text39478;"""Niko-san, wake up…"""
text39479;"""I heard somebody's persistent voice in my dream."""
text39480;"""We'll be late for school!"""
text39481;"""Sunshine, just five more minutes…"""
text39482;"""I opened my eyes but instead of Himitsu, I saw Kagome leaning over me."""
text39483;"""Oh, it's you…"""
text39484;"""Disappointed?"""
text39485;"""A little. What time is it?"""
text39486;"""Late enough to not make it to school on time."""
text39487;"""She kept standing there like she waiting for something."""
text39488;"""Well?"""
text39489;"""What?"""
text39490;"""Maybe you'll let me get dressed?"""
text39491;"""Ah, yeah, sorry."""
text39492;"""Kagome blushed and ran out of my room."""
text39493;"""We had a quick breakfast and left for school."""
text39494;"""I was trying to wake you up for an hour!"""
text39495;"""Get used to it."""
text39496;"""I scoffed, at the same time trying to drive back the stubborn yawning."""
text39497;"""Thanks God I won't need to tolerate it for long."""
text39498;"""Her words somehow stung me, like if an old friend had just told me that they were moving abroad forever."""
text39499;"""What, Niko-san, did you hope you'd found a free cook?"""
text39500;"""Guess I did…"""
text39501;"""I said bitterly in response and picked up my pace."""
text39502;"""…"""
text39503;"""We split up closer to school, and I had to just stand and wait for Kagome to move ahead."""
text39504;"""…"""
text39505;"""Our classroom was in turmoil — everyone was broken up into small groups, feverishly discussing something."""
text39506;"""Only Kagome sat alone, her head resting on her hand, looking out the window."""
text39507;"""Michael approached."""
text39508;"""Have you heard what happened, Nick?"""
text39509;"""No…"""
text39510;"""Kobayashi Ellie was kidnapped."""
text39511;"""Kidnapped? By who?"""
text39512;"""They say Asakura had a hand in it."""
text39513;"""Asakura?"""
text39514;"""I exclaimed."""
text39515;"""Michael squinted and tilted his head strangely."""
text39516;"""It's like you're not surprised she was kidnapped at all."""
text39517;"""Why of course, because it's me keeping Ellie hostage in my basement! Michael, seriously!"""
text39518;"""I'm serious."""
text39519;"""Fine, what are they saying?"""
text39520;"""That Asakura and a girl from Kobayashi's class…"""
text39521;"""Kawashima."""
text39522;"""Yes, Kawashima. Seems like they had an argument about something."""
text39523;"""An argument!"""
text39524;"""I smirked."""
text39525;"""Either way, they've been detained and are now being interrogated at the police station."""
text39526;"""Where did the information come from?"""
text39527;"""Everyone just knows it. Maybe someone overheard the teachers."""
text39528;"""What a trustworthy source…"""
text39529;"""I wanted to add something else, but then the bell rang."""
text39530;"""…"""
text39531;"""Was Kagome right after all?"""
text39532;"""The situation was developing a bit too rapidly."""
text39533;"""Plus, if I were to look at Asakura and Kawashima…"""
text39534;"""In just a few days they'd gone from smearing swearwords on my door and breaking a window to setting a restaurant on fire and kidnapping people."""
text39535;"""On the other hand, I had no reason to defend them. And no desire, most importantly."""
text39536;"""Except that if they were actually innocent, imprisoning them wouldn't help find Ellie."""
text39537;"""During the break I nodded at Kagome, indicating that I wanted to talk."""
text39538;"""I didn't want to go to the roof today, so I brought her to the old school wing. After all, today we certainly weren't going to bump into Ellie here…"""
text39539;"""Well, happy now?"""
text39540;"""I am and I'm not going to hide it."""
text39541;"""She grinned and looked up into my eyes in a way I found embarrassing."""
text39542;"""What if they have nothing to do with it? What matters is finding Ellie, not getting revenge on Kawashima."""
text39543;"""Personally, I'm not too worried about what happens to Kobayashi."""
text39544;"""Right, what am saying?!"""
text39545;"""Niko-san, don't tell me you pity them."""
text39546;"""If they're innocent…"""
text39547;"""Even if you assume they had nothing to do with Kobayashi's kidnapping, it was definitely them who burned down my restaurant!"""
text39548;"""Well, if that's what you believe…"""
text39549;"""Don't you?"""
text39550;"""It just seems to me that…"""
text39551;"""I sighed and looked at the door of the old music class."""
text39552;"""Things are getting too intense too quickly. First vandalism, then arson, now kidnapping?"""
text39553;"""I'm willing to admit that at least Kawashima isn't an idiot, but isn't this a little too much?"""
text39554;"""Besides, don't forget that they basically worshipped Ellie. And they had something to lose."""
text39555;"""Do you think they know what loss is?"""
text39556;"""Kagome scoffed with disdain."""
text39557;"""I don't think they burning with desire to find out."""
text39558;"""She noticed the direction of my gaze and jerked her shoulders in irritation."""
text39559;"""Niko-san, it sounds like you're defending them!"""
text39560;"""I'm not defending anyone… I just want to learn the truth. And rescue Ellie."""
text39561;"""You seem to be too concerned about her."""
text39562;"""If something happens to the granddaughter of the head of Kobayashi Corporation, we might all be found guilty."""
text39563;"""You haven't forgotten that I was in his office just recently, right?"""
text39564;"""Is that the only reason?"""
text39565;"""The only reason!"""
text39566;"""I flung my arms up in the air and stepped away from Kagome, demonstrating my extreme disappointment in her lack of forethought."""
text39567;"""I'm planning to make it to graduation! And if I remember right, you were going to get into a university, too!"""
text39568;"""But there's no blame on us for Kobayashi's disappearance — so what should we be afraid of?"""
text39569;"""Are you sure there isn't?"""
text39570;"""I only said it out of pure contrarianism — sometimes you just want to say something back so badly you can't keep quiet, even knowing the consequences of your pointless remark."""
text39571;"""Well then why don't you take me to the police — would that make you feel better?!"""
text39572;"""Kagome got predictably mad."""
text39573;"""I said \""we\"", not \""you\"". Maybe I kidnapped her, but now I have amnesia and don't remember."""
text39574;"""I don't know about amnesia, but you definitely have amentia!"""
text39575;"""She prepared leave, then suddenly stopped."""
text39576;"""Right, I need to go to the police station after school. I'm telling you now so you won't complain about my absence later."""
text39577;"""What for?"""
text39578;"""She frowned."""
text39579;"""For my restaurant. My restaurant burned down — remember? The world doesn't revolve around your Kobayashi!"""
text39580;"""Why around my…"""
text39581;"""But Kagome wasn't listening and quickly walked in the direction of our classroom."""
text39582;"""Every long fall is inevitably followed by a rise."""
text39583;"""But had we reached the lowest point on our graph?"""
text39584;"""…"""
text39585;"""I was walking home, constantly looking around, but noticed no one following me."""
text39586;"""Did Kobayashi Jun also believe that children were to blame?"""
text39587;"""\""Children\"" — I smirked inside."""
text39588;"""But what else would I call them?"""
text39589;"""Teenagers? Well, that didn't change much."""
text39590;"""Children can be far more cruel than adults — because they can't distinguish between good and evil."""
text39591;"""When they were children, did anyone bother to explain to Kawashima and co how they were supposed to behave?"""
text39592;"""But the matter with Ellie was still unresolved — I could imagine them kidnapping Kagome, but it didn't appear like they had had any problems with their leader."""
text39593;"""Moriyuki-san was watching a meaningless TV show and was happy to see me back."""
text39594;"""Good afternoon, Niko-kun."""
text39595;"""Kagome went to the police after school. Did you know about that?"""
text39596;"""Maybe. I can't remember."""
text39597;"""Alright."""
text39598;"""I had to make lunch, but as soon as I opened the fridge, the doorbell rang."""
text39599;"""According to chaos theory, anyone could be standing at my doorstep — from Himitsu to the prime minister of Japan."""
text39600;"""But it was just Irina."""
text39601;"""Nikolai! So good to find you home."""
text39602;"""First, you knew perfectly well that I was home. Second, isn't it dangerous to show up at my front door in the middle of the day?"""
text39603;"""Don't worry — you aren't under surveillance anymore."""
text39604;"""Thank God!"""
text39605;"""I said with irony, but this piece of news did bring me significant relief."""
text39606;"""Will you invite me in?"""
text39607;"""If I'm not being watched, we can talk outside."""
text39608;"""I turned around and looked at the hall."""
text39609;"""Moriyuki-san is at home."""
text39610;"""Oh, but we already know each other!"""
text39611;"""Irina exclaimed cheerfully."""
text39612;"""And yet…"""
text39613;"""As you wish."""
text39614;"""She frowned."""
text39615;"""We walked to the road, I leaned against the fence and crossed my arms over my chest."""
text39616;"""You must have already heard that the police detained several students from your school."""
text39617;"""I have. Do you believe me now?"""
text39618;"""Hm, how would I put it…"""
text39619;"""She sniffed and looked around."""
text39620;"""I'd never noticed how cozy your neighborhood is."""
text39621;"""Well?"""
text39622;"""Irina thought for a moment then finally replied in a serious tone:"""
text39623;"""I don't know what kind of relationship you have at school, but those kids are just kids. They wouldn't be able to kidnap Kobayashi Ellie while her guards were watching."""
text39624;"""And we have no information that any kind of, let's say, clash took place."""
text39625;"""So you don't believe they're involved either?"""
text39626;"""Either?"""
text39627;"""A school friend was doubting that, too."""
text39628;"""A friend, huh?"""
text39629;"""Is that all?"""
text39630;"""Nikolai, it feels like you're interrogating me!"""
text39631;"""She wrapped her arms around herself and pretended to shy away from me."""
text39632;"""You also shouldn't forget that most of the kids that go to your school aren't from normal families."""
text39633;"""If you want my opinion, I think they were framed."""
text39634;"""By who?"""
text39635;"""Ah ah ah!"""
text39636;"""Irina waved her finger in front of my face."""
text39637;"""I don't have all the answers."""
text39638;"""But you at least don't suspect me any more, right?"""
text39639;"""You can \""suspect\"" a criminal. If you really had been the one who kidnapped Kobayashi Ellie, you'd be a hero to us."""
text39640;"""I see."""
text39641;"""In any case, it seems like it must have been someone outside the system. And if you know anyone like that, I'd suggest you take a very close look at them."""
text39642;"""Why does it sound like you're hinting at someone in particular?"""
text39643;"""And who would that be?"""
text39644;"""Say, Iwamura."""
text39645;"""Irina took a couple steps away from me."""
text39646;"""Even if I wanted it to be your friend…"""
text39647;"""And why would you?"""
text39648;"""Because then we'd know the whereabouts of Kobayashi Ellie."""
text39649;"""Do you want to know that?"""
text39650;"""Well, we can't abandon a poor girl in trouble!"""
text39651;"""Yeah, sure!"""
text39652;"""I repeat: even if I wanted it to be your friend, I don't believe she'd be able to pull it off."""
text39653;"""You just don't know Kagome."""
text39654;"""I smirked."""
text39655;"""Do you want to tell me something important about her?"""
text39656;"""She squinted cunningly."""
text39657;"""No, nothing really."""
text39658;"""Hmm, fine then."""
text39659;"""Irina looked at her watch and moved a strand of hair away from her face."""
text39660;"""We'll keep in touch, don't disappear."""
text39661;"""Where would I, anyway…"""
text39662;"""I grumbled after she'd left."""
text39663;"""…"""
text39664;"""Kagome returned from her visit with the police in the evening."""
text39665;"""Moriyuki-san was sleeping, while I sat in the kitchen, pointlessly flipping through the pages of a book, unable to comprehend any of the words in it."""
text39666;"""It's as quiet as a graveyard in here."""
text39667;"""Kagome said in surprise when she walked into the kitchen."""
text39668;"""I was waiting for you."""
text39669;"""Well, here I am."""
text39670;"""Kagome didn't look to be in too good of a mood."""
text39671;"""Nobody's thought about dinner yet, I assume?"""
text39672;"""I was waiting for you."""
text39673;"""I repeated in the same gloomy tone."""
text39674;"""Niko-san, I told you I'd go to the police."""
text39675;"""And how did it go?"""
text39676;"""Nothing definitive yet."""
text39677;"""What, nothing at all?"""
text39678;"""Well, they believe it was arson. No one in the neighborhood provided any useful information — no one saw or heard anything."""
text39679;"""I see."""
text39680;"""I felt strangely upset at her but couldn't quite grasp the reason why."""
text39681;"""But I still had to tell her about Irina."""
text39682;"""That woman from the KGB came today. She said we're no longer under surveillance."""
text39683;"""That's great news!"""
text39684;"""I continued, ignoring her enthusiasm:"""
text39685;"""But she thinks Kawashima's gang was framed."""
text39686;"""By who?"""
text39687;"""She doesn't know."""
text39688;"""Kagome looked at me carefully for a couple seconds, then walked to the fridge and began to take out ingredients to make dinner."""
text39689;"""Do you agree with her?"""
text39690;"""She's got a point — it would be stupid to ignore it."""
text39691;"""Why would you even believe that woman? Because she's your compatriot?"""
text39692;"""I could hear how annoyed she was."""
text39693;"""Apparently, Kagome really wanted to see Asakura and Kawashima behind bars."""
text39694;"""So far her information has been accurate."""
text39695;"""And what, has she told you anything particularly sensational?"""
text39696;"""Well…"""
text39697;"""I wanted to answer, but realized I couldn't think of any examples."""
text39698;"""For example, some information regarding my parents' death."""
text39699;"""I thought you already suspected something?"""
text39700;"""That's different. Are you saying that she's pretending to be a KGB major?"""
text39701;"""I laughed, but I was starting to feel a surge of strange agitation — I even had to stand up and pace around the kitchen."""
text39702;"""That's even stupider than…"""
text39703;"""Do you even have any proof she is who she says she is?"""
text39704;"""Well, she's Russian, to start with!"""
text39705;"""Do all Russians work for the KGB?"""
text39706;"""Who would she work for, then?"""
text39707;"""Kagome turned to me and smiled mysteriously."""
text39708;"""I don't know."""
text39709;"""I decided not to react."""
text39710;"""Iwamura was clearly hinting at Kobayashi Corporation."""
text39711;"""But if that was the case, this whole situation was becoming way too complicated."""
text39712;"""And not only because I was just a student, who knew nothing and posed no threat to anyone, but just in general. From the ontological viewpoint, so to say."""
text39713;"""Do you know what Occam's razor is?"""
text39714;"""No, but I think you're about to tell me."""
text39715;"""Call me when dinner is ready."""
text39716;"""I snapped at her, grabbed my book, and left for my room."""
text39717;"""The rest of the day was peaceful — I didn't want any more pointless conversations with Kagome, and we only saw each other again at dinner."""
text39718;"""They usually went to bed earlier than me, so I kept reading in bed for a while, enjoying the silence of the house that was becoming more and more rare with every day."""
text39719;"""Finally, my eyes closed, and I easily fell asleep."""
text39720;"""…"""
text39721;"""I was woken by a noise from the yard, a familiar one — it only took me a moment to realize what it was."""
text39722;"""It was the noise of the planks I'd moved aside yesterday to let Irina out to the back alley."""
text39723;"""When I came to my senses, the silence of the night grew undisturbed once again, but I knew — someone wanted to leave the house unseen."""
text39724;"""And unless Moriyuki-san was a sleep-walker, it could only be…"""
text39725;"""I jumped out of bed, quickly got dressed, and chased after Kagome."""
text39726;"""If I'd been a minute late, she would have disappeared into the endless labyrinth of alley under the cover of darkness, but I got lucky."""
text39727;"""I saw her silhouette a few dozen meters ahead, and hid behind a light post."""
text39728;"""She was holding a bag."""
text39729;"""Wherever Iwamura was headed, she walked quickly and confidently."""
text39730;"""I tried desperately to remain unseen, so I had no time to wonder where Kagome was going exactly."""
text39731;"""We continued like that until we reached the station, where she stopped and looked around, but I managed to hide in the shadow of some trees."""
text39732;"""Then Kagome passed the turnstiles and walked up onto the platform."""
text39733;"""There were still trains going that late?"""
text39734;"""I didn't have my wallet on me, but the ticket inspector was peacefully sleeping at his post, so I managed to jump over the turnstile unnoticed."""
text39735;"""Soon enough, a completely empty train did in fact arrive."""
text39736;"""Maybe it was some kind of overnight service to the depot?"""
text39737;"""The trip took a while, I sat took one car away from Kagome, lying down on a seat in an uncomfortable position to make sure I couldn't be seen."""
text39738;"""She spent the entire time sitting motionless, tensely staring out somewhere in front of her."""
text39739;"""Then, finally, at one of the stations, close to the outskirts, Kagome abruptly got up and left the carriage — so quickly that I barely managed to jump out of mine."""
text39740;"""…"""
text39741;"""We were in a seaside district built up with warehouses."""
text39742;"""Kagome walked forward, confidently making her way through the eerie gloom and the endless rows of identical-looking buildings."""
text39743;"""I was getting more and more uneasy by the minute — not even because I was in an unfamiliar place in the middle of the night, but because the girl I was following didn't seem to be afraid of anything at all."""
text39744;"""Not everyone would want to unwittingly spy on a maniac while he satisfies his perverted desires."""
text39745;"""I don't know if I would have held out another half hour in this desolate place, but Kagome finally turned off toward one of the warehouses, which looked exactly like all the others."""
text39746;"""How could she tell them apart?"""
text39747;"""She slid a door open and walked inside."""
text39748;"""I realized there was no way back and that I had to follow her."""
text39749;"""Deep inside, I already knew what I'd find there, I just didn't want to put this knowledge in the form of a complete thought."""
text39750;"""A person's self-deception peaks when they learn to ignore the things quite literally right in front of them."""
text39751;"""If you exclude all that is impossible, what remains is true."""
text39752;"""I understood how dangerous it was to look for correlation everywhere and use it to substitute cause and effect."""
text39753;"""The rise in the average temperature of September might coincide with the rise in the central bank's key interest rate, but that doesn't mean global warming will cause inflation to fall."""
text39754;"""Kagome sneaks out of the house at night while everyone is asleep and goes to the outskirts of the city to sneak into some warehouse?"""
text39755;"""Maybe this did impact the inflation rate, but…"""
text39756;"""Inside the warehouse I found Ellie, tied up with Iwamura standing over her."""
text39757;"""So it was you after all!"""
text39758;"""Ellie raised her head and blindly stared into the darkness."""
text39759;"""Nick…? Nick, is that you…?"""
text39760;"""And then, in a louder voice:"""
text39761;"""Nick, help!"""
text39762;"""I came closer and froze, feeling unable to approach Kagome."""
text39763;"""That girl was looking at me and… grinning!"""
text39764;"""Welcome, Niko-san!"""
text39765;"""…"""
text39766;"""I'd have to be blind not to notice you tailing me."""
text39767;"""So you knew?"""
text39768;"""I exhaled."""
text39769;"""Of course. It'd be stupid to live with you in the same house and hope you wouldn't notice me disappearing at night."""
text39770;"""And we better sort this out now, on my terms."""
text39771;"""Nick! Don't listen to her! She's crazy! Untie me!"""
text39772;"""I took a step forward and stopped."""
text39773;"""Kagome was hovering over Ellie like Cerberus, refusing to let her return to the world of the living."""
text39774;"""Nick, hurry!"""
text39775;"""What's the matter, Niko-san? Won't you save your princess?"""
text39776;"""I guess any normal person in my shoes would've rushed to Ellie, pushed Kagome away, rescued the heir to Kobayashi Corporation, and received a well-deserved award."""
text39777;"""Except that the person in my shoes turned out to be me, and I had no one to ask for help."""
text39778;"""Why did you do it?"""
text39779;"""I asked the kidnapper."""
text39780;"""Why, Niko-san? Do you really not understand?"""
text39781;"""She frowned."""
text39782;"""How else can I make them release my father?"""
text39783;"""Even if they would, do you think you'll just get away with it?"""
text39784;"""I don't think I have much of a choice."""
text39785;"""Nick, please…"""
text39786;"""I heard the notes of desperation in Ellie's voice."""
text39787;"""I realized I had to make a decision. The sooner, the better."""
text39788;"""But, Niko-san, please understand that if you let her go now, we're both doomed."""
text39789;"""Kagome said impassively."""
text39790;"""Nick, I promise I won't tell a soul about you."""
text39791;"""What about her?"""
text39792;"""I blurted out."""
text39793;"""That bitch has to be punished!"""
text39794;"""You see, Niko-san. And you'd take her word for it?"""
text39795;"""At the moment, I was more concerned about Kagome than my own safety."""
text39796;"""Yes, her actions were hard to justify, but I didn't even want to imagine what I'd do if I were in her shoes."""
text39797;"""At the same time, she couldn't expect a fair trial — Kobayashi Jun most likely wouldn't just hand Iwamura over to the police."""
text39798;"""Besides, she was, most likely, correct — Ellie wouldn't keep her mouth shut."""
text39799;"""And why would I believe her at all?"""
text39800;"""Right now she'd say anything to have me free her, but she could easily change her opinion once she was safe."""
text39801;"""Someone in a situation as extreme as this wasn't going to think too deeply about what they saw."""
text39802;"""I was with Kagome, her kidnapper — so I was guilty, too."""
text39803;"""Nick, please…"""
text39804;"""Ellie pleaded."""
text39805;"""I can't stop you, even if I wanted to."""
text39806;"""Kagome showed me her empty hands."""
text39807;"""Deciding someone else's fate was the role I was least suited for."""
text39808;"""I was angry at Kagome for dragging me into this situation, one way or another."""
text39809;"""I was angry at myself for not being more cautious."""
text39810;"""Even at Ellie — for the same thing as me."""
text39811;"""Deep inside, there was a cowardly wish to run away — let Kagome deal with her problems herself, without involving me!"""
text39812;"""Well, Niko-san?"""
text39813;"""Nick, please!"""
text39814;"""But I was there — and I had to make a choice."""
text39815;"""Free Ellie"""
text39816;"""Follow Kagome's advice"""
text39817;"""My heart bled for Ellie — I had to stop this madness!"""
text39818;"""With an effort, I walked to Ellie and untied her."""
text39819;"""Kagome sighed in disappointment and took a step back."""
text39820;"""I helped Ellie stand up; there was gratitude in her eyes, but, at the same time — stubbornness and determination."""
text39821;"""I've got to… I…"""
text39822;"""She was mumbling as if she'd just woken up."""
text39823;"""I let her go, and the girl, bumping into crates and shelves, fumbled towards the exit."""
text39824;"""Wait…"""
text39825;"""I said, rather for the sake of formality than really trying to stop her."""
text39826;"""Well, are you satisfied?"""
text39827;"""Kagome wrapped her arms around herself and looked like someone who had just been informed that the stock markets across the world had crashed."""
text39828;"""You must be out of your mind! I couldn't do anything other than this, no matter what!"""
text39829;"""You should have known when… When you let me follow you."""
text39830;"""You're just trying to find someone to blame."""
text39831;"""Me?!"""
text39832;"""My cry bounced back to me with a muffled echo under the ceiling of the warehouse."""
text39833;"""Was it me who kidnapped Ellie?! Did I bring you here and force you to make a choice?!"""
text39834;"""If you decide to commit a crime, at least keep other people out of it!"""
text39835;"""And all that matters to you is that you keep your hands clean!"""
text39836;"""What matters most to me is to stay alive."""
text39837;"""Then you shouldn't have let her go."""
text39838;"""I was already starting to realize that Kagome was right, in a way."""
text39839;"""Even if by some miracle Ellie would keep quiet about seeing me here, it's my place they would come to for Iwamura."""
text39840;"""I didn't know whether I'd really handed her a death sentence, but I harbored no doubt that our life would never be the same."""
text39841;"""You should probably leave my place."""
text39842;"""…"""
text39843;"""She pursed her lips and frowned."""
text39844;"""I'm not kicking you out, but you must realize that after this…"""
text39845;"""Why, Niko-san, finish it — hand me over to Kobayashi Corporation. You might even receive a bounty!"""
text39846;"""Oh, come on!"""
text39847;"""I waved my hand and on reflex took several steps towards the exit."""
text39848;"""I suddenly felt unbearable to be there, next to her, as if I really was to blame for something."""
text39849;"""Shame was driving me away from that damn warehouse, buried in darkness and forgotten."""
text39850;"""It seemed that if I stayed here even a minute longer, I'd vanish into that sinister blackness, where only the creatures of dark lived, alien to everything human."""
text39851;"""I leapt out onto the street, breathless and desperately gasping for the cool night air."""
text39852;"""Ellie was nowhere to be seen."""
text39853;"""Could she find the road herself without getting lost in this industrial R'lyeh?"""
text39854;"""Anyway, it was no longer my problem."""
text39855;"""Least of all in the world I liked regretting anything, but at this moment I wished I could change my decision."""
text39856;"""No, not to leave Ellie tied up, but maybe at least pause and think about it."""
text39857;"""The modern world demands instant decisions and action, but, at the same time, it doesn't tolerate mistakes and has no pity for those who make them."""
text39858;"""And sometimes the best strategy is to take no action at all."""
text39859;"""If both options lead to greater evil, is it right to look for the most acceptable among them?"""
text39860;"""\""Don't resist evil with violence\"" — came to my mind, something I read in a book."""
text39861;"""Of course, by letting Ellie go, I'd committed no direct violence, but left the room for others to do in the future."""
text39862;"""Kagome left the warehouse after a short while and stopped next to me."""
text39863;"""What are you planning to do next?"""
text39864;"""What am I supposed to do? I'm innocent!"""
text39865;"""I snapped at her, despite my internal agony."""
text39866;"""The need to justify myself, to make myself to be right at any cost turned out to be stronger."""
text39867;"""You don't get to judge that now, Niko-san."""
text39868;"""What are yougoing to do?"""
text39869;"""To be honest, I wasn't prepared for this to happen."""
text39870;"""She suddenly smiled."""
text39871;"""What do you mean?"""
text39872;"""I thought you'd properly asses the situation, not play the knight in shining armor."""
text39873;"""I couldn't help but think that Kagome sounded sensible and did not at all resemble a maniac."""
text39874;"""Yet kidnapping Ellie couldn't be called a sensible action of a normal person."""
text39875;"""Then who were you playing? James Bond or Professor Moriarty?"""
text39876;"""Niko-san, do you have any money?"""
text39877;"""She abruptly changed the subject."""
text39878;"""No, I forgot my wallet at home, why?"""
text39879;"""The trains aren't running anymore, we'll have to call a taxi."""
text39880;"""Kagome responded innocently."""
text39881;"""The situation seemed laughably stupid: I ought to be showing my indignation, scolding Kagome, and cutting all ties with her, but at the same time I had to accept her help to get back home."""
text39882;"""I had to go home with her, because it was her home, too (at least, temporarily)."""
text39883;"""I suddenly and sharply understood all the difficulties of life in a communal apartment."""
text39884;"""I'm forced to agree…"""
text39885;"""However disgusted I felt, I didn't want to stay outside in the cold until the trains would start running again."""
text39886;"""What about Ellie?"""
text39887;"""But considering how vast the industrial district was, I had no chance to find her even if I tried."""
text39888;"""I only had to hope that she'd find her own way out…"""
text39889;"""Or not. But that thought was making me sick, as if I took a bitter pill."""
text39890;"""It's all so wrong that I don't have the words to describe it.."""
text39891;"""I'm not making you — you could walk. The night seems beautiful to me."""
text39892;"""Let's go already."""
text39893;"""I sighed heavily and started walking away from the crime scene."""
text39894;"""Niko-san?"""
text39895;"""Kagome called out to me carefully."""
text39896;"""What now?"""
text39897;"""Not that way."""
text39898;"""…"""
text39899;"""…"""
text39900;"""We sat in the taxi without saying a word, not looking at each other."""
text39901;"""I could physically feel that our relationship changed, just like weather before a summer rain — suddenly and swiftly."""
text39902;"""And the pressure of the unknown that lay ahead was getting stronger and stronger."""
text39903;"""We left the car near my house, I waited for Kagome to pay the driver, not feeling at all happy to be home again."""
text39904;"""I guess because I didn't feel safe anywhere, and especially here."""
text39905;"""Do you think Ellie found her way back?"""
text39906;"""You don't have to doubt that."""
text39907;"""Why are you so sure?"""
text39908;"""Because you're the one who'll need protection soon, not her."""
text39909;"""She flung off, walked up the porch, and stopped at the door."""
text39910;"""Will you open it? Or do I have to get back the same way as before?"""
text39911;"""I forgot my keys, too…"""
text39912;"""Did you also forget your brain?"""
text39913;"""…"""
text39914;"""We had to use the back entrance again."""
text39915;"""When we finally found ourselves inside the house, I asked Kagome:"""
text39916;"""How did you even found out about the hole in the fence?"""
text39917;"""I was looking for escape routes."""
text39918;"""Sensible."""
text39919;"""Although Kagome hardly needed my approval."""
text39920;"""If you don't mind, I'll go to bed."""
text39921;"""She yawned and quickly wiped the tears that swelled in the corners of her eyes."""
text39922;"""Wait…"""
text39923;"""Is there anything else, Niko-san?"""
text39924;"""Well, yes, actually… After all that happened… Are you planning to just go to bed?"""
text39925;"""Do you have any other suggestions?"""
text39926;"""We should at least talk things through…"""
text39927;"""Talk what through, Niko-san? You, apparently, have already come to your conclusions."""
text39928;"""I'm a dangerous criminal, possibly a mentally unstable one. And I belong in a prison or a madhouse."""
text39929;"""But if you aren't going to send me there immediately, I'd prefer to have a good night's sleep first."""
text39930;"""How can you just…"""
text39931;"""I desperately wanted to say something, to explain that I didn't agree with what she was doing."""
text39932;"""But it was all pointless — we either accept someone for who they are or fail in our endless attempts to change them to fit our image of what's right."""
text39933;"""And that feeling of primal misunderstanding — looking into the eyes of another person and seeing genuine confusion in them… When everything is so simple!"""
text39934;"""Here, look, I'm explaining it to you, what's so difficult? Do it this way and not that other way."""
text39935;"""And you get the same cold stare in response, with a mixture of pity and contempt."""
text39936;"""Niko-san, you told me you couldn't do anything other than what you did. Neither could I."""
text39937;"""But I'm at least worried about what happens next!"""
text39938;"""I shouted, completely losing control over my emotions."""
text39939;"""I'm worried, too, but I understand I have no control over it anymore."""
text39940;"""She responded calmly."""
text39941;"""We did what we did. You would've liked me not to kidnap Kobayashi. And would've liked you not to release her."""
text39942;"""In a world where everyone desires something different, someone is bound to suffer."""
text39943;"""It doesn't look like you're suffering."""
text39944;"""I smirked, trying to hurt her, but Kagome remained emotionless."""
text39945;"""Fine! If you're talking about me… I didn't do anything!"""
text39946;"""But suddenly I felt cold and unbearably tired."""
text39947;"""I'm not the one to judge you although I admit I wasn't happy about your decision."""
text39948;"""You aren't — but who is?"""
text39949;"""She only shrugged in response."""
text39950;"""Why do I feel like you're trying to sign me up for your crusade?"""
text39951;"""Niko-san, don't take this the wrong way, but I don't think it's me you should be worried about right now."""
text39952;"""What do you mean?"""
text39953;"""I don't think I'm in any danger."""
text39954;"""Is that so?"""
text39955;"""I laughed stupidly, but Kagome, apparently, was serious."""
text39956;"""Goodnight, Niko-san."""
text39957;"""She finished the conversation and walked to her room."""
text39958;"""I no longer felt safe in my own house. Moreover, it seemed that even the walls had become unfamiliar to me once Kagome started living here."""
text39959;"""And it wasn't even about Ellie's kidnapping."""
text39960;"""What scared me wasn't that Kagome was capable of cruelty, perhaps even murder — I didn't think about it."""
text39961;"""Cold, grim resolve and iron will — that's what really was making me tremble."""
text39962;"""She wasn't afraid of the devil, God, or Kobayashi Jun."""
text39963;"""Even now, in the face of imminent danger, Kagome remained confident and dignified."""
text39964;"""That evoked respect bordering on fear."""
text39965;"""There I was, feeling like an observer of my own life, and there she was — confidently holding the reins of her destiny."""
text39966;"""Yes, I found it hard to agree with her methods, but strong people always attract others, even if they don't always act in accordance with conventional morality."""
text39967;"""With these thoughts, I went to bed."""
text39968;"""My exhaustion was making itself known, even though just half an hour ago it had seemed that I wouldn't be able to sleep until morning."""
text39969;"""…"""
text39970;"""I was drowning in my dream, desperately wheeling my arms, only sinking deeper under the water."""
text39971;"""I couldn't breath, the asphyxiation growing so bad that my lungs were about to turn themselves inside out in search of oxygen."""
text39972;"""And then I heard a voice from somewhere:"""
text39973;"""Get up!"""
text39974;"""It was a rough and a strangely familiar voice."""
text39975;"""I opened my eyes, and Kagemaru's enormous face occupied my entire field of vision."""
text39976;"""Don't even think about screaming!"""
text39977;"""He growled, grabbed me by the shoulders and lifted me as easily as if I were a bag of rice."""
text39978;"""What…"""
text39979;"""I didn't have the time to be scared, or even understand what was happening."""
text39980;"""Like you don't know, son of a bitch! Get up! We're going for a ride!"""
text39981;"""He grabbed the trousers hanging on a wall hook and threw them at me."""
text39982;"""Ellie…"""
text39983;"""The memories of yesterday began to creep in like flashbacks."""
text39984;"""It wasn't me!"""
text39985;"""I wanted to send him to the next room to Kagome, but the words stuck in my throat."""
text39986;"""I didn't like you from the start! Why did Kobayashi-dono spend so much time on you?"""
text39987;"""I was desperately looking at the garden door — if I'd manage to run past him, I could…"""
text39988;"""But Kagemaru pulled his jacket aside, showing me a holster with a pistol in it."""
text39989;"""Watching American movies, I'd never understood why people would go to their death willfully and obediently."""
text39990;"""Maybe at times the plot could justify it, but it always seemed to me that all you had to do was pull the gun out of the villain's hand, jump off the train, kick the guard — and you'd be saved!"""
text39991;"""But now, looking at the pistol, I could feel my whole body paralyzed with fear, my legs froze, and I couldn't move an inch."""
text39992;"""Hurry up! I'm not going to spend the whole morning on you."""
text39993;"""And then I realized that the sun had risen in the east, coloring the morning Tokyo mist a soft shade of pink."""
text39994;"""And if I refuse to go anywhere, will you shoot me right here?"""
text39995;"""It wasn't me trying to be brave — I was just attempting to buy some time, hoping for God knows what."""
text39996;"""You can go in your underwear — makes no difference to me."""
text39997;"""He blurted out with disgust."""
text39998;"""I begrudgingly stood up and got dressed, trying not to think about anything."""
text39999;"""We walked to the kitchen, I looked at the door to Kagome's room with hope, but it was closed."""
text40000;"""Just me?"""
text40001;"""Yes."""
text40002;"""What about…"""
text40003;"""Enough talking!"""
text40004;"""Kagemaru painfully shoved my back"""
text40005;"""That short, yet sturdy man was hiding the strength of a bear."""
text40006;"""But, in the hall I still stopped and turned to him."""
text40007;"""Listen… But I didn't do anything! I didn't touch Ellie at all!"""
text40008;"""The funniest thing was, I was telling the truth."""
text40009;"""Ojou-sama thinks differently."""
text40010;"""Did she say so herself?!"""
text40011;"""Enough wasting time!"""
text40012;"""Kagome turned out to be right, but what of it?"""
text40013;"""I remembered her words about being in no danger."""
text40014;"""What if Kagome and her grandfather had already been taken away?"""
text40015;"""What about the girl living with me… ?"""
text40016;"""I asked in a trembling voice, persuading myself that I did it out of care for her."""
text40017;"""Kagemaru didn't respond immediately, and for the first time I saw the signs of a thought process on his rigid face."""
text40018;"""Don't know anything about any girl."""
text40019;"""He was clearly lying, but why?"""
text40020;"""Even if Ellie eventually accused me of being an accomplice, she couldn't have kept quite about the fact that Kagome had been the one to kidnap her, could she?"""
text40021;"""Or, maybe, they just sent another goon for her?"""
text40022;"""Can I at least warn her… ?"""
text40023;"""No, just keep walking."""
text40024;"""I didn't move an inch."""
text40025;"""You're going to bring me to Kobayashi-sama, aren't you?"""
text40026;"""Yes."""
text40027;"""He smirked maliciously."""
text40028;"""But it's up to you whether you come voluntarily in the back seat or unconscious in the trunk!"""
text40029;"""I guess I'll choose the first option."""
text40030;"""…"""
text40031;"""The streets were absolutely empty, which made the waves of fear wash over me with ever greater strength."""
text40032;"""If Kobayashi Jun just wanted to talk like before, why would he do it at such an early hour?"""
text40033;"""Soon I realized that we weren't going to the Corporation's headquarters."""
text40034;"""Where are you taking me?"""
text40035;"""Where I need to!"""
text40036;"""Kagemaru replied rudely."""
text40037;"""And nobody would even remember me."""
text40038;"""Maybe only Himitsu — but I had done everything I could to ruin my relationship with her."""
text40039;"""Maybe in a few months the police or government employees would come over to my house to find out why I wasn't paying my bills anymore."""
text40040;"""Or my body would be washed on a shore a hundred kilometers away from Tokyo."""
text40041;"""Or I'd be found hung in Aokigahara, which I guess would be even worse."""
text40042;"""And even Himitsu… Would she be mourning for long?"""
text40043;"""Catherine, Kyosuke, Michael, Ellie, Kagome…"""
text40044;"""It seemed like they'd forget about my existence the very next day."""
text40045;"""No, I didn't want to be a cow led for the slaughter!"""
text40046;"""I tried to open the door at the traffic light, but it turned out to be locked."""
text40047;"""Kagemaru noticed that, turned back and hissed:"""
text40048;"""I told you!"""
text40049;"""His words were followed by a blow of a wrench to my forehead."""
text40050;"""…"""
text40051;"""I came to my senses in complete darkness, unable to move."""
text40052;"""My arms and legs were up against something — it seemed like I was in a tiny cell or a…"""
text40053;"""A terrible guess made my entire body tremble — I'd been buried alive."""
text40054;"""The walls did seem to be wooden and the muffled blows of my hands against them responded with the sound of shifting soil."""
text40055;"""I shouted as hard as I could, but soon ran out of energy."""
text40056;"""There probably wasn't a single soul for many kilometers around."""
text40057;"""Where had my life gone wrong…?"""
text40058;"""I did everything right, rescued Ellie — and this is how she paid me back!"""
text40059;"""Of course, it may not' even been her fault, but that didn't make my situation any easier!"""
text40060;"""Humans are made in a way where they always try to look for connections and figure out why things happen."""
text40061;"""It doesn't matter to an ant what crushed it — a human's boot or a fallen meteorite."""
text40062;"""Similarly, I just wanted to get out of here, gnaw my way to freedom through the soil, and forever forget about Ellie, Kagome, and this damned country with its norms and values."""
text40063;"""To hang a bag on my shoulder and walk to the Japanese sea and then swim across it."""
text40064;"""To take a ride on the BAM, bow before the might of the endless seas of forests and swim in the Baikal to wash off all the dirt I that had built up over a decade in Japan."""
text40065;"""But none of that was going to happen — just because I had wanted to follow my conscience for once!"""
text40066;"""I had no time to prepare for death, if you can ever be prepared."""
text40067;"""I didn't want to die — I desperately feared that my conscious self would stop existing."""
text40068;"""Even if there was something after — it wouldn't be me, and I wanted to continue existing as Nikolai Anokhin and nothing else."""
text40069;"""Without any philosophical nonsense — I just wanted to go to bed in the night and wake up in the morning, feeling alive."""
text40070;"""Enjoy delicious food and the warm spring sun, love someone, even if without reciprocation, and feel the flow of time with every cell of my body."""
text40071;"""I wanted to learn something new, receive and share emotions, enjoy meeting other people, genuinely and without any second thoughts."""
text40072;"""I promised myself that if a miracle happened, and I got out of this grave, I'd start a whole new life!"""
text40073;"""And then I was immediately beginning to curse everyone and everything."""
text40074;"""My fingernails tore off, I had long splinters piercing my skin, blood ran down my hands, onto my face."""
text40075;"""The outside world shrunk to the size of the casket — two meters by one and change."""
text40076;"""I was desperately trying to comprehend emptiness — the state the universe had been in before the Big Bang."""
text40077;"""Soon enough that emptiness would swallow everything around us."""
text40078;"""And if I wouldn't think and comprehend, the remaining billions of years would pass for me like a second."""
text40079;"""And there would be nothing and nowhere. Until the next Big Bang."""
text40080;"""I was completely exhausted, gasping for stuffy, rotten air, my lungs rattling."""
text40081;"""It was probably for the better that nobody would find out that my existence ended so pathetically."""
text40082;"""I'd rather have them think that I ran away and was still alive, somewhere, elsewhere."""
text40083;"""Hope dies last!"""
text40084;"""And I had no hope left…"""
text40085;"""Right now Ellie was acting on emotion. As soon as she was safe, she'd immediately start talking about everything that'd happened."""
text40086;"""And even if she wouldn't say anything, it'd soon become clear that Kawashima and her gang had nothing to do with it, and the investigation would continue."""
text40087;"""One way or another, Kagome would become the primary suspect."""
text40088;"""And then me."""
text40089;"""Sorry, I need to… need to…"""
text40090;"""I walked outside to catch my breath and sort out my thoughts."""
text40091;"""I needed a break."""
text40092;"""Kagome followed me."""
text40093;"""Well done, Niko-san, for not acting on emotion."""
text40094;"""Your compliments are the last thing I need!"""
text40095;"""I snapped, not wanting to agree with her on anything right now."""
text40096;"""You can still release Kobayashi — she's waiting for you."""
text40097;"""And then what?"""
text40098;"""What then?"""
text40099;"""You realize you've put me in a situation where I have no choice? No matter what I do, I'll end up the one to blame!"""
text40100;"""She smirked and shrugged."""
text40101;"""And what are you planning to do next?"""
text40102;"""I've already told you: I'll demand they release my father. Now I have something to back up that demand!"""
text40103;"""Were you also the one who left the note at Ellie's house?"""
text40104;"""Of course!"""
text40105;"""Kagome smiled, clearly satisfied with herself."""
text40106;"""There is only one little problem: once you demand the release of your father, the list of suspects will narrow down very quickly."""
text40107;"""That's why I won't demand that alone — instead, I'll ask for some secret documents concerning the Project."""
text40108;"""That's clever."""
text40109;"""I whistled."""
text40110;"""But only in theory."""
text40111;"""Kobayashi Jun may be a monster, but I'm sure his granddaughter's life is more important to him than anything else."""
text40112;"""I tried to remember the emotionless, wrinkled face of the old man, but in my memory it didn't have any expression."""
text40113;"""Was such a person capable of compassion? When it came to people not related to him — possibly not."""
text40114;"""But whenever he was talking about Ellie, something changed about him, as if spring snow was melting, revealing the grass and plants that survived under it."""
text40115;"""Niko-san?"""
text40116;"""With some effort, I returned to the real world."""
text40117;"""I don't know what to think about you now."""
text40118;"""Well, sorry I haven't met your standards, but my father's been kidnapped!"""
text40119;"""You have your own truth, Ellie has her own. I just don't want to be involved in this!"""
text40120;"""But you are, Niko-san. Ever since…"""
text40121;"""She stopped, bit her lip, and turned away, as if she'd said more than she wanted."""
text40122;"""Ever since… what?"""
text40123;"""Since you let us live at your place."""
text40124;"""Kagome had clearly wanted to say something different, but I decided not to press her."""
text40125;"""Thanks, I regret it already!"""
text40126;"""But, Ellie was still tied up in the warehouse, definitely storing up anger not only at Iwamura but me, too."""
text40127;"""And the longer we talked, the more she accumulated."""
text40128;"""But deep inside, I began to realize that Kagome had left me no choice."""
text40129;"""For Ellie, no matter what she claimed, I was an accomplice now."""
text40130;"""I still don't like your plan. It's too obvious. Who else would want your father free, apart from you and Moriyuki-san?"""
text40131;"""Do you have any other suggestions?"""
text40132;"""You know, I feel like I just found a bloody shirt and a pistol in my wardrobe, and the police are knocking at my door."""
text40133;"""Kagome laughed, and in the silence of the dark night that laughter sounded extremely ominous."""
text40134;"""I… I won't be able to look her in the eye anymore. Not after everything…"""
text40135;"""I felt like a traitor forced to collaborate with the enemy."""
text40136;"""Except that I did it for my own safety, rather than other people's salvation."""
text40137;"""I guess my portrait wouldn't be hung next to Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya's."""
text40138;"""You don't have to do it."""
text40139;"""Then why am I here? Mind explaining that?"""
text40140;"""You followed me!"""
text40141;"""And you pretended you didn't notice! You wanted me to be here! For Ellie to see me!"""
text40142;"""Maybe…"""
text40143;"""She finally agreed and looked away."""
text40144;"""But why?"""
text40145;"""Why, why… Because!"""
text40146;"""Her eyes flashed in the moonlight."""
text40147;"""You probably didn't want it to just be on you if you failed?"""
text40148;"""…"""
text40149;"""What, did I get that right?"""
text40150;"""I grinned, but Kagome looked genuinely upset."""
text40151;"""Oh come on, don't pretend to be offended now! I'm the victim here!"""
text40152;"""But the real victim sat in that damn warehouse, tied to a crate."""
text40153;"""How long are you planning to keep her there? She needs water and food…"""
text40154;"""And where do you think I've been going in the evenings?"""
text40155;"""This is just a guess, but you eat more than once a day, don't you?!"""
text40156;"""Losses are inevitable in war."""
text40157;"""But we're not at war!"""
text40158;"""I flung my arms up and paced back and forth."""
text40159;"""I don't see much of a difference."""
text40160;"""And how long ago did you… plan this?"""
text40161;"""I didn't. If they hadn't burnt my restaurant…"""
text40162;"""I remembered Kawashima and Asakura, falsely accused of kidnapping."""
text40163;"""You got back at them, too."""
text40164;"""If Kobayashi Jun does the right thing—"""
text40165;"""I interrupted her:"""
text40166;"""Do you really think you'll get away with it? Even if your father is released, old man Kobayashi won't tolerate a slight like this."""
text40167;"""You may be right."""
text40168;"""Kagome smiled sadly."""
text40169;"""And?"""
text40170;"""But we'll think about that later."""
text40171;"""We…"""
text40172;"""I grit my teeth and rubbed my forehead, surprised to find a splitting headache."""
text40173;"""I had to make a decision."""
text40174;"""We can't leave her here alone for the night!"""
text40175;"""Then, if you want, you can stay and guard her until I return. I'll bring food for two people. By the way, we better feed her."""
text40176;"""Are you asking me to do that?"""
text40177;"""If you want."""
text40178;"""Kagome responded emotionlessly."""
text40179;"""You know what, you started it — you finish it."""
text40180;"""…"""
text40181;"""I waited for her outside, shivering because of the cold autumn wind."""
text40182;"""I had neither the energy, nor the will to look Ellie in the eyes."""
text40183;"""And I didn't know what to do next, as if I was stuck in a superposition between two states."""
text40184;"""I couldn't let her go, but I also couldn't leave things as they were."""
text40185;"""I couldn't trust Kagome, but I was also too afraid to make any decisions by myself."""
text40186;"""I couldn't be with her, but my conscience wouldn't allow me to leave."""
text40187;"""The indecision was killing me, and I could feel myself drowning while standing on solid ground."""
text40188;"""Finally, Kagome walked out, carefully folded her empty bag and smirked."""
text40189;"""You seem anxious, Niko-san."""
text40190;"""Is that all? Can we go?"""
text40191;"""Of course we can, except…"""
text40192;"""Did you bring your wallet? Trains don't run this late."""
text40193;"""Had other stuff on my mind."""
text40194;"""Fine, then I can lend you the money for a taxi."""
text40195;"""If you'd be so kind."""
text40196;"""Sometimes I regretted that Kagome wasn't a guy so I could punch in her the face without a twinge of regret."""
text40197;"""I got out of the car at the gate of my house and waited for Kagome to pay the driver."""
text40198;"""Where did she even get the money, given she said she hadn't managed to rescue anything from the fire?"""
text40199;"""Let's sleep, I'm tired."""
text40200;"""Kagome said once taxi left."""
text40201;"""Tired, are you?"""
text40202;"""I smirked."""
text40203;"""Wait, I have questions that can't wait until tomorrow."""
text40204;"""I'm listening."""
text40205;"""She sighed."""
text40206;"""How did you manage to kidnap Ellie? She's got guards and everything."""
text40207;"""You helped me."""
text40208;"""Me?!"""
text40209;"""Well, indirectly, of course. I only had to find an abandoned warehouse, where nobody would hear her."""
text40210;"""You're saying it like she went there herself."""
text40211;"""She did."""
text40212;"""Come on, that just sounds stupid!"""
text40213;"""At first I was planning to kidnap her the \""normal\"" way, if you can say that — like they do in movies."""
text40214;"""But for one, I had to do it in a way her guards wouldn't notice."""
text40215;"""And for two, I'm a girl and don't have the strength needed to pull that off. Knocking Kobayashi out with something heavy would be one thing, but dragging her across the city…"""
text40216;"""So I had to a simple thought: who was better at tricking her guards than Kobayashi herself?!"""
text40217;"""I suddenly felt I didn't want to hear what Iwamura had came up with, but the girl continued:"""
text40218;"""And then I only had to find the right motivation for Kobayashi to sneak away from her guards and come to the warehouse I'd selected."""
text40219;"""And that motivation was me?"""
text40220;"""Of course, Niko-san."""
text40221;"""Kagome gave me a big smile and, despite myself, I noted how unusually beautiful she looked in the moonlight."""
text40222;"""I wrote a note in your name and attached a detailed map."""
text40223;"""I didn't know what surprised me more — Kagome's resourcefulness or Ellie's gullibility."""
text40224;"""…"""
text40225;"""Niko-san, won't you even accuse me of lying?"""
text40226;"""Are you lying?"""
text40227;"""No."""
text40228;"""Then I won't."""
text40229;"""But you aren't surprised at all that the bait worked so well?"""
text40230;"""I saw Ellie tied up — what difference does it make how you managed to do it…?"""
text40231;"""Kagome was hinting at Ellie's feelings for me, but this wasn't the time to talk about it."""
text40232;"""Niko-san, I'm disappointed. I was sure you'd be more surprised."""
text40233;"""I'm surprised by the fact that you're turning this into a joke."""
text40234;"""I'm quite serious when it comes to action. But it seems to me we've already figured out who the main villain here is, so now we just have to wait."""
text40235;"""And who would that be?"""
text40236;"""Me, of course!"""
text40237;"""Kagome proudly pushed her chest out, as if accepting a reward for finishing a school year with straight As."""
text40238;"""You seem so proud about it…"""
text40239;"""Trust me, I'm not happy to have to go so far. But if I am to be a villain, I'm going to do it right!"""
text40240;"""Considering that innocent people suffered because of you…"""
text40241;"""Innocent people!"""
text40242;"""She said way too loudly for our peacefully sleeping neighborhood."""
text40243;"""I took my revenge on them, too!"""
text40244;"""How?"""
text40245;"""After Kobayashi got \""your\"" note, I left another one in her mailbox — containing threats supposedly from them."""
text40246;"""Genius…"""
text40247;"""I'm glad you appreciate."""
text40248;"""In reality, I simply didn't know to act around her anymore."""
text40249;"""The Japanese are clearly afraid of were-creatures for a reason!"""
text40250;"""And to think that just recently I'd started to believe we had a lot in common."""
text40251;"""But I couldn't imagine myself kidnapping a person! Especially Ellie."""
text40252;"""Although, of course, Iwamura had a very different opinion of her."""
text40253;"""Alright. It's already late. Or early."""
text40254;"""I could barely stand on my feet and just wanted to go to bed as soon as possible."""
text40255;"""We'd been gone for just a few hours, but they felt like several days."""
text40256;"""Once in the kitchen, I stopped, looked around like I was seeing it for the first time, and turned to Kagome."""
text40257;"""Tomorrow…"""
text40258;"""Yes, Niko-san?"""
text40259;"""Her face expressed polite attention, which was totally inappropriate at that moment."""
text40260;"""I need to sleep. We'll talk tomorrow."""
text40261;"""Goodnight, Niko-san."""
text40262;"""I didn't respond but followed her with my eyes, then drank a glass of water and went to my room."""
text40263;"""But I couldn't fall asleep, instead lying awake with that nasty feeling where sleep refuses to come and you know you'll have to lie and wait at least an hour until its return."""
text40264;"""Even despite all the exhaustion you've accumulated."""
text40265;"""So I was sharing my house with a monster."""
text40266;"""The thought didn't so much terrify me as it caused inexplicable surprise."""
text40267;"""As if I woke up one morning and suddenly realized I was no longer eighteen, but rather forty eight — half of my life was behind me and I hadn't even noticed."""
text40268;"""How could I not see what Kagome was capable of?"""
text40269;"""And what was the limit of her determination?"""
text40270;"""If she needed to sacrifice me for her father's freedom — what would stop her?"""
text40271;"""And it wasn't only about that — but also the cruel and calculating way she executed her plan."""
text40272;"""I couldn't understand why Kagome hated Ellie so much, but the fact she did was in itself alarming."""
text40273;"""But it wasn't like Kagome was a maniac serial killer. All her actions followed a careful logic."""
text40274;"""If she'd been a complete stranger to me, I probably would have been impressed by her perseverance and effectiveness."""
text40275;"""Ostentatious moralizing and hypocrisy were alien to me"""
text40276;"""Of course, I wasn't a sociopath, but the thought that the ends justified the means crossed my mind more often than it probably had to."""
text40277;"""And by turning down her offer to play bass for Z FEEL-Z I'd basically abandoned the life path that would have lead to Ellie."""
text40278;"""Maybe, Kagome and I really were accomplices now."""
text40279;"""That had obviously been Kagome's goal — and she'd succeeded, again."""
text40280;"""I should have felt affronted and cheated, but deep inside I only felt weariness and… pity for her."""
text40281;"""If a person is mentally healthy, only other people or the circumstances of their life can push them to extreme actions."""
text40282;"""I didn't want to believe that in a world where Kagome's father hadn't been kidnapped by the Corporation, sooner or later she would have still easily crossed the red lines."""
text40283;"""What would I have done in her shoes?"""
text40284;"""It was easy to judge from the side, lying in warm bed, having a bank account and my own, albeit old, but decent house."""
text40285;"""But, most importantly, my wish to help her free her father was only growing stronger."""
text40286;"""Because I'd also suffered because of Kobayashi Corporation, because it was right, and because it was about her, after all…"""
text40287;"""But only within reason!"""
text40288;"""With these thoughts came the long-desired slumber that felt like a reward for all my hard labor."""
text40289;"""…"""