The Reason Why Sensei is Called a Stalker EP.10

["...Sensei, is it really okay to do this?"] Shortly after Sora collapsed and was taken to the hospital, Sensei, after the examinations were completed, secretly planted something small inside Sora's bandages. However, no one noticed Sensei's actions. The item Sensei had prepared was a special device commissioned from Millennium, making it impossible to detect. ["If you're caught, it won't end with just a scolding, you know?"] "...It's okay. Even if Sora hates me for the rest of her life, it doesn't matter." For now, there were no major issues, and he was approaching each student slowly, as Sora had requested, but... "If I don't win them over quickly, it might become irreversible." He couldn't shake off the anxiety, so he had to make preparations in advance. He was an adult, a teacher. He had a duty to protect his students, his children. Therefore, even if the child didn't want it, he would save her. Definitely. "And if being hated for life is the price to save a student, isn't that a worthwhile trade?" ["Sensei..."] "Uhehe~ Sorry for making you work late, Sensei." "It's fine. I was worried about Sora's condition, so don't worry about it." The sun had set, and it was time for everyone to go home. Sensei visited the hospital to check on Sora, and together with Hoshino, who happened to be outside, they headed towards Sora's room. Of course, 'I appreciate the sentiment, but I wish he hadn't come~' Hoshino wasn't particularly happy to see Sensei. She was grateful that he had tracked down Serika's location, even if it meant writing a report, and her perception of him had changed slightly. However, she still couldn't fully trust him. "I'm sorry... Sora... So please, stop..." 'I can't let what happened before repeat itself.' But Hoshino couldn't just turn him away after he'd made the effort to visit, so she decided to let it slide for now, planning to stop him if he said anything dangerous. Creak. "Sora-chan, wake up... Huh?" They reached Sora's hospital room, but for some reason, Sora was nowhere to be seen. '...No way.' Feeling uneasy, Hoshino asked a nearby nurse about Sora's whereabouts. "Ah, the patient said she was going out for some fresh air a little while ago." "...Sora-chan." Unease turned into certainty. "Hoshino..." Seeing her reaction, Sensei sensed something bad had happened and called out to Hoshino, but... "Sorry, Sensei, I'll go first." Hoshino, her face grim, ignored Sensei and headed outside. If her suspicions were correct, she had to go stop Sora immediately. "Wait, you're looking for Sora, right? I'll help." "...Sensei, I appreciate the thought, but if you get involved again, it won't end with just a report, will it?" Even if he hadn't been caught before, if he was discovered this time, it wouldn't end with just a report. Hoshino was about to refuse, but... "I've prepared something for situations like this." Sensei showed her the screen of his tablet with a confident look. "...Haha, Sensei, were you not satisfied with just Serika?" "I'm a stalker." Hoshino was dumbfounded, but... "Uhehe~ Sora-chan's in for a tough time." She couldn't deny that, right now, Sensei was more reliable than anyone else. * Scratch! Scratch! "Ugh! Augh...!" In a back alley of Abydos, a girl's pained groans could be heard, along with the sound of a blade cutting flesh. That's right. Scratch. Drip... Drip... "Haaah..." Those were the sounds I made after leaving the hospital. Having safely escaped the hospital, I stopped by a convenience store to buy a sharp box cutter and secretly made my way to a back alley where I began to self-harm. By the way, the experiment I couldn't do last time because of Ayane ended in failure. As expected, my body is too tough. Anyway, although my suicide attempt failed, my mood kept improving as I started self-harming, so it wasn't a problem. "Hoo... As expected, this is it." Honestly, I was worried that it wouldn't feel the same since it had been a while, but since it had been so long, my mood only got better with each cut. Thanks to that, I felt like most of my stress was gone. But... "Something's missing..." There was still something lacking. Maybe it was because I had so many scars that it was getting in the way of self-harming. Even though I felt good, I couldn't shake the feeling that something was missing. Of course, my arm was already soaked in blood to the point where it was a miracle I hadn't collapsed from blood loss. So, I should stop here, but... "...Should I do just a little more?" Unable to resist the urge, I turned my wrist to look at the back of my arm. The clean skin, free of any scars. "Gulp..." I wondered how it would feel to cut that skin with the blade in my current state. Just as I was about to press the blade against my skin... Grab! "...Huh?" A small hand grabbed my wrist out of nowhere. "Ho, ho, hoho..." And the owner of the hand was none other than... "Sora." "Hoshino-san, how did you find me here?!" It was Takanashi Hoshino herself, the person I least wanted to be discovered by. 'This is crazy, crazy, crazy, crazy!!!!' "Uh... Uh, well, you see..." 'How did she find me? No matter how I look at it, this doesn't make sense.' It hadn't been long since I left the hospital, so it was almost impossible for her to find me this quickly. I had even left my smartphone behind, just in case, so it made even less sense. 'Could it be because of that? No, that can't be it.' Even if that was the cause, it wasn't enough to kill me, so that didn't make sense either. No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't figure it out, but my questions were soon answered. "Sora..." Sensei approached me, holding a tablet that seemed to be pointing to my location, with a sad and complicated expression. "...Haha." 'So this is why Sensei is called a stalker.' It seemed I had become Sensei's target without even realizing it.