Seeing that Aoto and the others had arrived, Arima put down the brush in his hand, stood up with his hands behind his back.
Arima's style of doing things is never to be verbose; if something can be explained in one word, he won't use two.
Therefore, when chatting with him, it's often hard to keep up with his incredibly fast pace.
Just like now—
"Good morning to you all as well."
"Come with me now, Lord Governor has summoned all members of the 'Three Times' today, saying there's an important matter to inform us about."
"Summoning all members of the 'Three Times'... important matter..." Inagawa twitched his lips, "Lord Arima, could it be that a troublesome case has come up?"
"I don't know about that. Anyway—once we head to the Lord Governor's office, we'll know what we're being summoned for."
With that, Arima picked up his own sword from the nearby rack and led Aoto towards the Magistrate's office with great strides.
With Arima leading the way, Aoto and his group immediately became the most eye-catching presence in the entire North Guard Station!
Arima's unwavering gaze and the way he turned corners at exactly 90 degrees made it hard not to draw attention.
The Town Magistrate's office was located on the top floor of the North Guard Station.
From Arima's office to the Town Magistrate's office, the distance was not short.
As they followed Arima into a secluded corridor, Aoto turned his head to look around, confirming there were no outsiders present, and then cleared his throat:
"... Lord Arima, I have something very important to tell you."
"Hmm? Go on."
"Lord Arima, I... have been targeted by the 'Anti-foreigner Faction'."
"What?"
Arima abruptly stopped in his tracks, turning to Aoto with a look of astonishment.
Inagawa and Ushiyama, walking on either side of Aoto, also looked at him with shock.
"About a month ago, I was attacked by four members of the 'Anti-foreigner Faction', and then the night before last, after concluding the operation against the 'Righteous Group', I was ambushed by three members of the 'Anti-foreigner Faction' on my way home..."
Aoto succinctly recounted the entire ordeal of being attacked by the 'Anti-foreigner Faction' and the reasons for it to Arima and the others.
The original owner of this body - 'Original Tachibana Aoto' was someone who could be described as either gentle or dull...
A month ago, after being initially attacked by the 'Anti-foreigner Faction', he didn't tell anyone except his family's attendant Kyūbē that he had been targeted by them!
And the reason he gave for doing so was simple—he didn't want to burden his companions, who were then busy dealing with the 'Righteous Group', with unnecessary stress.
The night before last, the eradication of the 'Righteous Group' was exhilarating.
But to achieve that exhilarating night, all four—Arima, Inagawa, Ushiyama, and 'Original Tachibana Aoto'—had paid a considerable price.
The four of them spent nearly one and a half months collecting enough intelligence and making thorough preparations.
A month ago, when 'Original Tachibana Aoto' first faced the 'Anti-foreigner Faction's attack, everyone was busy to the point of distraction, trying to gather useful information.
At that time, to sift through a pile of dubious information and analyze valuable intelligence, Arima, Inagawa, and Ushiyama had days of sleepless effort.
'Original Tachibana Aoto' worried that telling his companions he had been targeted by the 'Anti-foreigner Faction' would affect their morale and work progress, impacting the campaign against the 'Righteous Group'.
Thus, he chose to conceal the fact.
Only Kyūbē was informed.
Kyūbē, being somewhat dull himself, was warned by 'Original Tachibana Aoto' not to tell anyone, and he dutifully kept his mouth shut.
Aoto didn't know if 'Original Tachibana Aoto's actions were right or wrong.
He only knew that since the 'Righteous Group' had been destroyed, the tremendous burden on Arima and the others had finally been lifted after more than a month, and there was no need to be as concerned about 'affecting morale and tasks' as 'Original Tachibana Aoto' was.
Fighting against radicals like the 'Radical Anti-foreigner Faction' and seeking support and help from colleagues who were also 'police' seemed far wiser than foolishly battling alone.
This morning, Aoto made up his mind to seize the opportunity today to reveal the whole incident of being attacked by the 'Anti-foreigner Faction' to Arima and the others.
Just as Aoto finished speaking, Inagawa's face turned as dark as coal.
"To not affect the pursuit of the 'Righteous Group,' you chose to hide it from us? Mr. Tachibana... what am I supposed to say to you..."
"Why didn't you tell us earlier?"
Usually, with a smile on his face, Inagawa now wore a fearsome expression.
"If anything happened to you, how would we face your father in the afterlife!"
The relationship between Arima, Inagawa, Ushiyama, and Aoto was not just an ordinary colleague relationship.
The three of them were not only Aoto's colleagues… but had also been colleagues of Aoto's deceased father, Tachibana Ryuzo.
Half a year ago, when Aoto's father, Tachibana Ryuzo, was still alive and serving as a dōshin in the North Station Town Patrol, he, Inagawa, and Ushiyama had served under Arima for many years.
Aoto remembered that his father had a great relationship with Arima, Inagawa, and Ushiyama. After Tachibana Ryuzo's death, all three attended his funeral, with Inagawa nearly fainting from crying in front of Ryuzo's spirit tablet.
Aoto's successful assumption of his father's role as the new dōshin in the Town Patrol was largely thanks to the behind-the-scenes support from Arima, Inagawa, and Ushiyama.
Thus, for Aoto, Arima, Inagawa, and Ushiyama were both workmates and elders closely tied to his family.
That is why Aoto always addressed Inagawa and Ushiyama as "Mr." and spoke to them with respect.
Facing the questioning of his colleagues and elders who were close friends of his late father, Aoto bowed his head:
"I'm sorry..."
Aoto now felt a sense of "taking the blame"...
This "blame" clearly belonged to the 'Original Tachibana Aoto' and had nothing to do with him, but since he had become one with 'Original Tachibana Aoto', he had no choice but to brace himself and take on this heavy, dark burden...
Inagawa opened his mouth, seemingly about to say more to Aoto.
But at this moment, Ushiyama raised his hand and patted Inagawa's shoulder.
"Alright, Inagawa," Ushiyama said in a deep voice, "Tachibana did it for our sake."
Inagawa glanced at the restraining Ushiyama.
After a moment of silence, Inagawa slowly closed his mouth, which had been ready to reprimand Aoto again.
"...Mr. Tachibana."
Then Arima, who had remained silent until now, fixed Aoto with eyes like an owl's and asked:
"So far, you've experienced two attacks, one a month ago and one the night before last, right?"
Aoto nodded.
"The 'Anti-foreigner Faction' dares to attack members of the 'Three Times' now..." Arima frowned slightly, "...Mr. Tachibana, provide me with a detailed written report by tomorrow afternoon. I will personally handle this matter."
Aoto: "Yes."
"...Let's go." Arima glanced at Inagawa, then turned his body, presenting his back to Aoto and the others once again, "We still need to head to the Magistrate's office for the meeting. The meeting should be starting soon."
"Whatever it is... let's talk after the meeting."
Inagawa watched Arima's retreating back, then looked at Aoto beside him, pressed his lips together, and then took large strides to catch up with Arima.
"...Inagawa was just overly concerned earlier, don't take his scolding too much to heart," Ushiyama said, raising his hand to pat Aoto's shoulder, "After all, you're Ryuzo's son, and Inagawa's just worried about you as a junior, that's why he scolded you like that."
"It's alright, Mr. Ushiyama," Aoto smiled slightly at Ushiyama, "I know the words Mr. Inagawa said to me just now were out of concern. Don't worry, Mr. Ushiyama, I won't treat Mr. Inagawa coldly over such a small matter."
"That's good." Ushiyama, who usually kept a stern face, now had a rare smile.
"Tachibana, let's go."
Ushiyama patted Aoto's shoulder again.
"It's time to attend the meeting."
*******
*******
The launch of a new book!
Seeking monthly votes! Seeking collections! Seeking recommendation votes!