The Handsome Boy I Saved from Getting Beaten on the Train… Turned Out to Be the “Prince” of an All-Girls School - V1 Chapter 36: I Don’t Care If I’m Up Against Ten Thousand Tons—I'll Still Never Lose

Chapter 36: I Don’t Care If I’m Up Against Ten Thousand Tons—I’ll Still Never Lose

“Suzune-san!”

“Ah… Kujou-kun. You really came…”

When I arrived at Rei’s apartment, I was met by a completely worn-out Suzune-san.

She looked utterly drained—like the life had been sucked out of her.

“What about Rei? Where is she?”

“She left this… note…”

With trembling hands, she passed me a small piece of memo paper.

“Please don’t look for me.”

That was all it said.

“Her phone’s still here too. She just left without a word… What do I do? What do I do, what do I do… She’s never done anything like this before. I—I don’t know what to do…”

Her face had gone pale.

She was panicking—more than I’d ever seen her before.

But of course…

No matter how calm someone might seem, all of that falls apart when it comes to their child.

“Please calm down, Suzune-san. Did something happen? A fight between you and Rei?”

“No, nothing like that… I just told her that you were worried about her… That you really wanted to make up. She listened in silence, then went back to her room. After a while… I found that note…”

Hmm…

From the sound of it, this wasn’t some impulsive rebellion after a fight with her mom.

It didn’t feel like a classic case of “running away after an argument.”

“Any idea where Rei might’ve gone?”

“I’ve already contacted Sasaki-san—one of her close friends—and she’s checking all the places she can think of. But… there’s been no word yet.”

“Alright. I’ll go search too. I’ll bring Rei back safely. I promise.”

“Thank you, Kujou-kun… P-Please be careful out there.”

With Suzune-san’s worried voice behind me, I headed back out into the night.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

“But still… there’s no way I’ll find her just running around at random.”

After leaving Rei’s high-rise apartment, I’d broken into a sprint without thinking.

Now, under the fully darkened sky, I found myself questioning my own plan.

Apparently, Sasaki-san had already mobilized the rest of Rei’s fangirl squad—the so-called Royal Guard—to help with the search.

That meant they were probably checking all the school-related spots…

Or places and people tied to her old figure skating club.

If that’s the case, it’s better to leave that side of things to them.

“Then… I should be searching the places connected to me.”

It’s not like Rei and I have known each other for that long.

Naturally, the number of places tied to both of us is pretty limited.

But it was already getting late—

Late enough that a minor wandering around alone could easily get picked up by the police.

And even if that didn’t happen…

A girl like Rei, roaming the streets at night—there’s no telling what kind of danger she might run into.

I needed to know.

Where Rei was, right now.

I needed some kind of lead.

There was no other choice. I had to…

Bracing myself, I opened my contacts app.

Then I stared at one particular name in the list.

“Ugh…”

Just looking at that number made the bile rise in my throat.

Felt like I was going to puke.

But I didn’t have the luxury of hesitating.

“About to use it, Saito-sama?”

“Gah!?”

A voice came from behind me without warning.

“Don’t sneak up like that, Tsuyoshi-nii! And seriously, I keep telling you to drop the ‘-sama’ thing!”

I turned around—and sure enough, it was my homeroom teacher, Mr. Neya.

Or rather, Tsuyoshi-nii.

At this point, I wasn’t even surprised anymore.

Didn’t matter why my teacher was randomly here in the middle of the night.

Or why he wasn’t scolding me for being out so late by myself.

The moment I saw how he was acting, I understood.

This wasn’t “teacher” mode.

It was that Tsuyoshi-nii.

“If you intend to act as Kujou, then it’s only natural that I address you accordingly.”

“If another student saw this, what do you think they’d say? A homeroom teacher speaking so politely to one of his students?”

“I’ve already made sure we won’t be interrupted. There’s no need to worry.”

Sure enough—

Even though we were standing in the middle of a normally busy street, the crowds had mysteriously thinned out.

Or more likely, there were others stationed nearby, just out of my awareness.

But I couldn’t sense a thing.

“Who were you about to contact on your phone just now?”

“That’s…”

As always, Tsuyoshi-nii saw right through me.

And just like that, my resolve started to waver.

“You mustn’t. You, of all people, know what happens when you rely on that power.”

“But… if I want to find out where Rei is, that’s the only way.”

“Forgive me, Saito-sama, but I believe you’ve lost your composure. You’re narrowing your focus too much. Is that Prince really so important to you?”

“…So you’re saying I’m letting my emotions get the better of me?”

I snapped before I realized it, glaring at Tsuyoshi-nii’s ever-calm expression.

“No. I’m simply advising you not to play a card you don’t need—especially not in the wrong situation.”

“But we need to find Rei as soon as possible!”

“There’s no need to panic. Word should be arriving shortly. For someone so young, she’s surprisingly capable… That family may be second-rate—two and a half stars at best in business—but when it comes to their servants, they struck gold. Hiring that girl with their household status? Practically a miracle.”

“…I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Ah—seems she’s arrived. I’ll take my leave now.”

“Wait—what!? You show up, say a bunch of cryptic things, and just leave? Don’t do that, Tsuyoshi-nii!”

“Saito! There you are!”

“Rinna!? And… Kusajishi-san too?”

Just as Tsuyoshi-nii vanished like a puff of smoke,

Rinna and Kusajishi-san came running over.

“So the Wimpy Prince ran away from home, huh? I’ll help look.”

“Wait—how did you even know I was here?”

“Eh? Uh, well… um… you see…”

“It was thanks to this maid’s abilities, Lord Kujou.”

Ah.

The maid’s powers. 

Makes sense.

If Kusajishi-san says so, that’s all I need to hear.

“More importantly, Lord Kujou—was someone just here with you?”

“Huh? Oh, uh… no, not really.”

“I see… I thought I sensed the presence of someone… someone similar to myself.”

Kusajishi-san sniffed the air like a dog, her expression unusually serious.

She glanced sharply in the direction Tsuyoshi-nii had disappeared.

Ah…

So that bit earlier—when he mentioned “that girl”—

He must’ve been talking about her.

“Anyway, Saito. You’re looking for the Wimpy Prince, right?”

“Yeah.”

“…Then go to the place where you first met her.”

“Huh? Wait—why would Rei be there, Rinna?”

“Just go already! We don’t have time to waste!”

“Ow! A-Alright! Thanks, Rinna!”

Rinna smacked me on the butt like she was physically knocking the hesitation out of me.

“I’m amazed you can act so smug after using the info I uncovered, Lady Rinna. You absolutely reek of a losing heroine.”

“T-The accomplishments of a maid are the accomplishments of her mistress, okay? And besides—I’m just settling a debt with that Wimpy Prince. And I don’t care if I’m up against ten thousand tons of competition— I’m not losing.”

With the ever-lively banter of a certain noble lady and her sassy maid behind me,

I dashed off into the city, now fully cloaked in night.