Chapter 46: The Global Landscape
"..."
Hayakawa Aki sighed. He had no choice. As a rookie junior, he simply couldn't handle Himeno-senpai.
"In that case, I'll take you both to a very nice restaurant tonight to reward Otonashi-kun," Himeno said, having already decided on the place.
"Thank you, Himeno-senpai," Chiya said with a faint smile.
"See you tonight then. Aki-kun and I won't disturb you any longer—a Vice Captain is a busy man, after all," Himeno said.
"I might not be available until after 7:00 PM, though." Chiya wanted to have dinner with Denji first.
"That's fine. As long as we can be home by ten." Himeno figured that returning by ten to sleep wouldn't interfere with the next day's patrol. She wouldn't ask Aki to drink since he was still a minor; plus, if things went south, Aki could be her designated wake-up call.
Currently, Chiya had arrived at the Special Division 1 lounge on the third floor of the Public Safety headquarters. The lounge was spacious, equipped with entertainment facilities and training gear to accommodate the dozens of members in the division.
The team members were already resting inside—not just those who went on the mission, but others who were waiting for him.
"Vice Captain, we've briefed everyone. The entirety of Special Division 1 is willing to share the surgical costs for that father and daughter. We're going to start a collection now," one of them said to Chiya.
Chiya scanned the room and saw that no one looked reluctant. This was fine; he wouldn't have forced it if anyone was unwilling. With dozens of people chipping in, it came to about 20,000 yen per person—a small sum for a Public Safety hunter. Still, their kindness and moral character were undeniable.
Ultimately, they collected over a million yen, which was handed to Chiya for safekeeping. He planned to deliver it to the family immediately.
After leaving headquarters, Chiya went straight to Tokyo Hospital. Ishii Rinka had already handled the paperwork for the pair.
"I'm a Public Safety devil hunter. A hunter named Ishii Rinka should have arrived here recently?" Chiya showed his ID to expedite the process. The staff checked the system and gave him the floor and room number.
A few minutes later, Chiya found the ward. Both father and daughter were in the same room, with Rinka standing guard.
"Vice Captain!" Rinka greeted him respectfully.
"How is the situation?"
"Both are out of danger and are being prepared for replantation surgery," Rinka reported.
"Did the hospital say how much both surgeries will cost? And does this family have any other relatives?"
"The hospital quoted over a million yen. As for family, the man's wife happened to be visiting her parents' home; she's on her way back now," Rinka replied.
"Understood." Chiya turned toward the door. "I'll go down to pay the fees. I'll leave things here to you for a bit."
"It's no trouble at all!" Rinka beamed. She realized the Vice Captain had already secured the surgical funds. Otherwise, a million-yen bill would have been a crushing burden for a family living in a modest apartment.
Having lived in this world for a while, Chiya had noticed some peculiar things. Japan here didn't seem to have experienced the "Bubble Economy" or its subsequent crash, much like how the Soviet Union in this world never collapsed.
This was likely because the World War II Devil had been devoured by the Chainsaw Devil. People had completely forgotten the war, which directly altered the global landscape. The Gun Devil hadn't appeared for a long time because it had long since been shredded by Pochita, its body parts now held by various nations.
The current world order was reflected by the percentage of Gun Devil flesh each country held. The Soviet Union was the strongest, followed by the United States, with China in third. After that, there was a massive gap.
Japan and the EU nations were mediocre. Japan was far behind China, likely because without the history of WWII, Japan wasn't a "client state" of the U.S., and the U.S. hadn't propped it up. This resulted in a weaker national power and a stagnant economy—no takeoff, and therefore no bubble or crash. In 1993, which should have been the trough of the post-bubble era, Chiya felt no such economic depression.
In short, the economy was flat. Ordinary wages were average, barely covering daily life in high-cost Tokyo. Many people couldn't afford major medical bills.
When Chiya returned to the ward after paying, the man's wife had arrived. Faced with her non-stop bowing and gratitude, Chiya felt a bit embarrassed. "It was just a small effort."
He then pulled out another 100,000 yen. "Take this as well. Use it for nutrition for your husband and daughter so they can recover faster."
Unable to handle the heavy atmosphere of gratitude, he made a quick excuse and left.
Tokyo Public Safety, Conference Hall.
Several high-ranking officials, including Yoshimura Taki, were holding a meeting specifically regarding Otonashi Chiya.
"The police report is in. Except for the clones that died naturally after the main body was killed, almost every wound was dealt by the same hand—Otonashi Chiya."
"So, he basically wiped out every devil by himself?"
"It appears so. His performance is staggering, not at all inferior to Kishibe in his prime. We no longer have to worry about a gap in talent for Tokyo Public Safety."
"The Cabinet seems to have been alerted by Otonashi-kun's brilliant performance. They want to use him to boost Japan's international prestige and influence again, similar to what they did with Kishibe and China's Quanxi years ago."
"Oh? Has there been any word on which country we might collaborate with?"
"Nothing official yet, but it's likely either the Soviet Union or the U.S., since we've already collaborated with China before."