154 - "Senpai, you wouldn't want the video to get leaked, would you?"
Rurichou Nadeshiko pushed open a small crack in the clubroom door.
Blushing fiercely, holding her breath and concentrating, she stealthily took out her phone and began recording the chaotic scene inside.
"This really is an incredible secret... Miharutaki-senpai is actually reporting information to Hikigaya Hachiman while wearing just her underwear… If I use this video as evidence, I could definitely blackmail a lot of money out of them."
Miss Nadeshiko fell into a fantasy. When she received that money, how would she spend it?
One Steinway piano wouldn't be enough for her anymore—she needed two! Throwing one after another!
After a while, she retracted her phone. As for what confidential information Miharutaki Sakura had leaked, or what other fun plays would happen afterward, none of that mattered to her anymore. Just this short video in her hand was enough as leverage for extortion.
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When Hikigaya Hachiman returned home and saw the impeccably cleaned house, he felt somewhat relieved.
Miss Yor had done something worthy of her high salary.
At that moment, Miss Yor was sitting upright on the sofa, looking a little nervous, like a house dog awaiting punishment from its master.
"Have you eaten, Miss Yor?"
"I ate outside."
"Mm."
Hikigaya maintained a calm expression, preparing to head back to his room to continue working on his next mystery novel.
Just then, his phone vibrated—a message came in containing a video.
After glancing at its contents, his eyes narrowed, and a cold aura emanated from him.
The video showed the baseball club's room from earlier in the afternoon. Judging from the angle, someone had secretly opened the door slightly and filmed through the gap.
'I got careless. At that time, all my attention was focused on Miharutaki-senpai. I didn't even notice someone moving around.' Hikigaya felt a chill inside. Fortunately, this had only been a side mission. But what if it had involved his core plan?
The word "lust" indeed hides a sharp blade.
Hikigaya was beginning to grasp the true meaning of that phrase.
Cold sweat soaked the back of his shirt. He started reflecting whether he'd grown too complacent lately, losing even his basic sense of vigilance.
The video on his phone continued playing. Watching it again now, he realized just how shameful Miharutaki-senpai's behavior had been at that time.
'Thankfully, the content afterward wasn't captured.'
That was some small fortune amidst misfortune.
If the events that followed had also been filmed... things could have gotten much more urgent.
However... for now...
Immediately after, the unknown filmer sent another message:
[Hikigaya-kun, you wouldn't want this video to spread across the school forum, would you?]
[How much are you willing to pay to prevent such a tragedy?]
Hikigaya instinctively glanced at the sender's info: a string of random numbers, clearly a virtual number from the internet.
He didn't foolishly start with the typical "Who are you?" Instead, he coldly forwarded the message and number to Miss Honebami in Chiba.
Leave professional work to professionals.
As for why he didn't ask Miss Yor?
She might look harmlessly clumsy, but in terms of network technology, she was probably worse than Hikigaya himself, who was only semi-competent.
Honebami almost instantly replied with a [?]
[Hikigaya: Someone's trying to blackmail me. Please help me find out who it is.]
[Honebami: 5 million yen.]
[Hikigaya: Fine. How long will it take?]
[Honebami: Immediately. Payment account: XXXXX]
Without hesitation, Hikigaya transferred the money.
Perhaps, if he paid the blackmailer instead, it would have cost less. But true to his personality, Hikigaya would never choose that route. He would rather spend more to hunt down the blackmailer and eliminate the root of the problem.
With blackmail, once you give in once, you get caught in an endless psychological loop. Hikigaya didn't have the time or patience to play cat-and-mouse games with some rat hiding in the shadows.
'You better pray you're female.' Hikigaya closed his eyes, because if a male had seen Miharutaki-senpai's body...
He would deal with him without mercy.
Miharutaki-senpai was now his personal livestock, and thus, he had the obligation to protect her chastity.
Soon, five minutes passed, and his phone vibrated again.
[Honebami: The target is from Hyakkaou Academy. Name: Rurichou Nadeshiko, gender: female, age: 17, home address: …]
[Hikigaya: Thank you.]
Hikigaya turned to Yor and said, "Miss Yor, I need you to do something for me."
"Is it a kill job? But let me say this first—I don't kill good people," Miss Yor said excitedly. As expected, compared to being a maid, being an assassin thrilled her far more. When was the last time she killed someone again? Oh, right, it was when she dealt with those guys who had given her false information.
"It's not that serious."
Hikigaya walked over to the sofa, sat down, bent forward, and casually pulled a sticky note, jotting down an address, and handed it to Yor: "This person tried to blackmail me. Go and destroy the original video she has. Just give her a warning too."
Thinking a moment longer, Hikigaya added another reminder: "Don't overdo it."
"Eh, that's it?" Yor sounded a little disappointed as she pocketed the address and headed for the door. "So it's a girl, huh?"
"Yeah."
Yor's words, however, gave Hikigaya Hachiman another idea: since the other party liked playing dirty tricks, he didn't mind giving her a taste of her own medicine.
Just before Yor left, Hikigaya said with a malicious glint in his eye: "Record a video of her in her underwear yourself."
"Okay."
Yor gave Hikigaya a contemptuous glance as he turned his back to her. What a nasty employer.
But an employer's order was an order. As long as it didn't cross her moral bottom line, she wouldn't resist just because of her personal feelings.
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Rurichou Nadeshiko was a greedy person.
She had never planned to settle for just one payoff. Instead, she intended to cash in from both sides.
While she sent Hikigaya the blackmail message, she also sent an identical one to Miharutaki Sakura.
[Nadeshiko: Miharutaki-senpai, you wouldn't want a video of yourself in just your underwear being leaked, would you?]
[Miharutaki: Who are you?!]
[Nadeshiko: Hehe, who I am isn't important. What matters is—you've betrayed Mibuomi-senpai, haven't you! Seriously, you're his fiancée, and yet you've done something so shameless. You just wanted a thrill, right~ Turns out, Senpai, you're a real-life NTR slut~]
On the other side of the screen, Miharutaki Sakura saw the provocative words and felt her entire body weaken.
Her face was flushed deep red, and she clenched her silver teeth tightly.
This situation absolutely could not be exposed right now. If it were, it would throw Hikigaya's entire plan into chaos.
Unknowingly, the one who had taken control of Miharutaki Sakura's mind was no longer Mibuomi...
It was Hikigaya Hachiman.