"Hey... I think I lost my keys."

Two women in cubicles chatted with one another, both preparing to leave for the day.

"Eh? Really? A few days ago I could have sworn I lost mine the other day, but then I checked my locker and it was right there."

The sky was dark outside, the windows dim. It was clearly well past 6 PM, likely around 7 or 8.

"Huh... maybe I should check my locker as well. I thought I had it in my bag, but maybe I left it there?"

"Let's go look."

"Let's do this quickly. I want to get home before it gets too late."

"Same."

----

'Another day...'

Yakov stood in the bathroom, mopping the floors after hours.

Most people had already headed home for the day, which was the perfect time for him to clean the bathrooms. He would always wait until most people were gone to do so, in order to prevent running into people.

'Almost over.'

Would his life ever amount to anything more than this?

He cleaned, and cleaned, and cleaned.

Day in and day out, the women seemed to look at him with disgust. The rumors that had spread around the office had clearly affected his position and established him as a creep.

Even some of the men openly despised Yakov. Nathan was one of these men.

He had openly proclaimed to the women that he would defend them from Yakov, heroically establishing himself as a sort of savior.

'A savior from what? A feeble man who has no reason to live?'

There had been a couple of incidents where Yakov was cleaning and some women had walked by without noticing him, only to accuse him of eavesdropping once they realized his presence.

He was the type of person who carried a sort of strange stealthiness about him. This wasn't exactly Yakov's intention, but he never exactly stood out, so people wouldn't even notice he was there most of the time.

Not until recently, that was.

Even so, this unnoticeable nature carried its own problems, creating situations where people would think he appeared out of nowhere, and leading to further speculation of him being some sort of creep.

'Is it truly that much of a sin not to want to stand out?'

Nathan was the type of guy who stood out at everything, and the women and men alike respected him. Was he someone that Yakov should aspire to be like?

'But at the end of the day, he is misguided. He may be outgoing, but his fiery justice is based on false assumptions. He thinks I'm really just some creep.'

Could Yakov blame the man exactly, given the evidence? No. But did it irk him? Absolutely.

If only the truth could have been revealed - but that was something that would be hidden for all eternity.

Perhaps he was pathetic - but could he do anything about it?

No.

All he could do was stay out of trouble from this point on.

But this was proving difficult.

As he finished up cleaning the women's bathroom, Yakov grabbed the bucket as he headed out.

"I'm surprised they were there, just like you said. I guess I was just forgetful."

"It is strange, isn't it? What a coincidence. Eh?"

However right as Yakov exited, he bumped into two women who were heading to use the restroom.

"Hey! What were you doing in there!?", one shouted.

"Hey, isn't this the guy..."

The other backed away, fear evident in her expression.

"Ah, I was cleaning the restrooms. I'm the Janitor, you see. I'm sorry, I didn't realize that anyone was still here-"

"Hey. Were you waiting in ambush, using that job title to justify your actions?"

As Yakov explained himself with a reasonable justification, the voice of a man spoke up as someone came out from behind a column.

"Nathan?"

"You're here as well?"

The two women almost immediately hid behind the man, who approached Yakov while shielding them in a protective manner.

"You might be able to fool the executives, but you won't fool me. How long have you been waiting in there, you creep?"

"Honestly, I was really just cleaning! You can confirm this for yourself!"

"A likely cover. Even if you were cleaning, you would probably have hidden as soon as you heard someone coming. But you got bored and thought everyone had left, so you decided instead to give up. Fortunately I was around at the time to catch you."

The man threw around baseless accusations, however the two women seemed to be completely convinced at his words, horror slowly overtaking them as they glared at Yakov.

"You... is that true?"

"How horrible..."

"This should be reported..."

As the women uttered these comments, Nathan spoke up with a pained expression.

"I've already tried reporting him for his actions, but the executives are all corrupt... they're defending this man because he's a foreigner and it'll look bad on them to cut him loose."

As Nathan made this statement, the two women shouted out with indignance.

"EH!? That's horrible!"

"How can we stay here knowing that such a man might be waiting to spy on us like this!?"

And at their pleas, Nathan responded with affirmation.

"Which is why I'll be sure to get evidence on his crimes."

"I'm telling you... I haven't done anything wrong..."

With a quiet tone, Yakov begged for mercy, however the man merely grit his teeth.

"Those excuses won't work on me. Don't you dare try anything else. Or I'll catch you in the act. Ladies, can I walk you two home? To ensure that people like this don't try anything funny."

"Would you do that?"

"Thanks so much, Nathan..."

At this, Yakov merely walked off - or he attempted to, however his shoulder was grabbed.

"I'm serious. Don't try anything or you'll regret it."

"I'm telling you, I haven't been trying anything, and I'm not going to try anything."

Brushing the hand off his shoulder, Yakov left the three.

'Why do things like this keep happening? I was just doing my job. Everyone should understand that. And yet...'

And yet, the accusations kept flowing.

It was as if this man was trying to reveal every falsehood to the world about Yakov, painting him as some vile villain.

'If something negative gets revealed... why do people always assume it's true without even trying to find out?'

The man was left to wonder this as he departed work that day.

----

Some more time had passed.

More small incidents had occurred. Minor cases of the usual bullying by some of the office women, other cases of being shunned and harassed by some men who considered themselves white knights, and other cases of misunderstandings and false accusations.

Even so, Yakov tried to brush these cases off, accepting them as a part of his new life in Stronvardia.

'At least I'm not persecuted by the government. Is this what happens when the people are given so much individual freedom?'

In his home nation, anyone who said or did anything against the regime was thrown to the dogs, either executed as a traitor or sent off to labor camps.

There was an extremely strict way of living that was suffocating for the citizens, but on seeing the freedom the people here held, he was starting to understand why.

'If people are given the right to decide things on their own, it becomes nothing more than a popularity contest with no rule or regulation.'

Even so, he continued living day by day, trying to keep out of trouble and accepting the abuse without complaint.

His boss never said anything, nor was there any discussion of him being fired, so he was able to leave it at that.

'It would be extremely difficult to get another job at this rate. My reputation is already down the drain, and I'm sure some of these people would go out of their way to hurt my chances.'

Why was it that people always went so far out of their way to harm another, but wouldn't lift a finger to help another?

He didn't know.

However on one particular night, Yakov was making his way home when he noticed a particular man.

'That... is Nathan, isn't it?'

Immediately, Yakov hid himself behind a tree, using the darkness to his advantage as he avoided his primary plaintiff.

'What is he doing this late? Shouldn't he have already gone home? Or did he stick around to make sure I wasn't doing anything suspicious?'

This man almost had an obsession with Yakov. It was beyond strange.

However as Yakov thought this, he noticed that Nathan hid behind a tree as well.

'Eh? What is he-'

And just as Nathan did this, he heard footsteps from down the path.

'A woman? And one of our office workers at that? Ah... she's one of the ones who resents me.'

As a matter of fact, it was the very woman who had spilled coffee and forced Yakov to clean it with his tongue.

'If I'm caught hiding here it would be quite troublesome. They might think I'm some sort of stalker. I had better wait for them to pass and head another direction.'

The woman walked by, making her way to her home as the man watched from the shadows, however what happened after the woman passed was something that made Yakov question his own sight.

'Nathan... is following her?'

Was he trying to protect her as she went home?

But even if he was trying to do that, wouldn't he just say so like he did for the other women? Why would he hide?

Perhaps because he was trying to catch someone like Yakov in the act of stalking her?

'So he thinks that if he's around openly that I won't show myself... that means this entire situation is all the more troublesome if I'm caught. I had better just leave-'

This was the initial thought that Yakov had - however something stopped him.

Almost as if something had been revealed to him, his intuition flared up as he witnessed the man's expression change to a predatory grin.

'What?'

And at that moment, he realized something.

'This man... isn't after me.'

He witnessed as Nathan slinked forward, a grin on his face as he stuck to the shadows like a stalker.

'He's after her, isn't he?'

----

Should he have followed them?

Absolutely not.

Did he follow them?

Yes.

How could he have not done so?

He didn't exactly know why himself, but Yakov sensed a sort of bloodlust that he hadn't ever felt before - and it was emanating from the man in front of him.

'He's going to rape her.'

Should he stop him?

Should he just leave?

This woman had abused him and humiliated him, harmed his reputation, and done all other sorts of horrible things to Yakov.

Why would he help her?

Yet even so, he continued to follow them, as if he was unable to do anything else.

'I might even be wrong.'

'I might just be endangering my own position by doing this.'

'This all might just be a big misunderstanding.'

Yet even as Yakov told himself these things, he knew from the depths of his being that he was just deceiving himself with words.

'Why would he do such a thing? Someone as popular as he is... he shouldn't even need to resort to such things to sleep with whatever woman-'

At that moment it occurred to him.

Nathan was a man who was single yet he had no relations with women.

He was loved and respected by more women than he could count, yet it was only because he had no woman himself that they would all flock to him.

'But what if that was all just a facade... and all the women he's been with have been... silenced with threats?'

In order to maintain an image and not be labeled as a playboy, he used more brutal means to mess with women, threatening them and making himself even more appealing and unsuspicious.

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'Nobody would believe it if someone accused him of doing something like that.'

Such was the image Nathan had created for himself.

Yakov was the opposite. He was suspicious and antisocial. He was creepy and strange. He was a foreigner, and 30 years old at that.

Everything about Yakov pointed to him being some sort of creep, while everything about Nathan pointed to him being a perfectly respectable person.

'Just as that woman was able to threaten me with telling a lie about me, perhaps he too has found a way to threaten them with his status.'

With this deduction, Yakov could no longer walk away.

Even if he hated her, he had to follow.

He had to stop what was about to happen.

'I don't care what happens to me. I'll prevent this... because that's what a gentleman would do.'

----

He had continued to follow the two until they eventually reached an apartment.

At this point, it was now or never.

Was he going to reveal himself, or was he going to remain hidden?

What would he do once he revealed himself?

Yakov saw two ways in which this scene would play out - and neither of them were favorable.

'Either he knocks me out to silence me or he accuses me of being the stalker.'

By all logic, he should walk away at this moment.

There was no other way Yakov could win.

'I should just stay quiet and let this happen.

But... Yakov couldn't do that.

"What are you doing?"

From the darkness, Yakov revealed himself - and the presence of the other man with him.

The man turned around in shock, evidently perturbed at the presence of someone unexpected, however the woman immediately looked back, facing Yakov then facing Nathan, whose presence had been revealed.

"Eh? EH!? What... what are you doing following me like this?"

Her words were aimed directly at Yakov.

"Hey, don't tell me you found out where I lived and... oh... oh my goodness..."

While she acted like a bully in the office, she was now alone and afraid in the dark, reduced to a fraction of her normal boldness.

"No, that's... that man is-"

"Ahem. I noticed this man following you, so I took the liberty to tail him. But to think he really would follow you all this way... it's despicable."

The momentary lapse gave Nathan the time he needed to respond.

'Ah.... I knew it would end up this way.'

"Wait just a minute. I wasn't the one who followed you. He was. I was just-"

"Absurd. Listen to the things this creep is saying to defend himself. Don't worry, miss. I'll make sure that you get home safely. It was a good thing I decided to keep an eye on him."

Nathan was able to easily take control of the pace, and it was obvious who the woman would believe.

Yakov wondered if he should even attempt to defend himself any further, for he knew well that anything he said would be thrown away.

'If I run, will he rush after me?'

He would.

Rather than taking the violent approach, this man had taken the diplomatic approach, using Yakov as a scapegoat and blaming the entire situation on another.

Wasn't this exactly what Yakov was aiming for?

Perhaps.

Was he a fool to aim for this?

Perhaps.

But even so, he ran.

He ran - so that this rapist would run after him, leaving the woman to her own devices.

"Hey! You coward! Where do you think you're going!?"

Immediately, Nathan dashed after him, rushing towards Yakov, who darted off.

'If anything... I've always been confident in my athletic abilities.'

Despite the fact that he was a 30 year old man, Yakov had continued to work out regularly, and his body was well built. His former life in Joraten had ensured that he kept himself sharp in this aspect.

Yakov was able to rush off, Nathan barreling behind him.

However at some point, once they had left the sight of the woman, Nathan disappeared.

'Shit... did he give up and go back?'

Turning around, Yakov rushed back, taking a path in the dark as he ran back to the apartment complex.

However as he viewed from afar, he could see the woman still standing there, as if perplexed and terrified by the strange set of occurrences.

'I'll wait here and watch... to make sure he doesn't follow her in.'

Thus, Yakov waited.

The woman eventually went inside, watching her back as she did.

Yakov remained for a while, but he never saw the man approach. Perhaps he truly had left.

A couple of hours passed, and eventually Yakov determined that Nathan had given up on this attempt - thus, he returned home.

However, on that next day when he went into work, a catastrophe would await him.

----

"Are you telling me that even though I saw it with my own two eyes, that you still won't accept it as evidence?"

"Please understand, Nathan. I'm not calling you a liar. As a matter of fact, the fact that you're now testifying against Yakov here is further evidence of the truth of these claims surrounding him. But even so... we need something more decisive. And there is also the issue that he is now accusing you-"

"It's obvious that he's lying to defend himself! I would never do such a thing, and his story is nothing more than a last ditch effort to defend his own shady actions!"

Yakov and Nathan once more sat across from their superior, who was conflicted at the vile testimony against the Janitor.

"Do you have anything else to say in response, Yakov?"

"I've already said everything that I have to say. Whether you believe me or him is completely up to you."

"It's not a matter of who I believe, it's a matter of knowing the truth.", the boss repeated. "I can't just let this slide... but I suppose I'll have to discuss things with the other executives once more. If anything comes up before the decision, please don't hesitate to let us know."

With these words, the executive rushed the two out of his office.

Yakov and Nathan left, heading back to their respective positions, however as Yakov prepared himself for another day's work, he noticed something strange.

'Was Nathan's office in that direction?'

Should he follow him?

Something told Yakov that he should.

Just as before, Yakov began to tail Nathan, who was heading to the floor where most of the employees worked.

'Perhaps he has someone that he needs to speak with. Likely that woman from last night. But...'

Just like before, Yakov felt like he needed to follow.

He took the stairs while Nathan took the elevator, ensuring that he wasn't caught, heading now to the office of that woman.

'That's almost certainly where he's going.'

As he made his way down, the man eventually came across the office floor, standing before the entrance as he prepared himself.

Yet as he stood in front of that entrance, he overheard something.

It was the voice of a man, speaking loudly for all to hear.

"Everyone! Please give me a moment of your time! I don't mean to disturb you, but there is a pressing issue that's been lingering in our office that absolutely needs to be addressed. And I'm here to address it once and for all."

Entering the room, Yakov immediately knew that Nathan was up to something - and something big.

'Is he going to accuse me in front of all these people? But even if he does that, it won't make any difference to the current situation. Unless the upper management decides to fire me...'

"Yakov Kremol has been the talk for quite a while now, and not for good reasons. He has been suspected of being a creep and a pervert, and I've been investigating him for a while now. But last night I caught him stalking a woman as she made her way home."

As the man revealed this to all, murmuring began and vile glares made their way towards Yakov, who was now standing in the open before everyone.

'So he's going to reveal everything... is he?'

"Not only that, but he was caught waiting in the women's restrooms before, and there were even some cameras found previously - the culprit of which hasn't been caught, but I think we all know that the only person who can reasonably make his way into the women's restrooms is the janitor who holds the responsibility of cleaning them."

With a curve ball, this additional piece of information was even a surprise to Yakov, who had heard nothing about such cameras.

Was this another lie, or perhaps a truth that was being pinned on him?

"That's right! I found one of those cameras!", one woman shouted. "I can't believe this!"

Apparently it was the truth.

"Not only that, but we all know about the incident from before where he was licking the floor. This is getting ridiculous, and I'm sure none of the women in this office feel safe anymore. But more importantly than any of that..."

Taking a step forward, Nathan thinned his eyes as he made the biggest revelation yet.

"To all the women... your keys have gone missing for a time, only to show back up inside your lockers. Am I wrong?"

As the man made this statement, all the women looked back and forth to one another with shock, wondering how Nathan had known such a thing, yet nodding to confirm it.

"That... that's correct."

"That did happen to me."

"Me as well."

Many spoke out, at which Nathan stepped forward.

"I had suspected as much. Will everyone please come with me? Since the upper management won't do anything without any evidence, we will need to find this evidence ourselves."

Stepping towards Yakov, Nathan now stood in front of him.

"Empty your pockets. Show us everything you're carrying on you, Yakov."

The men and women of the office seemed to stand up, all gathering around to watch the spectacle.

"I... I have nothing in particular to hide... but what are you-"

"Just be quiet and do it."

As Nathan barked out this order, Yakov obeyed quietly, emptying his pockets before all.

"Hmm... I guess he isn't stupid enough to carry anything on his person. But what about in his locker?"

Motioning for the others to follow him, Nathan headed to the locker room.

"Come, everyone! We need to confirm this with our own eyes. I need as many witnesses as possible to say with certainty that he's guilty."

As if he was a criminal whose guilt had already been determined, Nathan referred to Yakov as such, at which the people all followed him to the locker room.

Yakov too made his way there, though he was prevented from approaching his own locker for fear that he might try something.

"Now let's see what's in here! Yakov, hand over your key!"

With a grimace, Yakov did as Nathan demanded, wondering just what he was trying to prove.

Click.

The locker opened, and inside it were some items typical of a Janitor.

An extra uniform, cleaning supplies, nothing out of the ordinary.

Except for a brown bag.

"What's this?"

Pulling the bag out, Nathan inspected the contents, which he dumped out onto the ground.

The clattering of numerous metal objects filled the room, and the men and women present bore witness to the scene.

"This..."

Nathan looked at the scene with shock, horrified at the implications of the items.

For covering the floor were hundreds of keys - duplicates of stolen keys that had been made and stored.

"This is evidence enough, isn't it?"

Pointing to Yakov, the man spoke in a loud tone, and at that instant Yakov felt an immense rage directed towards him from every person present in that room.

"I think it's safe to say that this is all the evidence we need."

----