Chương 94: Chapter 26 The People of Chiyoda (Part 1)

How are you spending this calm evening? Busy preparing dinner? Finished with work and on your way home? As for me, I'm currently being carted away like the calf in the song "Dona Dona" in a HiAce... I did ask for someone to pick me up. I just never said anything about being kidnapped!

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! We couldn't disobey them either!"

"... I almost blew up the entire car, you know." The police officers who kidnapped me are bowing their heads and apologizing profusely right in front of me. There are three people in the car, including the driver. At Chiyoda's request to meet his family, I had agreed to wait for a while at a spot facing the road in front of the Self-Defense Forces hospital. It was evening, so there weren't many people around, but several people asked me for handshakes and autographs.

I dealt with them with a polite smile, and just as the crowd dispersed, those guys appeared with innocent-looking faces.

"You're First-san, right? Could we get a handshake?"

"Ah~. Sure, I guess." Two young men who had been shopping at the bakery across the road seemed to notice me. They came over and asked for a handshake. Is this the price of fame? Lately, I've been shaking hands and signing autographs in all sorts of places. Since I'd been doing exactly that until just moments ago, my guard had gradually dropped. After shaking hands, they said, "If you'd like," and took an anpan they had bought from the bakery right in front of us out of a paper bag and offered it to me.

It felt rude to refuse, so I took a bite. I had seen them buying bread at the bakery, so I figured it wasn't anything dangerous. The smell of freshly baked wheat and the sweetness of the red bean paste were delightful to both my nose and tongue, and before I knew it, I had stuffed my mouth with another big bite.

"I'm so thrilled! Please shake my hand too. Ah, you can stay just as you are. The way you're stuffing your face is cute, and we have somewhere to go after this anyway." A different young man from before smiled as he held out his hand right after I took another bite of the bun. I was going to swallow before shaking his hand, but he told me I could leave it as it was, and the other one had already taken a step toward the Self-Defense Forces hospital.

Visiting hours were probably about to end, so they must have been in a hurry. It was bad manners, but I wiped my hand on my suit and shook his.

"Mmph!?" The result was that, immediately after the handshake, a HiAce came rushing toward us as if it had been timed to the second. I was pushed from behind by the youth who had taken a step forward, pulled by the hand by the one I shook hands with, and on top of that, the anpan was stuffed into my mouth. I was abducted so smoothly that I couldn't even scream. The anpan was delicious, though... I nearly choked to death. Was this a professional job by a two-man team?

It was broad daylight, but there were few people around, and the crowd from earlier had already dispersed after getting what they wanted, leaving behind what was almost an empty pocket. When people are in a hurry, their field of vision narrows (tunnel vision). So even if there had been people nearby, they probably weren't looking this way. I don't know who these people are connected to, but they certainly took a bold step.

I had only skimmed through the Akihabara-related documents, but information has already leaked to the media about me defeating the last monster, going around taking down other monsters, and even making a building disappear. If they sold me overseas, I'd probably fetch a very high price. Every country wants power. Chiyoda had warned me that things overseas were getting rather suspicious, and Mochida had also hinted that I should be on guard against kidnapping.

Still, I never expected to be abducted this smoothly and this boldly. However, I'm not just some ordinary girl. I have a promise with Chiyoda, and I was just getting fired up to make them regret this little stunt when they showed me their police badges and began apologizing profusely. If they couldn't disobey, did that mean they were his subordinates or something? Then why on earth had they kidnapped me in the first place?

"... Give me the story. I want an explanation that makes sense. Depending on how this goes, I'm going to go wild, you know?" I took out my kiseru and puffed on it. I might have accepted this collar (this official position), but that doesn't mean I have any reason to be dragged around like this. Sensing just how bad my mood was, the officer, his face pale, began explaining the reason in halting fragments.

"... First-san, how much do you know about 'Chiyoda'?"

"We have a business-like relationship. I know his surname is Chiyoda, and that he is probably connected to the government. Other than that, I don't even know his first name." When I said that, the policeman who had pulled my hand turned even paler. Had there been some sort of misunderstanding?

"Chiyoda isn't actually a name to begin with. It is the general term for the National Police Agency's Collaborator Acquisition Operation Special Task Force Command under the Public Security Bureau. Its main duties include infiltration, decoy operations, and acquiring collaborators... The Chiyoda you always speak with is originally a code name, and his real name is... please hear it from him yourself. As for his position, he is a Counselor and the head of the office."

In other words, he was the head of Public Security's hardcore, militant faction. I see. Considering his authority and the organizational structure, it all makes sense. Why Tachibana and the others had been unable to oppose him immediately after the Gate incident following the stream. Why he had punched a politician and forced him to resign. Why dealing with me had been entrusted entirely to him alone. But why on earth did that lead to kidnapping?

"I understand about Chiyoda-san now. But why kidnap me? Couldn't you have just talked to me normally and brought me along?"

"There are several reasons. First, we always live like shadows. We constantly use aliases, falsify our identities, and conceal our private lives. Even his family doesn't know that he is Chiyoda. However, we must avoid a situation where that gets exposed through something like divorce proceedings or lawyers, because it would cause serious obstacles for future operations. That is one reason. Another is to explain his background to you.

'Ryuichi Masuda'—that is his name as far as his family is concerned. A floor manager at a major department store. The story of how you met is that you became acquainted when you came to buy clothes. This time, he was carrying your clothes because he was supposed to deliver them, but some underwear fell out and ended up underneath the seat." I understood what he was saying. I understood it, but it still didn't explain the kidnapping.

No matter how much of a shadow they were supposed to be, wouldn't it have been perfectly fine to contact me normally? That was far too weak a reason to take such a dangerous gamble as kidnapping. If they had sent Mochida to pick me up... No, Mochida wouldn't work. She was an SP, and her affiliation was different to begin with. Besides, Chiyoda had always made her leave the room whenever we discussed anything important. Then there had to be some other reason.

"Am I supposed to believe this whole affair based on just that story? If you were going to resort to such extreme measures, wouldn't it have been more efficient to just cut Chiyoda-san loose?" Indeed, since he is a Section Chief, he must be the head of his department. But who actually gave the order? They said they couldn't disobey, but they didn't say whom. Thinking about it that way, someone above Chiyoda must have given the order.

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"... I won't say who gave the order, but we concluded that losing him right now would be contrary to the national interest. The reason is... you."

"Me? At the very least, I've shown some willingness to cooperate, haven't I?" Chiyoda, the national interest, and me... It sounded like a line from a song, but the national interest and I were connected to some degree. At the very least, I could serve as a military force. I had accepted a position, so I would do the work that came with it. I hadn't refused this request, either. For the time being, I had demonstrated enough obedience to make myself look relatively easy to handle.

But why on earth was Chiyoda involved in this...?

"You were simply too free of desire... We devote ourselves to our country. We throw away ourselves, throw away our identities, and sometimes even throw away the ones we love. He knows nothing about this kidnapping. Please consider this an action taken by the State."

"Too free of desire?" I've heard of being too greedy, but being too free of desire? It's not as though I intended to live a life of austere poverty. I'd eaten my fill of room service, and people had prepared clothes for me. The laws had changed, and I had a job. If anything, I should be getting a pretty good salary now that I had a position. As long as I can spend time with my wife and family, there really isn't anything else I particularly want, but...?

"Would it make you feel more secure if I demanded, say, a billion yen?"

"If you want it, we can prepare it immediately, you know?"

"Sigh... Why don't you just say it plainly? That you can't understand me, and that you find me frightening." Well, I more or less understood. I give away information about the Gate for free. Even after defeating monsters, I don't particularly demand anything in return. I don't care about status or honor. What I want is food and clothing, and even those aren't particularly expensive. I don't even talk about money or valuables. And yet, the power I possess is terrifying. No wonder the people at the top are afraid.

They must be wondering when I'll finally abandon them. Or where I'll finally snap. The rewards the country could offer were limited, and they had nearly run out of ideas. When I did a job, they offered me a reward. But they had no idea what kind of reward I actually wanted. They had offered me various things, but my reactions had been lukewarm. So, in the end, what they had to rely on was sincerity and emotion.

The people at the top must have thought that if I valued my family, appealing to those feelings would be the most effective approach. And I had previously told Chiyoda that if he wanted us to be close, he should call me Chloe. Since then, he has called me Chloe. But now the Chiyoda family was on the verge of collapse, and his wife, who had committed no crime, was in a sense untouchable. Would someone who values their family really tolerate their household falling apart?

Personally, I think that if both people can be happy, then divorce over something like incompatible personalities is unavoidable. The problem, however, was me, and the country, which absolutely did not want to provoke me. Chiyoda and I had casually meant, "Help me," and "Sure." But the country had apparently thought, Wouldn't it be bad if we let them witness a whole divorce drama? And once the country got involved, things became complicated. Moreover, Chiyoda has never forced me to do anything until now.

Whenever something came up, he always discussed it with me. He would say things like, "I would like you to understand," but he never explicitly told me that I couldn't do something. That was his sincerity—everything was ultimately based on asking rather than ordering. Perhaps they wanted to avoid a situation where I, who might have been acting out of consideration for that sincerity, suddenly got angry and said, "What!? Even his name was different... I was deceived!"

Well, I think I'm close enough to Chiyoda that we can at least exchange light banter. In the end, it was simply someone jumping to conclusions. Yeah, the Berlin Wall fell because it was destined to fall... But does the country really think I'm some kind of General Hannibal? I'd really like them to stop treating me as a potential internal enemy.

"Sigh... I understand the circumstances and the misunderstanding now.... Tell whoever gave the order that, for now, they should perform a full dogeza. I assume I'll be released after that, right?" I understood the story. I understood how things had gotten this far. Seriously, witch, get a grip. Well, if people kept telling me at every turn that I was different from the person they saw on my stream, it was impossible not to realize just how strong that initial image of me had been. But surely this was the end of it.

After all, if these people weren't actually my ride, then my real ride had been left waiting for nothing.

"... There is some bad news."

"... I don't want to hear it. You can just throw me away like litter. Could you let me out?"

"Understood. After we let you out, we'll go float in Tokyo Bay for a bit."... That doesn't sound like something you can settle with a "little" float. Wait. If they failed, did these guys actually die in the line of duty?... Well, if an undercover operative gets caught, that probably does mean death in the line of duty. In this case, if I refused to hear the bad news, they'd die...

"Fine. I'll hear it. Also, make whoever gave the order undergo ishi-daki under my name."

"Understood. We'll make them do it." The policeman's face twisted into something resembling a demon. Well, I suppose they think this whole thing is absurd too, who knows. Chiyoda had punched a politician; these guys would probably do the same.

"The bad news is... someone witnessed us kidnapping you, and net users have already spread the information."

"Talk about a wooden performance. Seriously, are you guys hams or what?"

"We're terribly sorry..." The information had been spread... I was... the victim! Perfect. The timing couldn't have been better. Doing it myself would obviously be no good, and if I were kidnapped by foreigners, I'd escape without hesitation. But these guys? They were perfect. A crisis is an opportunity. All that remained was to confirm one thing.

"Are you Sweepers?"

"We are Sweepers, technically. But we've only entered the Gate once." They looked at me suspiciously, but that didn't matter. This whole kidnapping mess had started with a misunderstanding involving Chiyoda, but there was a mastermind—a "master"—behind it. They had no personal connection to me, and if anything, this meant I could push yet another favor onto Chiyoda.

"I see, I see. Well, well. That's excellent. Perfect, actually. Has this car been identified?"

"Not yet, but it's only a matter of time. In a surveillance society like this... We're shadows. If we're caught, that's it. Our cover story is that we're human-trafficking operatives... Here." In the back of the vehicle were handcuffs, ropes, sleeping pills, and a large trunk. Couldn't they have come up with a slightly better cover story? At least they hadn't actually kidnapped anyone else... Still, with this much preparation, things would be easy to arrange.

"Oh? Oh, my, my, my. You look like your soul has left your body, Public Security. Isn't dying in the line of duty supposed to be your dream?"

"If it's for the country, then I don't mind. But this time..."

"Exactly. So, for the sake of the country, I'd like you to get thoroughly beaten up. Don't worry. You won't die. You definitely won't."

"Huh?" All right. I had a rough plan now. The ultimate destination was the Chiyoda household. Until then, there were two things I needed to accomplish. I didn't particularly want to do this, but first, I needed to make myself conspicuous in this natural state while promoting the organization at the same time. Chief of the Special Designated Harmful Beast Countermeasures Headquarters.

I would spread that title around and use it as a foothold for crime deterrence, even though the organization itself didn't really exist yet. Conveniently, there was almost no medicine left in my ring, but I did have a decent amount of weapons from the Gate. I would use those to turn these guys from a human-trafficking organization into a weapon-smuggling organization. Next, I would have them make a scene using their Sweeper abilities and, like some kind of hero show, have everyone tied up and arrested.

We would use this as a model case and connect it to future crime deterrence by Sweepers. As for these guys... well, I'd have them put up with losing an arm or so. Fortunately, if the Gate medicine was to be believed, even broken bones could heal within a few days. And the usefulness of Takatsuki's medicine had already been demonstrated during the Akihabara incident. Staging an arrest like this might encourage more people to try committing crimes, but in the first place, the police are a reactive organization.

They don't move unless something happens, and they can't move unless something happens. So if something actually happened, they would have no choice but to act. My status had become considerably less imposing, but I was still, technically, a VIP—for now.

"I'm going to hand over some weapons from the Gate. Pack them into the trunk. The car will probably be located soon using the GPS on my smartphone. After that, leak the information to the media or whoever."

"No, but..."

"This is an order from the Chief of the Special Designated Harmful Beast Countermeasures Headquarters. Chiyoda himself has given me his assurance that this position is far above his own.... Do it."

"Understood!" A feudal society is made up of a handful of sadists and a majority of masochists. I read that somewhere, and it really hits the mark. The people giving the orders make unreasonable demands, but in exchange, they take responsibility. The people receiving those orders are subjected to unreasonable demands, but they don't have to think about it, and they don't bear the responsibility. And this time, I would make the person who had ordered these guys take responsibility. Yes, a win-win.

It was for the country, after all. They could take responsibility by resigning. Whoever you are, faceless person.