As soon as Natsuhi boarded the train, she was hit with a strong sense of déjà vu. She had seen plenty of stories that started with this exact setting.
Huh... Today, she was witnessing it firsthand. While getting to watch the plot unfold in real life was something, why couldn't she feel happy about it right now?
Wait!
What was she here for?
Wasn't she here precisely to stop the main story from starting?!
She wanted to watch, but she couldn't!
It was fine to watch on a screen, but encountering it in reality called for decisive action.
With that thought, Natsuhi quickly scanned her surroundings, searching for any potential targets.
[Emergency Event Triggered: [Train Guardian]]
[Event Description]: Detected a D-class threat [Commuting Groper] harassing the mature lady [Hayakawa Masako]. The target possesses the traits of [Married Woman] and [Gentle Demeanor].
[Threat Target]:
[Middle-aged Salaryman] (Threat Level D)
[Mission Requirement]: Stop the perpetrator before the victim suffers substantial harm.
[Mission Rewards]:
System Completion +3% (Current Total: 6%)
Stamina +1 (Current Rating: Slightly Effective)
Eroge Coins: 50 (Can increase based on mission evaluation)
Married woman? Gentle? Mature lady?
Hearing these phrases, Natsuhi's eyes lit up. An older sister type was great!
The train was getting a bit crowded, making it difficult for her to immediately spot the person about to act.
Fortunately, most people were absorbed in their electronic screens, which made searching for the target a little easier.
Suddenly, Natsuhi felt a tug on her sleeve. She looked at Yui, who was leaning against her, and saw the girl pointing in a direction while whispering:
"Natsuhi, doesn't that person look a bit strange?"
[Found them?]
With that thought, Natsuhi swiftly turned her gaze in that direction.
Among the crowd, she saw a slightly chubby middle-aged man in a suit, with only three strands of hair left on his head, holding onto a handrail. His eyes were fixed with intense heat on the woman in front of him. The distance between them kept closing with the flow of people, and the curve of his smile grew wider and wider.
The woman in front of him was a beautiful lady with a full figure and exquisite attire.
Her smooth, long hair cascaded down her shoulders, a deep brown shade with a soft sheen.
She wore a light pink blouse, the collar slightly open, looking casual yet not losing its feminine grace.
And right now, she was completely unaware of the threat behind her.
Fully focused on her phone, she occasionally furrowed her brows slightly, probably looking at work-related content. Being a working adult really wasn't easy.
In fact, quite a few people had already noticed the situation, but after their gazes lingered on the two for a moment,
they immediately chose to stay out of it, turning their attention back to their phones as if nothing was happening, though the corners of their eyes still kept watch on the situation over there.
Whether it was a desire for drama or some other, more voyeuristic psychology, one could only say, typical Japan.
If this were in China, someone probably would've already delivered a flying kick by now.
But here, they just silently created a bit more distance, quietly moving away from the potential danger zone.
Bystander Effect: Refers to the phenomenon where, at the scene of an emergency, the greater the number of bystanders, the lower the likelihood of any single bystander offering help, and the longer the reaction time.
Simply put, the more people there are, the less likely anyone is to intervene.
This is contrary to our intuition, which assumes that with more people around, someone is bound to help.
But that's wrong, and very wrong, because everyone else is thinking the same thing.
If only one person is present, then all the responsibility to help falls on that one individual.
They feel, 'If I don't help, no one will,' and the sense of responsibility is very strong.
But when multiple people are present, the responsibility to help is diffused among all the bystanders.
Each person thinks:'Surely someone else will help,' 'If I don't go, someone else will.' As a result, everyone feels their own responsibility diminishes, and ultimately, no one takes action.
Besides, nothing substantial has happened yet, right? The situation isn't severe. Even if something does happen, with so many people not stepping in, it's unlikely they'd single me out for blame.
This was the unspoken consensus everyone had reached.
[How dare he lay hands on a gentle, mature, steady, reliable, dignified, graceful, serene-as-orchids, perfectly-proportioned, radiant-like-water, understanding older sister? I can't tolerate this at all.]
Starting with a classic long, complex sentence, Natsuhi ignored all that. Burning with anger, she was about to stage a heroic rescue.
However, the first one to step forward wasn't her. Natsuhi stared wide-eyed at Yui beside her. The girl was already walking toward the scene of the incident, looking fiercely adorable.
Natsuhi grabbed her arm and stopped her, asking:
"Hey, are you crazy? Aren't you afraid that creep might get handsy with you too?"
"Then what should we do? We can't just watch that older sister get bullied. Besides, there are so many people here, what could he possibly do to me?"
[This is no joke, little girl. What if no one really steps up to help you?]
Natsuhi thought this to herself, her hand still firmly gripping Yui, not letting her jump into the fire.
"Stay right here. I'll go check it out."
Just as she was about to get up and head over, unexpectedly, the hem of her clothes was tightly grabbed by Yui again.
"Huh? What are you saying? If I can't handle it, can you? Aren't you afraid of the danger?"
"Of course."
Looking at Yui's expression, full of worry for her safety, Natsuhi's face softened a little. Although this kid's words were a bit sharp, her heart wasn't bad.
It was a good thing... she had met her today, preventing the girl from going down the wrong path.
"Alright, alright, stop acting like an adult, you little brat. Leave it to me! You stay put and watch from the side... remember to record it."
Removing the hand from her sleeve, Natsuhi patted Yui's head and left her with a cool, departing figure.
"You look about the same age as me, yet you're really acting like a hero..."
Although still feeling somewhat unsure, for some reason, when met with that gaze, Yui felt that nothing seemed impossible for Natsuhi. It inspired an involuntary sense of trust.
[Ah, whatever. If she really gets into danger, I can still step in then.]
Thinking this, she switched her phone to the emergency call screen...
Yui glanced at the lecherous-looking middle-aged man, then at the indifferent bystanders who stayed out of it. Her brows furrowed, and the light in her eyes dimmed a little.
"So disgusting... This world is truly awful."