Side: Tori
As usual, I'm in the administrative office handling my duties for the police force. However, with the massive influx of immigrants from Rithea lately, the number of problems has inevitably increased.
"Representative, there is a disturbance at the training center."
"Where is Riel?"
"Representative Riel is currently resolving an issue in the residential district."
"What about the personnel guarding the training center?"
"Well... the troublemakers are insisting on meeting only with a representative. They refuse to speak with 'slaves' like us."
"...Sigh. More idiots, huh. What about the fairy folk staff?"
"They're being told the same thing—that since they're not human, they shouldn't interfere."
"...What's the situation?"
"They've barricaded themselves in Lecture Room B in one section of the training center. Around 12 or 13 people."
"Understood. I'll head there. Fill me in on the details along the way."
I stood up from my chair and opened the door, making my way toward the training center.
"Which building is it?"
"Building 4, ma'am."
Due to the number of immigrants, we recently expanded from the original two training buildings to five. Theoretically, two buildings are enough to house the 400 or so people currently in processing, but the turnover for toilets and baths couldn't keep up, so we've opened up through Building 4.
"Humans... meaning the perpetrators are human?"
"Yes. They claim they cannot stay in the same place as us Beast-kin or the Fairy-kin."
"......They shouldn't have come here in the first place if that's how they feel."
"Exactly, ma'am."
"For now, I'll attempt a verbal persuasion, but we will suppress them with the intent to exile."
"Yes, please."
Reports of this nature—ranging from minor to extreme like today—come in every single day. I seriously wonder if these people even listen to our orientation. Doing this only serves to tighten the noose around their own necks. While lost in these thoughts, I arrived at the scene.
* * *
"Don't come any closer! Call the representative! We have nothing to say to the likes of you!"
"That's right! It's the representative we have business with!"
"""Yeah!"""
Ugh, what a pain. They've gone and broken down desks to build a barricade; cleaning that up is going to be a nightmare.
"Alright, I am Representative Tori. Clear that barricade and come over here immediately. You are looking at charges for destruction of public property and obstruction of duty. Why did you do this?"
"Oh, you finally showed up! We are advocates for the improvement of human rights!"
"Huh?"
"The lord of this place is Seraria-sama! So why are we treated the same as other races!? We should be given preferential treatment!"
"That's right! We humans are superior!"
"And your specific demands are...?"
"......"
"......"
The moment I leveled a sharp glare at them, they went silent.
"By what criteria do you define 'improvement of rights'? Please, answer me. Or is it simply that you dislike the policy of equality set by Elju-sama and Seraria-sama?"
"T-That's..."
"Shall I guess? Free use of all facilities? Special treatment at the shops?"
"Y-Yes, exactly!"
"Don't be ridiculous. Let's be honest. You just want money, don't you?"
"""!?"""
Every one of them stood there with wide eyes, completely stunned.
"I have confirmed everyone's identity. What did you think we created ID cards and family registers for? Every single one of you has caused trouble at various facilities or shops. Most of it is practically theft. I've also looked into your cash flow—it's nothing but mindless squandering. Given that, how am I supposed to find a motive other than money?"
As I said this right there in the open, the gazes of the other immigrants watching the scene turned incredibly cold.
Of course they did. This was nothing more than a child's selfish tantrum.
I looked through the documents my officers handed me.Oh? This is... I should consult about this later.
"Now, this is your final notice. Your demands are not worth accepting. If you surrender quietly now, I will settle this leniently with a few months of forced labor. If you refuse, you will be exiled from this dungeon. Is that clear?"
"L-Liar! If you kick us out, word of your bad reputation will spread!"
"We have already coordinated with the various nations. We will exile you wearing these special slave collars. Don't worry, it's not like you'll be treated like actual slaves. It just means you can't enter this dungeon ever again. Of course, that collar also serves as a mark that you were exiled for misconduct in our dungeon, so... good luck. You'll likely be met with cold stares in any of our allied nations."
"""...!!?"""
They were visibly shaken. Honestly, the fact that they thought this would work shows how pathetic they are.
"Now, we will proceed with the restraint. After everyone is arrested, you will be fined and then exiled. Do your best out there."
"Wait...!"
* * *
"...And that's what happened."
"On my end, it was a fight between some Elves and Cat-kin. That one turned out to be a misunderstanding over cultural differences," Riel added.
"There's been some petty theft at my shops as well," Latz noted. "Though, thanks to the magic, if you don't pass an item through the register, you get paralyzed, so it's easy to catch them. Especially at Super Latz—there are just so many items on display~"
"The hot springs in the entertainment district are a struggle too. It's getting better lately, but there are still fools who try to walk off with the soap and shampoo. I actually got a little bit angry," Naljia-san said.
"...Narjia-san, please hold back. Because of that, the front desk got scorched."
Back at the inn that night, as we shared the day's events, it seemed everyone was dealing with similar headaches.
"Well, that's just how the world is," Yuki-san said. "We just have to gradually raise the residents' morals. It's not something they'll understand overnight. We build it up piece by piece until everyone gets it. Things are improving, aren't they?"
Recalling the recent statistics, I answered Yuki-san's question.
"That's good to hear. Thinking back, there were all sorts of things at the start, weren't there~?"
"Totally. There was that idiot who suddenly screamed that they hated sharing a room. I was just speechless," Riel laughed.
"There was that, too. And the person who insisted, 'I only eat bread!'"
As we swapped stories of our hardships, Seraria-sama arrived, radiating a heavy aura of anger.
"...What happened?"
"I discovered a woman being raped while I was on patrol today."
"""!!?"""
"...The victim?"
"...Her life isn't in danger, but she's mentally shattered. She's in no state to talk."
"...And the perpe—"
"I cut him down."
"""......"""
It's not that the kind of trouble Seraria-sama mentioned hadn't happened before. But this was the first time she had discovered it personally.
"Assault against women. Child abuse. I've said I will cut down anyone who commits such acts. Honestly, I saw something filthy. Tori, the relevant documents will reach you tomorrow. Handle the processing."
"Yes, ma'am."
"Labyris. Make sure the public relations department reports this incident thoroughly. Let it be known that we show no mercy to such heinous crimes."
"...Understood."
"Hmph. There are scumbags everywhere, aren't there?"
Saying that, Seraria-sama leaned into Yuki's chest.
"I'm sorry," Yuki whispered.
"...It's not your fault. I'm still too soft. Things like that happen everywhere, yet when I saw it with my own eyes, I couldn't suppress my feelings... Treating a woman like that."
Yuki gently hugged her... Lately, I feel like Seraria-sama has been sticking very close to him.
"Anyway, setting that aside... don't you ever dare think about doing something like those I mentioned," she added, looking up at him.
"I wouldn't."
"""Pfft."""
That one exchange dissipated the dark atmosphere.
"The world is full of all kinds of things. It's impossible for everything to go perfectly. I'm counting on you all from here on out," Yuki-san said.
Everyone nodded. It's true. This incident was tragic, but it doesn't mean everything is over. We have to make sure we learn from it for the future.
Ah, it looks like tomorrow is going to be another busy day.
