A Father's Rage
I read the letter and immediately began preparing to head to the Security Bureau.
Better bring the sedative spray, just in case.
The sedative spray was a device designed to disperse the Lullaby of the Mist drug in fine particles. I had created it specifically for moments when Draksan might suddenly lose control.
“GRAAAAAARGH!”
The sound reached me even before I stepped inside the Security Bureau building.
It was closer to a beast’s roar than a human shout.
The distinctive scraping tone of his voice was unmistakable.
That’s Draksan.
The moment I entered, I was met with utter chaos.
“Ugh… uuurgh… GRAAAAAARGH!”
“Calm down, Draksan! Draksan Caligus!”
“Kill… I’ll kill you… kill… grrr… I’ll kill you all—!”
Blue currents of electricity crackled across Draksan’s body. They were coming from the magic-electric collar fastened around his neck. Even at a glance, the voltage looked dangerously high.
Yet Draksan paid the current no mind. In that state, he was not only shaking off the investigators but actively subduing them.
Several investigators lay sprawled across the floor, pinned beneath him.
“W-what kind of… m-monster…!”
The remaining investigators muttered in horror, too afraid to approach.
“Justin! Justin, get out here! I’ll kill you—I’ll kill you!”
Draksan bellowed like a furious citizen at a community center, calling for Director Justin while threatening murder. Blood vessels stood out in his eyes—the unmistakable physical sign of his intermittent explosive disorder taking hold.
I approached Naikle carefully.
“What exactly is going on here?”
“S-Sir!”
Naikle’s eyes lit up with relief.
“D-Draksan started rampaging, and even the electric collar couldn’t stop him. I thought… maybe you could subdue him, so I contacted you…!”
“Understood. Give me a moment.”
I shook the spray and stepped toward Draksan.
“JUSTIN, YOU BASTAAAAARD—!”
The instant Draksan charged at me with bloodshot eyes—
Psst.
I released the spray.
Huuuup—! In the moment his rage-blinded lungs drew a deep breath, the mist entered his nostrils.
The murderous light in his eyes faded.
Thud.
Draksan collapsed.
“Whoa…!”
“D-did we get him?”
A few investigators muttered ominously, but Draksan remained motionless on the floor.
“We got him!”
Cheers erupted among the investigators. While they celebrated as though they had slain a monster, Naikle approached me.
“Th-thank you, sir! If it weren’t for you, several investigators might have died…!”
“It only worked because Draksan was unarmed. Had he been holding his axe, even I couldn’t have stopped him.”
“R-right…”
I looked down at the unconscious Draksan and continued.
“So, what happened? And why is he calling for Director Justin?”
“Ah, well…”
Naikle lowered her head. Her fingers fidgeted, and I could smell the sharp scent of shame radiating from her.
After several false starts, she finally spoke.
“…Lena Caligus woke up.”
“Lena Caligus?”
The name was familiar. Keeping my expression neutral proved difficult.
“Yes. Draksan’s daughter.”
That was all she said.
A terrible miracle had occurred.
To summarize what Naikle told me:
‘Draksan’s daughter Lena had awakened from her coma. However…’
The Security Bureau had hidden this fact, knowing Draksan would immediately file an appeal if he learned of it.
They could not keep it secret forever.
“Hadler has a son, doesn’t he? Hardy…”
Hardy, who was also a victim in the case, had requested a visit with Draksan—and in doing so, revealed that Lena had awakened.
“Isn’t Hardy the young man Draksan assaulted at the drinking party? And he told Draksan the truth?”
“Hardy didn’t seem to hold any real grudge against Draksan.”
“I heard he was beaten within an inch of his life.”
“From what I saw, he seemed to think he deserved it. Maybe he believes he’s paying the price for his father Hadler’s sins…”
Regardless, once Draksan learned the truth, he attempted to file an appeal through the legal team Hardy had arranged.
“Of course he would. His daughter, whom he believed would remain in a coma for life, had awakened. Naturally he wanted to reduce his sentence even slightly.”
“Yes, but the appeal was rejected.”
“Rejected? Why…?”
“He missed the deadline.”
Draksan had exceeded the window in which he could file an appeal, so the court refused to accept it.
That was where the real problem began.
“The Security Bureau withheld the news of Lena’s awakening from Draksan for four whole days.”
“If they had informed him immediately, he never would have missed the deadline.”
“Yes… Ever since then, Draksan has been causing a disturbance every single day. Today’s rampage was especially violent, so I called you…”
“Hmm.”
“We’re in a difficult position. The media is already attacking us over this…”
Naikle handed me a newspaper. It was a weekly I did not subscribe to, and every article concerned the Security Bureau and Draksan.
Barbarian Rights Group Stages Sit-In Outside Courthouse
The media framed the incident as persecution of the barbarian race—an interpretation with considerable merit.
Because the matter had escalated so dramatically, civic groups were now demanding Director Justin’s arrest. Some extremist barbarian organizations had even threatened to bomb the courthouse or kidnap the judge if Draksan was not released.
“This has grown far larger than expected.”
“Yes… We don’t know what to do…”
I finished reading the newspaper and thought to myself.
This is one hundred percent the Security Bureau’s fault.
None of this would have happened if they had not concealed the truth in the first place.
They had hidden Lena’s awakening without much thought, simply to avoid trouble.
And that very carelessness made everything worse.
I stared directly at Naikle.
She was an investigator. She could have told Draksan the truth if she had wanted to.
That meant she had participated in the cover-up as well.
Honestly, I could not hide my disappointment.
Feeling my gaze, Naikle’s face crumpled into a wronged expression.
“P-please don’t look at me like that! I didn’t know either!”
“You didn’t know?”
“No! Director Justin decided to hide it on his own. At the time, I wasn’t even in my ‘active phase’…”
If she had not been in her active phase, then Gwangrang had been in control of her body. Her claim that she had not participated in the cover-up was likely true. Her tone, expression, and scent all conveyed genuine frustration.
“Understood. At least that’s a relief.”
“Yes… Please don’t misunderstand…”
“So it was Director Justin’s unilateral decision. Then where is he now?”
“Well…”
Naikle hesitated before answering.
“…He’s refusing to respond.”
“He hasn’t made any response at all?”
“None. The other investigators are talking about it too. I even argued with the director over this.”
I was surprised she had confronted him. The timid Naikle I knew did not seem the type to openly defy authority.
“Even I think this is too shameless… too wrong. At the very least, he should have issued an apology statement…”
She was right.
In my view, the situation could have been resolved quickly if Director Justin had handled it properly. A simple apology statement would have calmed things down without needing a press conference.
So why had he chosen complete silence?
Pride? That did not seem like him.
“I truly cannot understand what he’s thinking.”
“I feel the same…”
“I need to speak with him. Is he in his office?”
Naikle shook her head.
“No, he’s out at the moment…”
“Then I’ll return tomorrow. If Draksan causes another disturbance, feel free to call me.”
“Ah, yes! I’ll let the director know.”
“Thank you.”
The next day.
On my way to Director Justin’s office at the Security Bureau, I encountered an unexpected obstacle.
“Justin, resign!”
“Step down! How can someone like you be director?”
A protest. Each person held a picket sign, shouting slogans that sounded more like curses directed at Director Justin.
The signs read things like “Security Bureau and Judiciary Seeking to Eradicate Barbarians” and “Absolutely Oppose Director Appointment.”
Quite a large crowd.
The flags they carried bore the names of various organizations: “Barbarian Rights Improvement Committee,” “Interracial Equality Association,” and others.
The protesters completely blocked the path leading into the Security Bureau.
“Excuse me, I need to pass through…”
“Justin, resign!”
“Yes, resign! But I still need to get through…”
I pushed my way through the crowd, repeatedly asking for passage.
After several minutes of struggle, I finally entered the building.
Perhaps because of the protest, the atmosphere inside was heavy and subdued. Even the investigators who recognized me and offered greetings wore expressions of deep fatigue.
I quickened my pace toward Director Justin’s office.
“Oh, Counselor Kain!”
“I apologize for the sudden visit. Are you busy?”
“I’m always busy. But I always have time to talk with you, Counselor.”
Director Justin greeted me with his usual sly smile. I responded appropriately while glancing around the room.
His office felt strangely empty. The bookshelves and sofa were gone; only the work desk and chair remained.
“It seems you’ve already moved the furniture to the director’s office. The inauguration ceremony must be soon.”
“Indeed. I’ll officially become the Security Bureau Director.”
I studied his expression as he spoke.
He did not look particularly excited, nor did he seem particularly worried.
Public opinion was demanding not only that he not become director, but that he be dismissed from his current position entirely. The protesters outside were numerous enough to surround the entire building.
Holding an inauguration under these circumstances would only fuel further criticism. It was entirely possible the ceremony itself would descend into violence.
What on earth is he thinking? Or is he not thinking at all…?
While I was still searching for the right words, Director Justin spoke first.
“By the way, I’m impressed you made it inside. The protesters must have made it difficult.”
“They had the entrance completely blocked. I barely managed to push through.”
“What were they shouting?”
“That the Security Bureau is trying to eradicate the barbarians.”
Director Justin let out a short laugh.
“Humans are such amusing creatures. Those people shouting for an end to barbarian discrimination—do you know how they treat non-human races?”
“I’m not sure.”
“They don’t even treat them as people. Some extremist groups treat them as animals or objects.”
“I see. That’s outside my area of interest.”
“I suppose it is.”
I took a steadying breath and asked.
“Why did you do it?”
“Which part? Why we hid the fact that Lena Caligus had awakened? Or why we issued no explanation or apology?”
“Both.”
Director Justin nodded.
“To answer the first question, we didn’t hide it out of malice. We simply had no obligation to inform him, so we stayed silent.”
“That’s sophistry. You wanted to avoid the trouble, didn’t you?”
“Well, you’re not wrong. Now for the second question.”
Director Justin took a sip of the now-cold coffee on his desk, frowned slightly, and continued.
“Simply put… admitting it would only make things worse.”