事件就是最好的证明。 “……不用，如果是平时的话我可是求之不得。不过这次不行，时机不对。” 看起来他是说如果高千在场的话会起反效果的意思。但是这又是为什么，当时我还不知道。不过后来才知道，学长的预想恐怕是正确的。 “在我回来之前大家谁都不要出去，而且连看都不要往外看。” 考虑到如果往外面看的话被K注意到会刺激到他，这我能理解，不过看起来学长好像还有层意思是大家最好不要知道K到底是谁。当然，严格上来说，当事人的小瑠应该已经知道他到底是谁了。 “另外还有，如果一直像现在这样气氛沉闷的话会比较奇怪，大家还是说说话，听听音乐之类，尽量像平时一样动起来比较好。” 事到如今还做这种表演又有什么意义，徒增滑稽而已，不过为了让K能够妥协这也是安排中的一环。学长这是设下了一道防线：关于他的存在除了漂撇学长以外没有其他人知道的防线。就算我们在车里的对话被窃听了，学长也从来没有提到过K的名字。那是因为那个时候他就想到了这一张牌在跟K谈判是可以作为有效的讨价还价的筹码。也就是说：关于你的真实身份我会保持沉默，与此相对的，这种事情你也别再继续干下去了。 “可能有点强人所难，不过还是请大家装地开心点。就好像外面发生了什么事情你们全都没有注意到一样，保持正常的、愉快的气氛。再一次拜托大家，绝对不要往外面看。” 不过，我还是输给了好奇心。找了借口说以备万一，把制造气氛的责任交给别人，我和高千两个人又一次走向厨房。小溪理所当然地跟了上来，不过高千说了句“不行。”就把她挡了回去。 小溪一开始有点不情不愿，不过最后还是败给了高千，乖乖地回到大家那里去了。 虽然从厨房可以把河边看得一清二楚，不过我和高千还是到了旁边的盥洗室，从那里的小窗往外看。那辆红色的轿车还停在原来的地方。由于角度的关系，现在还看不到漂撇学长，于是在脑想象着现在他正从白井家的后门走出去，沿着河边的坡道缓缓的走过去。终于他的背影进入到我们的视线中。 大概是察觉到学长在逐渐走进吧，驾驶座上的K有点动摇。至少看上去有点动摇。 学长站住脚步，回头向白井家看去，大概是在确认厨房里是不是有人在吧。盥洗室里没有点灯，他应该看不到我和高千的身影。 转头朝向轿车，学长敲了敲驾驶座的窗。 时间仿佛暂时静止了一下。Then. 车窗被摇了下来。 出现了K的脸——看到了他的脸，我吓得用手捂住了自己的嘴。感觉到旁边的高千也倒吸了一口气。 学长和K两个开始了交谈。 谈了很长时间。 感觉上他们两个好像谈了几个小时，而实际上只过了十分钟左右。 终于学长伸出了右手。看上去，K在犹豫了良久之后，把什么东西交到了学长的手中。不用说，那当然是“五月公寓”里小瑠家的钥匙。 学长后退了一步，红色的轿车发动了引擎。一边离去，一边缓缓的摇上车窗，这个光景深刻地映照在我的视网膜上。 学长目送着他离去，好一会儿才转过身。我还以为他会原路返回，没想到他没有走向后门，而是朝正门玄关的方向走去。 我和高千对望了一眼，一起走向正门玄关。去包月停车场一看，学长打开了自己车的车门，好像在里面摆弄着什么东西——感觉到我们的气息后，他转过头来。 怎么样了——感觉到我们两个人的询问，学长悄悄地用食指比了比自己的嘴唇，在他展开的手心里有一个名片大小的黑色的小箱子。他把这东西扔到地上，狠狠地踩了下去。 被踩碎的声音。窃听器……发现这东西还真是花了不少时间啊。 学长深深地叹了口气。到现在还是一幅马上就要哭出来的表情。以前从来没有看到过他的这种表情。 高千静悄悄地靠近他身边，把手放在他的肩膀上，浅浅的微笑道。 “——辛苦你了。” “……又不是什么好事。” “不过，他也算松了口气吧。” 学长抬起头，瞪圆了两眼，就这样凝视着高千好一会儿，终于苦笑地叹了口气。 “……还真是赢不过你啊。” “不要谦虚，这回是我输给你了。” “人类一旦开始做这种事，就算想要收手不干，也不是那么简单就能收得了手的，我终于知道了这个道理。” “这其实也是一种依存症。” "what……?" “你也听到过这个词吧。比如购物依存症，在宣布破产之前是不可能收手的。不对，就算宣告破产了也一样会想买东西想买东西，没办法住手。就算心里知道会把周围的人都卷进来，给大家带来毁灭性的后果，但还是只能继续依存于这种行为中。无论如何就是没有办法住手。一般情况下的跟踪狂的行为是不是也有这种依存性我是不知道，不过至少对于K来说，他就是有跟踪依存症。” “看起来确实演变成这种情况了。不过高千是怎么知道那家伙有这种依存症的呢？” “K是在今年年初就有了钥匙，到现在已经过去大半年了。但是就算是这样，关键人物，身为目标的小瑠在昨天之前还从来没有意识到自己被跟踪狂盯上了。” "what……" “虽然无法完全否定有小瑠非常迟钝的可能性，不过估计应该不是这个原因。K不是从一开始就不断地用各种小动作向她委婉地传达信息了嘛。不过在他不断地沉迷于这种小动作的过程中，渐渐地就把这些动作原本的意义，也就是让小瑠意识到他的存在这个意义给搁置到一边了。这就跟购物依存症一样，正常的行为是需要这个东西才会去购买，而如果有依存症的话，不需要的东西也会去买。有一种从买东西中实现自我疗伤的错觉。而K的情况是，他自认为自己的这一连串的行为是为了给小瑠施加压力，但是这些行为本身却变成了他的目的，其结果就造成了他所有的行为都脱离了现实。无论他做什么都变成了表面现象，连当事人的小瑠都没有意识到自己的周围到底发生什么，这就是K对于跟踪这个行为本身产生了依存的最好的证据。” 高千到现在还管他叫K，我是非常理解她的这种心情的。 K其实是一个我们非常熟悉的人物——雁住光生。 也就是说，其实雁住君曾经追过小瑠。他向小瑠提出的同居要求被拒绝后，非常生气的雁住君为了嘲笑小瑠而开始了和花音的同居生活。小瑠假借中提琴手这个架空人物来说明事情的经过，也是因为他这种扭曲的心理，不得已而为之。 现在回想起来其实小瑠非常敏锐。甚至有点敏锐过头了。当然，花音有可能是作为挡箭牌被雁住君给选上的这个可能性并不仅仅是一个推测而已。小瑠是知道和花音开始同居生活的雁住的想法的。所以她才会（把雁住君曾经追过自己的事实按下不说）告诉我说花音是怎么被利用的。说这件事的时候为不暴露当初逼自己同居的男人的真实身份，就把他设定为曾经是交响乐队的成员。之所以说他是中提琴手，是因为中提琴部里面没有男性成员的缘故。避免说了其他部门的话会给自己没见过的其他男性成员带来不必要的麻烦，这还真是比较像是小瑠的作风。 雁住君一边开始了和花音的同居生活，一边继续精细到让人不快地（按高千的说法是脱离了现实地）跟踪着小瑠。这大概就是他的依恋吧。也不对，至少应该说一开始这是由于依恋而引发的行动。在小瑠回老家前后这段时间跟踪行为的规律发生了微妙的崩溃，就像学长推测的那样，另外还要加上他对于解除同居关系的花音的反逆心理。在学长的车里装上窃听器就是证据。执着于要夺回花音的他，在前天离开学长家的时候在学长的车里装上了窃听器（也就是说就像高千推测的那样，只要有机会，为了能够在任何小瑠有可能滞留的地方做手脚，雁住君一直随身携带者窃听器），暗中期待着这个窃听器在之后会起到某种作用。这才是学长所说的“其他途径”的的意义啊。也就是说，刚刚被破坏的那个窃听器的目标并不是小瑠而是花音啊。 当然，在前天的时候窃听小瑠老家的（那个时候在学长的家正在上演激烈的武斗剧）并不是雁住君本人，而是协助他的女性。恐怕小瑠刚刚回老家的时候雁住君本人是追着她一起过去的，不过由于他也很在意花音的样子（恐怕那个时候花音解除同居关系的决心已经若隐若现了吧），于是那天他就把监视小瑠的任务交给协助者，然后自己回到了大学周边——事情的经过就是这样。 说起来……我突然想到一件很微妙的事。前天花音说过，雁住把所有杂事全都交给她来做，她向他抱怨的时候，他回答说他也是很忙的，第二天一早还有事之类的。也就是说，他所谓的早上有事是为了去小瑠的公寓夹小石头啊。 一边和花音同居着，一边还让第三方的女性作为协助者卷入他自己的跟踪行为中，雁住君还真是字面意义上的“很忙”啊。因为对本命的小瑠自不用说，对花音他也不得不用心对待。因为就算花音再怎么是为了嘲笑小瑠而给她看的花瓶，既然选了她作为同居对象，说明他对花音抱有的好感、或者说是执着也是有一定程度的。因为自己身体只有一个，所以有时就需要有人能够代替自己的手脚。雁住君偏偏是为了让自己的跟踪行为和同居生活能够同时顺利进行下去，而利用了另外一个对自己抱有好感的女性让她做自己的协助者，这种行为正是他没有神经的浓缩体现。说不定花音也从他平时的行为里隐隐约约感觉到了有其他的女性的存在。如果这也是让她下定决心解除同居关系的原因之一的话，那还真是讽刺。 总之，从今往后雁住君——也就是K将不会再继续这种愚蠢的行为。不对，应该说是祈祷他将不会再继续吧。 “依存症……啊。” 归根结底事情能够解决还是漂撇学长跟K（一开始是表式小石头的意思，现在正好也是雁住的头一个字母还是有点讽刺）的谈心起了作用。还要加上（这是之后匠仔解释的）他窃听到的学长、花音和我在车里的对话也起了一定的效果。我们三个人从夹小石头的恶作剧开始假设，绕了一个圈子后终于得出了有跟踪狂存在的结论，从头到尾都在窃听我们谈话的雁住君（就算他为了显示自己的存在而做出把轿车停在穿堂停车场的行为）也受惊吓不小。事前的这件事也引发了他的懦弱心理，如果有机会的话就把自己从这种妄念中解放出来吧，之后再加上学长的劝说，效果就加倍了。从结果来看还算是幸运。 “拜此所赐真是帮了大忙了。”学长从裤子口袋里拿出左手，手上拿着正是那把钥匙，“——不过这么说好像有点奇怪。” “是啊，是很奇怪。因为，小漂，这是只有你才能做到的事啊。” “……哈哈，这样啊。”渐渐地变回平时的样子的学长，“被高千这么说，我可会变得轻飘飘的啊。” “……人生可不是样样事情都能随心的哦。” “是啊……喂，话题怎么又一下子跳得老远？” “我最近在想啊，自己的运气到底算是好呢，还算是坏呢。” “运气啊，这我可就不知道了。” “有时候我也会幻想：如果和你们分别是在其他时候相遇的话，会变得怎么样呢。” “分别在其他时候？” “说不定我会带你回去呢。” 学长正在玩弄钥匙的手停住了，空气一下子就冷了下来。 ……说不定我会带你回去。这是指她回老家的那次。今年寒假的时候，说不定不是带匠仔回去，而是带漂撇学长回去。 高千说的是这个意思。 “但是，我并没有带你回去，这到底是为什么呢，最近我就在想这个。” 我眼前的风景突然上下左右开始摇晃起来，摇来摇去，摇来摇去，摇的我开始头晕眼花。 That's it. 是这样的啊。 为什么这么理所当然的事情我会没有注意到呢。其实高千她，高千的内心里。 正在摇摆不定。 在他们两个人之间。 偶然——真的只是偶然，偶然间她同时遇到了这两个人。如果……如果遇见他们分别是在不同的时间的话。 事情会变成怎么样呢—— “……你居然在想这种事啊。”学长苦笑着把钥匙在手指上转来转去，“有点意外。” “只是不知不觉得就这么想了。” “一点也不像你。” “真的吗。” "real." "why?" “这种事情不需要特别去考虑啊，一句话就能说明了。” “就只用一句话？” “对，只需要一句：顺其自然，就行了。” “顺其自然……是啊。”高千转过头对我说到，“小兔也是，如果不是在学生时代而是在其他时期遇到你的话——这样的人生也是有可能的啊。” 这一刹那—— 我突然间什么都看不到了。 两脚一动都不能动。 I…… I…… ——你怎么了，小兔？ 能听到学长的声音。 从很远的地方传来。 ——不要紧，不要紧…… 这么回答道的是高千的声音。 听的不是很清楚。宛如潜在水里说话一样。残留下一种很奇怪的余音。周围的任何一切，都轻飘飘地摇摇晃晃。 ——你先回去吧，小漂…… ——哦，哦…… 学长的气息逐渐远去。 眼前的焦点终于能够对上了，高千仅仅盯着我看。 “——不要紧吧？” “我……变得很奇怪。” “是因为一下子从紧张中解放了出来吧。” 好像刚才我差点就倒下去了，高千抱着我的肩膀扶着我。 “回去拜托白井老师给你找个地方躺一下吧。” “我……我……我觉得不是这个原因。” "what are you saying?" “因为……因为……就算小溪一直缠着高千不放我也没什么感觉。从来也没有感到自己在嫉妒。所以，我觉得自己并不是这样的……一直这么觉得，自己并不是这样的。一直这么觉得。但是尽管这样……” “小兔——” “对不起，我不再说下去了。把我刚才说的忘掉吧，全都忘掉吧。我，有点反常。就是现在变得有点反常。和平常不一样。完全变地和平常的我不一样了。” “顺其自然——啊。” 高千不断地重复着学长留下的这句话。就像是什么咒语一样。而实际上这句话确实起到了咒语的作用。那一天的情景在我脑里被唤醒了。 鲜明地。 鲜明到残酷的地步。 这是大约一年半之前的事。那时候我还是大一，过完年刚到二月，马上就要升上大二的时候——那时候我认识了匠仔。 匠仔认识高千（通过漂撇学长）是在前一年，圣诞夜的时候（这两个人的相遇有着非常有趣的戏剧化的展开，详细情况等以后有机会再说）。于是，我得到可以加入到他们的圈子里机会是在更晚一点，大约一个月之后。而我实际上加入他们则是更晚了，是在升级后，我大二的时候。 当时，在实际认识她之前，我就知道有高千这么个人存在。可以说是没人不知道她。而她加入到了安槻大学的留级大王（当然是指漂撇学长）一派之中的传言，也传到了我的耳里。虽然在这里用了“一派”这种说法，不过仔细想想，只和特定的人物交往慎密，往往只是不在他们圈子里的外部人员擅自把他们看作派系或者以此为基准看待他们而已。就算是我，在和高千深交之前，也无法否定是用这种眼光来看待他们之间的关系的。而实际和他们交流之