< 106. Shock and Terror (4) >
Jenkins faced the ruling party's floor leader with a very complicated mind.
"Greetings to the great dragon…"
The elf who was about to pay his respects in the dragon's office was frozen upon looking out the window. Although he had seen the view before, seeing it from this height seemed to evoke a new sense of awe.
La-la-la. La-la-la-la.
The melody was almost mistaken for celestial singing. A sweet wave of sound pierced through the window. The musicians playing the tune were Winged People. Sirens with white feathers soaring through the sky.
The persistence of Valien was well known. Despite his slightly lacking intelligence, one reason for his prominence in the labor market was his tenacity. The results of this persistence, combined with twisted beliefs and unfounded optimism, were unfolding near Jenkins Tower.
To add, it had been over a month already. It was fortunate that the sound was pleasant; otherwise, if their vocal cords resembled those of orcs even a little more, they might have spewed fire out the window. The elf, seeing the dragon's stern expression, deliberately averted his gaze.
"...I apologize. I was momentarily distracted."
The dragon replied gruffly.
"It's fine. No worries."
The real reason for his discomfort lay elsewhere. Jenkins's mind was solely occupied with tentacles. The elf, who had no way of knowing this, remained silent, trying to gauge the situation. The red dragon finally managed to control his expression.
"You've been having quite a headache lately, haven't you? I didn't expect the election results to turn out like that either. It's embarrassing to say, but even our group's political social research team missed the mark. I think we'll need a major overhaul soon."
Seeing Jenkins's expression relax, the elf finally felt relieved and bowed his head.
"Public sentiment is something even politicians can't predict. The situation has already occurred, so we're looking for ways to address it."
Contrary to expectations of an overwhelming victory, the ruling party had narrowly won the recent general election.
Ruling party: 141 votes vs. Opposition party: 129 votes.
The problem was the remaining 30 votes. The disillusioned public, dissatisfied with both the ruling and opposition parties, had sought an alternative. The choice was infuriating to many. As a result, the party that confidently claimed the position of the third-largest party in the National Assembly was the "Human-Centric Party."
They hated the pro-dragon ruling party and despised the opposition party, which advocated for the rights of all minority races. Declaring that they would work solely for human rights, their reality as the casting voters in the National Assembly caused many to express concern.
"Moreover, it seems ten people from the ruling party have returned their badges for various reasons since being elected. It looks like their cooperation will be all the more crucial."
Thanks to the dragon pointing this out first, the elf was able to mention his purpose for being here.
"Actually, I have something to report regarding the upcoming by-election."
"Which constituency?"
"Gure-4 district."
That area was an orc community. Jenkins nodded, recalling who the elected representative for that district was.
"Ah, the orc representative. I remember. It was a regrettable situation."
The man Jenkins mentioned was not involved in election fraud, indicted for serious crimes, or arrested for bribery like other disqualified representatives. However, unlike others who might return to the political scene years later, he would never step into this world again.
The dead cannot be appointed to public office.
"Have the perpetrators been caught?"
"It seems the Red Star's tightly organized cells make it pointless to interrogate those who have been captured. They might have already been killed during the war with the orcs."
"That's unfortunate. He was a candidate elected with an overwhelming margin."
To win in that district where orcs made up more than 50% of the population, two conditions had to be met. First, the candidate had to be an orc. Second, they had to receive nomination from the ruling party.
Orcs were known for casting their votes overwhelmingly for the ruling party. Perhaps due to their sensitivity to authority, most felt the ruling party's policies suited them better.
Furthermore, the opposition party, which cared for minorities inferior to orcs, appeared less attractive to them. The tendency to look down on those considered inferior was present in any society, and orcs were no exception.
Thus, the elected candidate, who was affiliated with Kim Kwang-woo, the boss of the orc gang, received the ruling party's nomination effortlessly and won confidently. The Red Star identified him as a clear member of the orc gang and fired a rocket at his office in broad daylight. The candidate was killed on the spot.
"I see why you've come. It's not a situation where any orc can be put in the position and expect to be elected anymore, is it?"
"The war between the Red Star and the orc gang has become a decisive variable."
Not only were Kim Kwang-woo's appalling crimes and corruption revealed to the world, but it was also exposed that he had been connected with the Red Star up until the brink of war. With connections to the Human Rights Alliance and others.
"The orcs who had been voting for the ruling party's candidates endorsed by Kim Kwang-woo will feel extreme shame. However, they likely won't want to vote for the opposition party. That's why we expect a very low turnout of orc votes in the upcoming by-election."
Furthermore, the opposition party, which had almost abandoned the district, had put forward a candidate for the by-election…
"A half-orc human rights activist?"
Of course, the human rights referred to here were not the human-centric rights advocated by the Human Rights Alliance but broadly inclusive rights for sentient beings.
"Orcs hate half-orcs, don't they?"
"They seem to have decided to completely abandon the mainstream orc votes. It appears they are trying to rally the human residents and a few opposition-leaning orcs in the area. Whether this will work or not, the atmosphere is already unusual. There might be an accident if things go wrong."
"So, in the end, you need more election funds. It was originally a district that didn't require much money, but now there's a sudden variable?"
The elf bowed deeply.
"I understand. I'll speak with Blair on the way out."
"Thank you, Chairman."
At that moment, a short knock was followed by the secretary entering and handing a note to the dragon. Upon reading it, Jenkins's eyes widened with surprise. The legislator waited as Jenkins processed the information.
The dragon spoke.
"Hm, I just received some news. It seems it's not good for you this time either."
"What? What's the matter…"
Jenkins looked deeply into the other's eyes and said.
"It seems we'll need to put forward one more candidate for the by-election."
It was news that another elected representative's eligibility had been canceled.
The elf felt a chill upon hearing those words. His own phone, as the leader of the majority party, was still quiet. The dragon had received this news before him, and the legislator realized just how wide and deep the dragon's influence was throughout society.
"May I ask which district it is…"
"San-Yeong-3."
Jenkins looked at the note and said.
"It happened about 30 minutes ago. The elected representative from that district was murdered at home."
"What?! How did that happen…?"
The dragon slightly furrowed his brow.
"The crime scene was fully captured on CCTV, so capturing the perpetrator shouldn't be difficult. The perpetrator seems to be an unregistered weapon master."
"Are you referring to a superhuman?"
"Yes."
The dragon raised a finger and gestured horizontally near his neck.
"They say the throat was sliced cleanly. It appears the weapon used was something like a longsword."
Sitting in the passenger seat, Minjun spoke.
"Jung-pal, sorry for the trouble."
The orc driving shrugged his shoulders.
"It's no problem. By the way… It's strange, but I'm not tired at all. I feel completely refreshed, as if all the fatigue from the past few days has vanished in an instant."
After leaving Cash's house with a frying pan in hand, Min-jun asked Jeong-pal about the last known location of the Ego Sword. Even though the sword was already gone, Min-jun intended to track any remaining traces. Jeong-pal agreed to accompany him, stating that it was within his jurisdiction and not far.
Min-jun fell into deep thought as he glanced at the frying pan mounted in the back seat via the rearview mirror. His mind was in turmoil.
'I can't just hand it over to the committee as it is. If I had been consumed by that impulse, it could have been a huge problem.'
Strictly speaking, it hadn't been proven that this was a fragment of Asif-1. Nevertheless, the moment Min-jun focused on that possibility, he felt a tremendous impulse.
A compulsive urge to submit it to the committee immediately.
What if he had reported it as is?
'The committee would have retrieved the frying pan. But then what?'
Min-jun had no way to prove or verify whether it was indeed a fragment of Asif-1. In other words, if the committee decided to wash their hands of it, there would be no way to object.
'What if the committee checks it and finds out it's not an Asif-1 fragment and decides not to give any dalants? They are the type to do just that!'
In other words, he needed to fully prove the identity of the item and leave behind evidence before reporting it to the committee.
While he was mulling this over, the mention of the Ego Sword by Jeong-pal flashed through his mind.
So, he decided to get hold of the artifact with similar characteristics to the frying pan. The only basis for suspecting the frying pan as a fragment (excluding testimonies) was its invisibility to the soul. If there was another such sword, comparing and studying them might reveal some clues.
Sizzle! Sizzle!
A voice came from the radio mounted in the car. Min-jun couldn't understand it. The signal was poor and the speech was too garbled.
However, Jeong-pal immediately understood and his expression hardened.
"Hmm… something big has happened, hyung-nim."
"What happened?"
"One of the National Assembly members has been found dead."
The incident was in the jurisdiction of the district where Jeong-pal was stationed, hence the radio call. Min-jun, showing little interest, asked indifferently.
"What happened? Heart attack?"
"No, it seems the person was found with their throat slit at home."
"..."
"..."
"Couldn't be."
"...Couldn't it?"
But as time passed, the details continued to be updated, and a word Min-jun could no longer ignore reached his ears. As Min-jun became accustomed to the radio voice, he understood the content.
"...!"
The news was that the suspect had been caught without managing to flee far.
But the condition of the suspect was...
"Did I hear that correctly?"
The suspect was reported to have been found with all their bones shattered and muscles twisted. Moreover, the weapon caught on CCTV was not found on them.
Thoughts raced through both their minds.
"Jeong-pal, let's go there first! If it was just discovered, the sword might not have gone far yet."
"Understood!"
Jeong-pal sharply turned the wheel.
Upon arriving at the crime scene, police officers were setting up a police line.
"Ah? Chief Park, what brings you here?"
A detective asked Jeong-pal, puzzled as he knew he was off today. His gaze flicked over the orc and the unfamiliar man behind him.
Jeong-pal surveyed the situation beyond. An old mage, clearly a high-ranking police official, was inspecting the scene.
"Let's go inside for a moment."
"Ah, yes. Just a moment..."
The moment a path was cleared:
"Wait a minute."
A different detective approached from behind. Jeong-pal frowned upon seeing him.
'Damn it, of all people, this case ended up with that guy.'
He was the team leader of the Violent Crime Unit 2, and someone with whom Jeong-pal had a strained relationship. People who pledge loyalty often develop similar attitudes, and he considered Jeong-pal a thorn in his side.
Moreover, when Min-jun had apprehended the reckless dragon Edelrines, Jeong-pal, who had been working with him, had also taken credit for solving the elf serial disappearance case. The disappearance case had originally been assigned to Unit 2.
The detective approached and scolded the officer who had been talking to Jeong-pal.
"Hey, you! Who do you think you are to decide who can come in or not? How dare you act so high and mighty?"
The officer trying to let Jeong-pal in was a rookie, with the rank of patrol officer. As his superior scolded him, he lowered his eyes and stepped back. The team leader then gestured for him to leave and asked with a sneer.
"This case has already been transferred to our team. Why is the Unit 4 team leader here?"
Jeong-pal pointed to Min-jun and said.
"This is an agent from the Immigration Bureau who would like to take a look at the scene."
The Unit 2 team leader sarcastically replied, clicking his tongue.
"I can see from his outfit that he's a mage, but we already have an esteemed mage here conducting the investigation."
He pointed to the old mage who was meticulously examining the scene.
"Our Magic Investigation Director has personally come out."
Jeong-pal also looked at the gray-haired mage. As a director of the Magic Investigation Unit, he held a high rank equivalent to a one-star general in the military. Unlike other high-ranking officials who focus on administration rather than fieldwork, mages often get directly involved in significant cases.
"And... the Immigration Bureau? No, this hasn't even been stamped as an alien case yet. Furthermore, there hasn't been any request for cooperation or guidelines from this side."
He then exaggeratedly gestured as if he couldn't understand.
"Even if they have high standing, does our Unit 4 team leader lack pride? Crawling before receiving an official document? What kind of servitude is this? Before bringing in agents from another government agency, you should have confirmed the procedures. Isn't that right?"
Jeong-pal's temples throbbed. Mentioning slavery in front of an orc was clearly intentional.
The Unit 2 team leader was simply looking for trouble, intending to embarrass Jeong-pal in front of the Immigration Bureau.
Jeong-pal growled.
"The guidelines will be here soon."
It wasn't a lie. If Min-jun made a call and waited, instructions from the police department via the Immigration Bureau would come through. It was just a matter of time. There was a reason police usually pass everything through the Immigration Bureau without question.
So Jeong-pal suggested not wasting unnecessary time.
But even knowing the procedure was redundant, Unit 2 continued to hold its ground with a haughty smile. They had confidence in their control, looking at Jeong-pal and Min-jun alternately with a dismissive gaze.
"If it will be here soon, you can wait here a bit longer."
Watching this, Min-jun could see how Jeong-pal was treated within the department.
'See, this is why we should just skip this and work together.'
Min-jun looked at the Unit 2 team leader, who also met his gaze with a defiant expression. The agent felt tempted. There was a quicker way than waiting for a call. His friend had never had an appendicitis operation. Should he give it a try?
At that moment:
"Min-jun... sir?"
The voice came from inside the police line. Everyone turned their heads.
The old mage examining the scene was staring at them. His white eyebrows twitched as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing, and his mouth slightly opened in surprise.
"Sir... it's really you, isn't it? Am I dreaming?"
He hurriedly ran towards the police line. The Unit 2 team leader now had a dumbfounded expression.
Meanwhile, Min-jun looked at the approaching mage's face, troubled. Seeing him up close, he definitely looked familiar.
And soon, he recalled the mage's younger face.
"…Kim from the Magic Studies Class 2?"
He soon completed the full name.
"Kim Cheol-soo, right?"
The mage broke into a broad smile.
"Yes, sir! It's me! Kim Cheol-soo, who studied under you at Goseong Academy!"
"…!"
The Unit 2 team leader's face twisted in dismay.
< 106. Shock and Terror (4) > End