５．Ｓａｔｕｒｄａｙ Ｍａｒｃｈ ２３， ２０１９
文字数 6,801文字
5:30 pm. The two had no time to enjoy the city at dusk after returning home to Tokyo.
"Maruta-san, aren't you hungry?" Kira leans back in the passenger seat, almost assimilating with it.
"Come to think of it, I haven't eaten anything but that frankfurter."
"It would be nice if Miss Minagawa could serve us meals. She could easily order sushi for three people."
Maruta dismissed this commonplace Kira's joke once and for all.
"No. I would rather not have her serve us meals, only today."
The Minagawa residence is still as violently gorgeous as it was a week ago. Individually, the houses in the neighborhood, which could be considered superior enough, appear to have been reduced in size by some pressure to make her fortress stand out. Maruta dropped Kira off there, parked his car in a nearby coin-operated parking lot, and returned again on foot.
"Why don't you let us use Minagawa's parking lot today?" The questions Kira exhaled were like smoke, drifting around his face as well. Maruta fixed his gaze on Kira's eyes, then put his index finger to his mouth.
"Kira-san, I have a consultation. Please listen quietly."
On this day, the white gate was closed. An intercom of a different type than the one previously seen at the entrance is mounted slightly lower than eye level on the gatepost.
"Maruta-san, shall we push?" Kira said, lowering his voice.
Maruta was lost. Its intercom has a built-in camera. When I visited last week, I did not check to see to what extent this camera could take movies. There may also be surveillance cameras installed in other unseen areas.
"Kira-san, may I ask you to wait a moment?" Maruta looked around the driveway, then turned to Kira again. "When you meet Miss Minagawa at the entrance, please act as I told you earlier. Now I pull back once to the corner over there. When you have her open the gate through this intercom, please signal me. Without speaking at all and without looking at me."
"If she ask if there is anyone else, I should tell her I came alone, right?"
"Of course, yes."
Maruta took a short run to the nearest intersection. He then observed Kira's movements as he half-hid himself in the corner housing. Kira pressed the intercom. The breeze felt strangely lukewarm as it swept his neck, which was wet with sweat.
Kira, who stuck his face out, spoke something into the intercom. The automatic inward opening of the gate could be seen from Maruta's position. A moment earlier than Kira's hand signal, Maruta rushed out.
The neat and clean front yard is no different than before. The sun is tilting, but the darkness is not yet there to melt him there. It is conceivable that Asumi Minagawa could look out the window. While Kira walked on the tiles as usual, Maruta made his way along the wall like a field mouse.
When Kira reached the doorway, Maruta quickly crossed right past him. Then, without slowing down, he ducked into a narrow passage between a wall and the house. Beyond that, there is a partial peek of the backyard, which he saw briefly near the end of their first visit. After Maruta's silent signal, Kira pressed the intercom at the front door of the house.
"Hi, Kira-san, it's been a while."
"Hello, Miss Minagawa, it is a pleasure to see you again."
Maruta was listening to their formal greeting right beside them. Long weeds were left growing on the narrow path which would not normally be exposed to the sun. If he moves his legs even a little, he will make his presence known. He placed his body there as a stone and waited for their conversation to drift away.
"It is about the request from Maruta-san that I spoke with you about on the phone yesterday." Kira's performance was not bad. At least, it was natural enough to make those who did not know what was going on believe it.
"He left his handkerchief at this house." Asumi Minagawa responded briskly. From the sound of her voice, she seemed to be in a good mood.
"Maruta-san can't come today?" Minagawa asked.
"He's got something to do today."
"Okay. Wait a minute. I'll go get it now."
There was no sound of the front door being closed. After hearing Asumi's footsteps from the back of the house, Maruta proceeded down the narrow passageway, trying to avoid stepping on the grass as much as possible.
Maruta was approximately seven or eight paces away from that storage-like object he had last seen. He is still near the exit of the passage. It is a blind corner of the house, from which the householder cannot see him.
He put his ear to the white wall of the house to probe the interior. Faint footsteps walking around the living room. Apparently, there were no other visitors.
The object remains as it was last time, tightly covered by a gray cloth. Although Maruta is quite close, he still has no idea what it is.
Again, the voice was heard. "Kira-san, is this it?" Asumi must have gone to the front door again. Dashing out exactly like a hare, Maruta went around to the back side of the object. He did not gasp for breath, but his heart pounded repeatedly against his ribs like an alarm bell.
He found himself in full view from the second floor of another house in the back.
If someone sees me, I must not be recognized as a person who has not obtained permission to enter from the householder. Maruta deliberately shoved one hand into his pants pocket and began to act casual, as if it were an appropriate action to take.
But there is no time to slow down. Maruta could not make out the content of their conversation, but he could still faintly hear Kira and Minagawa talking on the other end. Kira is probably keeping her around by asking a somewhat better topic than "Do you prefer ramen or pasta?" Maruta put his hand through the slit in the cloth he had found. Carefully and boldly, he opened it and found the object to be a huge steel grate. The afterglow of the western sun showed the dark interior with reserve. The shape of what is inside leaps into his view ......
"Maruta-san,"
There is an expression that says "The heart leaps," and that is exactly what happened to Maruta at this time, as if his heart was pulled by a string rapidly, disrupting the pace of his beat. His lower jaw and two legs literally trembled with surprise.
"I ironed your handkerchief."
Asumi stood next to the steel cage with a smile on her face. Maruta's eyes remained motionless as they caught her dignified figure. Maruta moved his mouth, which could no longer even breathe, for no reason. No words were spoken at all. Leisurely approaching Maruta, Asumi let him hold his wrinkle-free handkerchief.
"Maruta-san, aren't you hungry?" Kira leans back in the passenger seat, almost assimilating with it.
"Come to think of it, I haven't eaten anything but that frankfurter."
"It would be nice if Miss Minagawa could serve us meals. She could easily order sushi for three people."
Maruta dismissed this commonplace Kira's joke once and for all.
"No. I would rather not have her serve us meals, only today."
The Minagawa residence is still as violently gorgeous as it was a week ago. Individually, the houses in the neighborhood, which could be considered superior enough, appear to have been reduced in size by some pressure to make her fortress stand out. Maruta dropped Kira off there, parked his car in a nearby coin-operated parking lot, and returned again on foot.
"Why don't you let us use Minagawa's parking lot today?" The questions Kira exhaled were like smoke, drifting around his face as well. Maruta fixed his gaze on Kira's eyes, then put his index finger to his mouth.
"Kira-san, I have a consultation. Please listen quietly."
On this day, the white gate was closed. An intercom of a different type than the one previously seen at the entrance is mounted slightly lower than eye level on the gatepost.
"Maruta-san, shall we push?" Kira said, lowering his voice.
Maruta was lost. Its intercom has a built-in camera. When I visited last week, I did not check to see to what extent this camera could take movies. There may also be surveillance cameras installed in other unseen areas.
"Kira-san, may I ask you to wait a moment?" Maruta looked around the driveway, then turned to Kira again. "When you meet Miss Minagawa at the entrance, please act as I told you earlier. Now I pull back once to the corner over there. When you have her open the gate through this intercom, please signal me. Without speaking at all and without looking at me."
"If she ask if there is anyone else, I should tell her I came alone, right?"
"Of course, yes."
Maruta took a short run to the nearest intersection. He then observed Kira's movements as he half-hid himself in the corner housing. Kira pressed the intercom. The breeze felt strangely lukewarm as it swept his neck, which was wet with sweat.
Kira, who stuck his face out, spoke something into the intercom. The automatic inward opening of the gate could be seen from Maruta's position. A moment earlier than Kira's hand signal, Maruta rushed out.
The neat and clean front yard is no different than before. The sun is tilting, but the darkness is not yet there to melt him there. It is conceivable that Asumi Minagawa could look out the window. While Kira walked on the tiles as usual, Maruta made his way along the wall like a field mouse.
When Kira reached the doorway, Maruta quickly crossed right past him. Then, without slowing down, he ducked into a narrow passage between a wall and the house. Beyond that, there is a partial peek of the backyard, which he saw briefly near the end of their first visit. After Maruta's silent signal, Kira pressed the intercom at the front door of the house.
"Hi, Kira-san, it's been a while."
"Hello, Miss Minagawa, it is a pleasure to see you again."
Maruta was listening to their formal greeting right beside them. Long weeds were left growing on the narrow path which would not normally be exposed to the sun. If he moves his legs even a little, he will make his presence known. He placed his body there as a stone and waited for their conversation to drift away.
"It is about the request from Maruta-san that I spoke with you about on the phone yesterday." Kira's performance was not bad. At least, it was natural enough to make those who did not know what was going on believe it.
"He left his handkerchief at this house." Asumi Minagawa responded briskly. From the sound of her voice, she seemed to be in a good mood.
"Maruta-san can't come today?" Minagawa asked.
"He's got something to do today."
"Okay. Wait a minute. I'll go get it now."
There was no sound of the front door being closed. After hearing Asumi's footsteps from the back of the house, Maruta proceeded down the narrow passageway, trying to avoid stepping on the grass as much as possible.
Maruta was approximately seven or eight paces away from that storage-like object he had last seen. He is still near the exit of the passage. It is a blind corner of the house, from which the householder cannot see him.
He put his ear to the white wall of the house to probe the interior. Faint footsteps walking around the living room. Apparently, there were no other visitors.
The object remains as it was last time, tightly covered by a gray cloth. Although Maruta is quite close, he still has no idea what it is.
Again, the voice was heard. "Kira-san, is this it?" Asumi must have gone to the front door again. Dashing out exactly like a hare, Maruta went around to the back side of the object. He did not gasp for breath, but his heart pounded repeatedly against his ribs like an alarm bell.
He found himself in full view from the second floor of another house in the back.
If someone sees me, I must not be recognized as a person who has not obtained permission to enter from the householder. Maruta deliberately shoved one hand into his pants pocket and began to act casual, as if it were an appropriate action to take.
But there is no time to slow down. Maruta could not make out the content of their conversation, but he could still faintly hear Kira and Minagawa talking on the other end. Kira is probably keeping her around by asking a somewhat better topic than "Do you prefer ramen or pasta?" Maruta put his hand through the slit in the cloth he had found. Carefully and boldly, he opened it and found the object to be a huge steel grate. The afterglow of the western sun showed the dark interior with reserve. The shape of what is inside leaps into his view ......
"Maruta-san,"
There is an expression that says "The heart leaps," and that is exactly what happened to Maruta at this time, as if his heart was pulled by a string rapidly, disrupting the pace of his beat. His lower jaw and two legs literally trembled with surprise.
"I ironed your handkerchief."
Asumi stood next to the steel cage with a smile on her face. Maruta's eyes remained motionless as they caught her dignified figure. Maruta moved his mouth, which could no longer even breathe, for no reason. No words were spoken at all. Leisurely approaching Maruta, Asumi let him hold his wrinkle-free handkerchief.
