LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 262.1
Chapter 262.1. Corruption
The evening twilight arrives, and the outside world is covered in the blanket of a dark night. The attacks from the monsters have ceased in Hakata City, but the power shortage has not been resolved, and due to conservation orders, most houses remain in complete darkness. Only the surveillance lights fixed to the walls are visible, casting their dim glow. Most houses—meaning the mansion where Taira Konoha is staying—are the exception, with bright electric lights shining and spilling light into the street outside.
Konoha, thinking it must be because they couldn’t ask for conservation even in the mansion where guests are being welcomed, scoops a spoonful of espresso topped with whipped cream and puts it in her mouth, savoring it.
“So, Colonel Fuuma, is that story true?”
The meal is over now, and the sudden visitors—Colonel Fuuma, Second Lieutenant Otomo, and some unknown children—along with Rei and Fuuka, are all relaxing in the living room. While drinking coffee after the meal, Konoha is confirming the story she heard earlier with Colonel Fuuma.
Coffee after a meal… can this even be called coffee? It seems like whipped cream is the main feature. There’s barely a trace of coffee poured over a mountain of whipped cream in the cup.
Regrettably, the espresso poured on it helps balance out the sweetness with its bitterness, making it bearable. No, wait. That’s not what matters. Right now, she’s confirming the information brought by Colonel Fuuma.
“Just call me Karin, Konoha-sama. Everyone here calls each other by their names.”
“I’m fine with just Yoko. I call my friends by their names too.”
“Then, I’ll be Konoha as well.”
Karin winks, her tail swaying gently, while Yoko says this seriously. Konoha feels a bit happy at the idea of being called by her name. After all, it’s rare to have people who can do that.
A sly smile spreads across the fox girl’s face, but the kind-hearted Konoha didn’t notice. There was a slight difference in the way the cat girl and fox girl spoke, but Konoha didn’t catch it. Meanwhile, Yoko was secretly smirking, thinking, Now Konoha is my friend.
“So, Karin’s story… the support funds I asked for, which should’ve been delivered to the people of the former abandoned town, are being delayed?”
The other day, Konoha had arranged a deal with Otomo Sorin to provide aid to the people of the former abandoned town. Yet, the situation didn’t seem to match.
“There should have been coats, blankets, and ration coupons distributed. But there’s no sign they’ve been given out? I heard the first round of distribution had been completed.”
Yoko takes over the explanation.
The number of people from the former abandoned town is small. From what Konoha knows, there are about 3,000 survivors. They are living in dire conditions, and Konoha had hoped to help them. Three thousand people might seem like a lot, but a city mayor could easily prepare supplies for that number. In fact, Konoha had heard that the distribution had been completed in a few days… but it seems that wasn’t true.
“The distribution period was far too short. From the moment they announced the distribution until they gathered people and prepared supplies for it, two weeks were needed, Konoha-sama.”
“Just as Fuuka-sama said. I didn’t question it back then, but looking back, it was indeed strange. They claimed they were reusing emergency supplies, so I accepted that explanation.”
Otomo Sorin had said that the surplus emergency supplies, now that the monster crisis was over, would be used for distribution. It seemed plausible, and Konoha had thought that this was just the work of a capable official. But now…
“Have they not received any of the supplies at all?”
“Yes… I heard from the adventurer’s guild that there are jobs where you can earn enough to eat.”
The children, who had been eagerly eating their whipped cream, looked up at Konoha nervously as they trembled. One of them answered shyly. The answer made Konoha click her tongue.
“So they’re trying to push everything onto the adventurer’s guild, huh? They were planning to pocket the support funds from the start!”
Furious, Konoha stood up and exhaled angrily. Corruption was common, but some things should never be done. Otomo Sorin had crossed that line.
It was clear from seeing the children, eating their pseudo-coffee, that life in the former abandoned town was harsh. They were dressed in clothes more suitable for summer, even though winter had already set in.
“It seems the mayor accepted the people from the abandoned town just to use them as a scapegoat. When the city faced a crisis, they wanted the residents to have someone to blame, so they took in the former abandoned town people.”
Fuuka, who had already done her research, explained calmly. Hearing that, Konoha could no longer stay calm.
“That’s… horrible! The way they treated the people from the abandoned town in Kanto was bad enough, but this… it’s awful… too awful! We need to make them suffer for this! Rei, do you have any good ideas?”
Konoha turned to Rei, who had been quietly eating her pseudo-coffee. Konoha actually intended to make them pay, but she wasn’t sure how. This was when the vice-captain’s expertise was needed.
“Heh. Leave it to the miracle strategist, Rei. This time, we even have a joint proposal from the soldiers.”
“From President Amano? When did this happen?”
“They proposed that additional corruption in the management of the adventurer’s guild should be used to line their pockets. They plan to create a double set of books and hand them over to Otomo Sorin tonight. We can launch a surprise investigation at Otomo Sorin’s house tomorrow at noon. No appointment, just show up—guaranteed to shock him.”
Rei quickly suggested a solution, though it was a bit of an odd one.
“Are we going to use the double bookkeeping of the adventurer’s guild as evidence? The guild will also be blamed for that. Plus, it doesn’t prove that they haven’t distributed the supplies to the abandoned town people.”
“We’ll leave that part to the soldiers. According to them, the evidence of the corruption is supposedly all hidden together in one place.”
The masked girl chuckled, clearly enjoying the idea. Konoha tilted her head slightly, wondering if that would really work, but since it was Rei’s plan, she trusted it. She decided that they would visit Otomo Sorin’s house tomorrow at noon.