The Museum of Information History, an incorporated foundation, had been an oasis of calm for thirty years.
Its chairman was Nobeyama Souhachi, a wealthy resident of Odawara. The Museum of Information History was his private library, its collection consisting mainly of books and film records that Nobeyama owned personally. It too was located in Odawara. To view the collection, one needed an advance appointment, and a trusted member needed to vouch for the visitor. The collection contained all kinds of magazines, newspapers, and recordings of television programs. More specifically, it contained a record of every piece of reporting ever done on the Media Improvement Act. As a library that kept records of the Act going back to before it was passed, it was well-known in both the library world and the journalism world. Not even the Media Improvement Committee's agencies or the Ministry of Justice could ignore its existence.
As chairman of the conglomerate that owned Sesousha, the publishers of New World, and as a man who opposed the Media Improvement Act, Nobeyama established the Museum of Information History as an incorporated foundation soon after the Improvement Act was passed. Foreseeing a society where it would become difficult to criticize the Improvement Act, he gathered records of the media coverage of the Improvement Act up until that point, regardless of content, and had been doing the same thing ever since. This allowed him to maintain a front of neutrality, but his true purpose was to preserve journalistic records that would harm the Media Improvement Act, and in particular the systematic documentation of the transition the media had undergone since the Act was passed. Thus the historical value of the museum's collection.
If it had been a public library, it would have been a prime target for attack by the Improvement Special Agency and supporters of the Improvement Act, but the Museum of Information History's status as a private library made its position complicated.
--
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Its chairman was Nobeyama Souhachi, a wealthy resident of Odawara. The Museum of Information History was his private library, its collection consisting mainly of books and film records that Nobeyama owned personally. It too was located in Odawara. To view the collection, one needed an advance appointment, and a trusted member needed to vouch for the visitor. The collection contained all kinds of magazines, newspapers, and recordings of television programs. More specifically, it contained a record of every piece of reporting ever done on the Media Improvement Act. As a library that kept records of the Act going back to before it was passed, it was well-known in both the library world and the journalism world. Not even the Media Improvement Committee's agencies or the Ministry of Justice could ignore its existence.
As chairman of the conglomerate that owned Sesousha, the publishers of New World, and as a man who opposed the Media Improvement Act, Nobeyama established the Museum of Information History as an incorporated foundation soon after the Improvement Act was passed. Foreseeing a society where it would become difficult to criticize the Improvement Act, he gathered records of the media coverage of the Improvement Act up until that point, regardless of content, and had been doing the same thing ever since. This allowed him to maintain a front of neutrality, but his true purpose was to preserve journalistic records that would harm the Media Improvement Act, and in particular the systematic documentation of the transition the media had undergone since the Act was passed. Thus the historical value of the museum's collection.
If it had been a public library, it would have been a prime target for attack by the Improvement Special Agency and supporters of the Improvement Act, but the Museum of Information History's status as a private library made its position complicated.
--
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"Libraries oppose all censorship." It had been made abundantly clear that the library could not maintain that right guaranteed by the Law of Library Freedom with a pacifist strategy.
The Law of Library Freedom concluded, "When the freedom of the library is violated, we librarians will unite and fight to the end to protect its freedom." Inamine knew no way to protect the library's freedom except by fighting those who tried to violate it.
The same attack erupted at every turn: "Isn't this just your way of venting your grudge over the Nightmare at Hino?" He was also admonished, "Do you think your dead wife would have wanted this militarization?"
For the former, of course he bore a grudge. But he was sure that his grudge had nothing to do with his decision that the library must arm itself.
As for the latter, not even Inamine knew what his wife would have thought, so the people who admonished him obviously could have no idea. Inamine had no answer for such hypothetical questions.
And then,
"We despair of the library, which defies the Media Improvement Act and disdains order, morality, and human rights! In exchange for the lives of the hostages, we demand the destruction of the documents from the Museum of Information History!"
When there were groups who attempted to suppress books with methods like that, there was no way that the library could give up the defense capability of the Library Force.
*
--
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The Law of Library Freedom concluded, "When the freedom of the library is violated, we librarians will unite and fight to the end to protect its freedom." Inamine knew no way to protect the library's freedom except by fighting those who tried to violate it.
The same attack erupted at every turn: "Isn't this just your way of venting your grudge over the Nightmare at Hino?" He was also admonished, "Do you think your dead wife would have wanted this militarization?"
For the former, of course he bore a grudge. But he was sure that his grudge had nothing to do with his decision that the library must arm itself.
As for the latter, not even Inamine knew what his wife would have thought, so the people who admonished him obviously could have no idea. Inamine had no answer for such hypothetical questions.
And then,
"We despair of the library, which defies the Media Improvement Act and disdains order, morality, and human rights! In exchange for the lives of the hostages, we demand the destruction of the documents from the Museum of Information History!"
When there were groups who attempted to suppress books with methods like that, there was no way that the library could give up the defense capability of the Library Force.
--
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The library's entire collection had been destroyed, by a combination of the fire and the water used to douse it. The only book that remained was the one that Inamine's wife had carried out herself. Inamine still had it, twenty years after the incident. It was stained with blood and couldn't be lent out, so it had been given to Inamine as a memento. The book was a volume of local history. It had been housed in the documents room at city hall, and it had taken Inamine long years of negotiations to acquire it for the library.
Rumors swirled about the Nightmare at Hino, as the incident had been named--rumors too detailed to be dismissed as false.
Rumors that the delay in police intervention had been due to pressure from the Media Improvement Committee.
The attackers were all turned over to the prosecutor's office and sentenced to appropriate punishments, but the investigation of the Media Improvement Committee, suspected to have aided them, suffered from a lack of hard evidence and was closed partway through.
After that, Inamine resigned as director of the Hino Library and poured his heart and soul into shaping the modern Library Force.
There was strong opposition to the idea of a Force whose purpose was to shed blood in order to protect books. Even in the present day, there were many who criticized Inamine for playing a major role in intensifying the library conflict.
But would the people who criticize us protect our poor abused books for us? Would they shed their own blood to protect our books, in place of the poorly-equipped library staff? If we are to protect our books and our librarians, we have no choice but to arm ourselves more strongly. This was how Inamine faced down opposition.
"You would kill people, for the sake of public order and morality?" People denounced Inamine with the same words he had used to denounce the Hino attackers. You would kill people, for the sake of protecting books?
He was never able to firmly state, Yes, even if we kill people, but Inamine was not proposing a pacifist system.
--
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Rumors swirled about the Nightmare at Hino, as the incident had been named--rumors too detailed to be dismissed as false.
Rumors that the delay in police intervention had been due to pressure from the Media Improvement Committee.
The attackers were all turned over to the prosecutor's office and sentenced to appropriate punishments, but the investigation of the Media Improvement Committee, suspected to have aided them, suffered from a lack of hard evidence and was closed partway through.
After that, Inamine resigned as director of the Hino Library and poured his heart and soul into shaping the modern Library Force.
There was strong opposition to the idea of a Force whose purpose was to shed blood in order to protect books. Even in the present day, there were many who criticized Inamine for playing a major role in intensifying the library conflict.
But would the people who criticize us protect our poor abused books for us? Would they shed their own blood to protect our books, in place of the poorly-equipped library staff? If we are to protect our books and our librarians, we have no choice but to arm ourselves more strongly. This was how Inamine faced down opposition.
"You would kill people, for the sake of public order and morality?" People denounced Inamine with the same words he had used to denounce the Hino attackers. You would kill people, for the sake of protecting books?
He was never able to firmly state, Yes, even if we kill people, but Inamine was not proposing a pacifist system.
--
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"STOP THIS AT ONCE!" he bellowed, drowning out even the roar of the fire. "You would kill people, for the sake of public order and morality!?"
If that's what justice is, justice is the ugliest concept in the world. And just what did that make the Media Improvement Act, as the basis for this ugliness?
As if the force of his spirit itself was deflecting the bullets, Inamine marched some dozen steps without being hit. But just before he reached his wife, he lost his balance and collapsed, as though his right leg had suddenly disappeared from underneath him.
Beneath the shelter of his fallen body, he could hear his wife taking fast, shallow breaths. It was like the sound their pet cat had made on its deathbed, several years before.
Sorry, I'll move, I must be heavy, he tried to say, but blood poured from his mouth instead of words. He knew his right leg had been shot, but apparently he had also received a bullet to the chest.
He lost consciousness while vomiting blood, still struggling to speak to his fallen wife.
~
When he regained consciousness, his right leg had been amputated halfway up the thigh.
Inamine had hovered on the boundary between life and death for a long time, due to massive blood loss and the damage to his lungs from the chest wound. His wife's funeral had been held while he was still too weak to lift his head from the pillow. Because they had no children, his wife's father had substituted for him as chief mourner.
There had been heavy casualties among not only the staff of the main library, but among the backup forces from the branch libraries who had tried to cover their evacuation. Twelve people were dead, to say nothing of the wounded.
--
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If that's what justice is, justice is the ugliest concept in the world. And just what did that make the Media Improvement Act, as the basis for this ugliness?
As if the force of his spirit itself was deflecting the bullets, Inamine marched some dozen steps without being hit. But just before he reached his wife, he lost his balance and collapsed, as though his right leg had suddenly disappeared from underneath him.
Beneath the shelter of his fallen body, he could hear his wife taking fast, shallow breaths. It was like the sound their pet cat had made on its deathbed, several years before.
Sorry, I'll move, I must be heavy, he tried to say, but blood poured from his mouth instead of words. He knew his right leg had been shot, but apparently he had also received a bullet to the chest.
He lost consciousness while vomiting blood, still struggling to speak to his fallen wife.
When he regained consciousness, his right leg had been amputated halfway up the thigh.
Inamine had hovered on the boundary between life and death for a long time, due to massive blood loss and the damage to his lungs from the chest wound. His wife's funeral had been held while he was still too weak to lift his head from the pillow. Because they had no children, his wife's father had substituted for him as chief mourner.
There had been heavy casualties among not only the staff of the main library, but among the backup forces from the branch libraries who had tried to cover their evacuation. Twelve people were dead, to say nothing of the wounded.
--
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"Forget about them!" It broke Inamine's heart to say it.
When they emerged from the archives, the gunfire had ceased. Perhaps the smoke was rising upwards, but the basement wasn't yet filled with it. It had been harder to breathe in the archives themselves, with the smoke pouring out of the ducts.
"Not that one." Immediately after speaking, Inamine's wife disappeared back into the archives.
"Give it up, let's go!" His wife usually ignored his attempts to dissuade her at home, but in these circumstances, he couldn't afford to wait indulgently for her as he usually did. "Hurry!" he shouted into the archives. She returned, carrying a book and coughing violently.
A security guard with a gun lead the way, and they all climbed upstairs, crouching low. When they reached the first floor, the smoke density increased dramatically.
"Breathe low to the ground! Crawl if you have to!" Inamine ordered, lowering his knees to the ground and shuffling forward. There was fire everywhere in the reference room--maybe they had doused it in gasoline--and they couldn't get near the main entrance due to the force of the flames. Thick smoke hung low like rainclouds a meter above the floor. One breath of that smoke would probably cause one to pass out. The stooping crawl was quite painful for Inamine, who had suffered intense lower back pain ever since he had slipped a disk last year.
Driven by the flames yet unable to get up and run, only his thoughts were racing. Blasted by a hot wind, scorched by the fire, the exit that they would have already reached if they could have run for it seemed hopelessly far away.
There was little illumination--either the electricity was out, or the lights were obscured by the smoke. The only sources of light were the reflection from the fire and the emergency guide lights on the floor. Staff members following the guide lights collapsed from smoke inhalation one after the other, and picking them up and dragging them slowed the group's progress even further.
They reached the emergency exit at last. The first few staff members threw open the door, and the smoke whooshed out with terrific force. People spilled out of the building and ran for the front.
Then one by one, those fleeing figures crumpled to the ground.
Inamine, who had remained in the building until the last, didn't understand what had happened, but stood dumbfounded in the doorway. The staff members who were still on their feet fled back to the emergency exit they had just escaped from. The ones who had fallen either stayed where they were or tried to crawl back--until they were rescued and carried back by the other staff.
"Director, get down!" When a young librarian pulled him back, the sound of the barrage of gunfire, mixed in with the popping and roaring of the fire, finally penetrated his brain.
What madness is this. He had no words.
To gun down people trying to escape from a burning building...
When he came to his senses, he realized that his wife wasn't inside. And that one of the still, fallen figures on the ground outside was holding a book.
"Director!!"
He shook off the voices and hands that tried to stop him. Not even bothering to duck down, he ran around to the front.
--
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When they emerged from the archives, the gunfire had ceased. Perhaps the smoke was rising upwards, but the basement wasn't yet filled with it. It had been harder to breathe in the archives themselves, with the smoke pouring out of the ducts.
"Not that one." Immediately after speaking, Inamine's wife disappeared back into the archives.
"Give it up, let's go!" His wife usually ignored his attempts to dissuade her at home, but in these circumstances, he couldn't afford to wait indulgently for her as he usually did. "Hurry!" he shouted into the archives. She returned, carrying a book and coughing violently.
A security guard with a gun lead the way, and they all climbed upstairs, crouching low. When they reached the first floor, the smoke density increased dramatically.
"Breathe low to the ground! Crawl if you have to!" Inamine ordered, lowering his knees to the ground and shuffling forward. There was fire everywhere in the reference room--maybe they had doused it in gasoline--and they couldn't get near the main entrance due to the force of the flames. Thick smoke hung low like rainclouds a meter above the floor. One breath of that smoke would probably cause one to pass out. The stooping crawl was quite painful for Inamine, who had suffered intense lower back pain ever since he had slipped a disk last year.
Driven by the flames yet unable to get up and run, only his thoughts were racing. Blasted by a hot wind, scorched by the fire, the exit that they would have already reached if they could have run for it seemed hopelessly far away.
There was little illumination--either the electricity was out, or the lights were obscured by the smoke. The only sources of light were the reflection from the fire and the emergency guide lights on the floor. Staff members following the guide lights collapsed from smoke inhalation one after the other, and picking them up and dragging them slowed the group's progress even further.
They reached the emergency exit at last. The first few staff members threw open the door, and the smoke whooshed out with terrific force. People spilled out of the building and ran for the front.
Then one by one, those fleeing figures crumpled to the ground.
Inamine, who had remained in the building until the last, didn't understand what had happened, but stood dumbfounded in the doorway. The staff members who were still on their feet fled back to the emergency exit they had just escaped from. The ones who had fallen either stayed where they were or tried to crawl back--until they were rescued and carried back by the other staff.
"Director, get down!" When a young librarian pulled him back, the sound of the barrage of gunfire, mixed in with the popping and roaring of the fire, finally penetrated his brain.
What madness is this. He had no words.
To gun down people trying to escape from a burning building...
When he came to his senses, he realized that his wife wasn't inside. And that one of the still, fallen figures on the ground outside was holding a book.
"Director!!"
He shook off the voices and hands that tried to stop him. Not even bothering to duck down, he ran around to the front.
--
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"There's smoke coming through the air conditioning ducts!"
The next moment, the staff member manning the outside line shouted, "They started a fire in the reference room! The blaze is visible from the farthest branch library!" This information was coming from teams at the branch libraries, waiting on high alert for reinforcements to arrive.
"Why aren't the fire alarms working!? Or the fire suppression system!?" someone yelled accusingly. But from the fact that smoke was pouring out of the ducts, it was clear that the smoke ventilators that comprised their safety systems were completely down. Meaning that the enemy had taken control of the security room, disabled the safety systems--and then, started a fire.
It was too much. Everyone fell silent, including Inamine.
He had been prepared for considerable damage to the library's collection. He had been prepared for plundering. But he had never dreamed that the violence would reach the level of destroying the safety systems and setting fire to the building. The group's values were so skewed--talking about justice as they set fire to books--that it gave him vertigo to think about them.
"Where they burn books, they will ultimately also burn people."* The old saying came to mind automatically.
"...Order the branch libraries to contact the fire department and cover our escape! We're evacuating!"
He was very skeptical about how much cover the branch libraries could provide without reinforcements, but the smoke would get to them before reinforcements arrived.
"What about the books?!" a staff member pleaded. Inamine felt the same way. The expansion into the new building had allowed them fulfill their hearts' desire and expand their collection; in particular, they had been given charge of a large number of precious local historical documents, currently stored in the archives.
--
* Heinrich Heine, a German poet.
--
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The next moment, the staff member manning the outside line shouted, "They started a fire in the reference room! The blaze is visible from the farthest branch library!" This information was coming from teams at the branch libraries, waiting on high alert for reinforcements to arrive.
"Why aren't the fire alarms working!? Or the fire suppression system!?" someone yelled accusingly. But from the fact that smoke was pouring out of the ducts, it was clear that the smoke ventilators that comprised their safety systems were completely down. Meaning that the enemy had taken control of the security room, disabled the safety systems--and then, started a fire.
It was too much. Everyone fell silent, including Inamine.
He had been prepared for considerable damage to the library's collection. He had been prepared for plundering. But he had never dreamed that the violence would reach the level of destroying the safety systems and setting fire to the building. The group's values were so skewed--talking about justice as they set fire to books--that it gave him vertigo to think about them.
"Where they burn books, they will ultimately also burn people."* The old saying came to mind automatically.
"...Order the branch libraries to contact the fire department and cover our escape! We're evacuating!"
He was very skeptical about how much cover the branch libraries could provide without reinforcements, but the smoke would get to them before reinforcements arrived.
"What about the books?!" a staff member pleaded. Inamine felt the same way. The expansion into the new building had allowed them fulfill their hearts' desire and expand their collection; in particular, they had been given charge of a large number of precious local historical documents, currently stored in the archives.
--
* Heinrich Heine, a German poet.
--
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"Honey..."
The word was spoken by Inamine's wife, who also worked at the library. Without needing to be asked, he handed her his cell phone; she didn't have one of her own. She headed deeper into the archives, already dialing the three-digit number.
"Haven't we gotten in touch with Tachikawa yet!?"
Tachikawa Public Library was equipped with the largest-caliber firearms of all the libraries near the city of Hino.* They might be a match for the attackers' firepower. But in the confusion of the attack, the call for assistance had not gone out for some time, so the other libraries had been slow to respond. The Hino branch libraries were all poorly-equipped for a firefight, so they couldn't make a move either until they could link up with a team from one of the larger-scale libraries in the area.
The attacking group, whose name he had never even heard before, followed none of the rules of war. The Improvement Special Agency usually gave them time between the notification of a raid and the raid itself, and even if they carried out a surprise attack, there were established rules against attacking the civilian staff. But the staff who had tried to escape through the emergency exits had been shot at without mercy by these attackers. It was a miracle that no one had been killed.
"I got through to the reinforcements from Tachikawa! ETA twenty minutes!"
"Same for the ones from Hachiouji!"
They could hold out that long, somehow. They wouldn't be able to prevent damage to the reference room, but that was unavoidable.
"Keep calling the emergency medical services number** too, maybe they'll start demanding the police step in!"
There had been a few injuries from gunfire, so they had called 119, but until the attackers were subdued, no ambulance could get through.
At that moment, the staff who had been phoning from within the archives came running back, coughing violently.
--
* On an amusing tangent, the real Tachikawa Public Library's website is about the least threatening thing ever, with a cat mascot and reading recommendations for children.
** Unlike America, Japan has two different emergency phone numbers: 110 for the police, and 119 for fire and medical emergencies.
--
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The word was spoken by Inamine's wife, who also worked at the library. Without needing to be asked, he handed her his cell phone; she didn't have one of her own. She headed deeper into the archives, already dialing the three-digit number.
"Haven't we gotten in touch with Tachikawa yet!?"
Tachikawa Public Library was equipped with the largest-caliber firearms of all the libraries near the city of Hino.* They might be a match for the attackers' firepower. But in the confusion of the attack, the call for assistance had not gone out for some time, so the other libraries had been slow to respond. The Hino branch libraries were all poorly-equipped for a firefight, so they couldn't make a move either until they could link up with a team from one of the larger-scale libraries in the area.
The attacking group, whose name he had never even heard before, followed none of the rules of war. The Improvement Special Agency usually gave them time between the notification of a raid and the raid itself, and even if they carried out a surprise attack, there were established rules against attacking the civilian staff. But the staff who had tried to escape through the emergency exits had been shot at without mercy by these attackers. It was a miracle that no one had been killed.
"I got through to the reinforcements from Tachikawa! ETA twenty minutes!"
"Same for the ones from Hachiouji!"
They could hold out that long, somehow. They wouldn't be able to prevent damage to the reference room, but that was unavoidable.
"Keep calling the emergency medical services number** too, maybe they'll start demanding the police step in!"
There had been a few injuries from gunfire, so they had called 119, but until the attackers were subdued, no ambulance could get through.
At that moment, the staff who had been phoning from within the archives came running back, coughing violently.
--
* On an amusing tangent, the real Tachikawa Public Library's website is about the least threatening thing ever, with a cat mascot and reading recommendations for children.
** Unlike America, Japan has two different emergency phone numbers: 110 for the police, and 119 for fire and medical emergencies.
--
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"I'll try calling them again!"'
A female staffer began to dial outside on the archives' telephone, but Inamine stopped her. They had demanded action again and again, but the police just kept telling them, "They're just leaving, they're just leaving," as if they had called a soba restaurant asking about the status of their delivery. Meaning the police didn't intend to intervene. According to the reports of the personnel who had come running from other branches, patrols had arrived and taken measures to seal off the area, but hadn't done anything more combative than that.
"From now on, don't use library phones to call the police! Get on your cell phones, pretend you live in the neighborhood, and demand that they come and put a stop to the fighting! Don't mention that you work at the library! And try not to let them hear any gunfire!"
Staff members with cell phones ran deeper into the archives to escape the noise. If they could hear gunfire from close by, the police would figure out that the call was coming from the library even without doing a phone trace.
The police's indifferent attitude toward the library was nothing new, but this time it was too much. The police had established a tradition of noninterference in the private war between the library and the Improvement Special Agency, but this raid was clearly the work of an unrelated group. The staff of the other branches had tried to explain this to the police patrols who had arrived, but for whatever reason--perhaps it was taking a long time to confirm--the police were still dithering.
Yet the very fact that they were setting up a perimeter meant that they had recognized that this wasn't an attack by the Improvement Special Agency. In their war with the library, the Improvement Special Agency took responsibility for any injuries among the citizenry. The laws had been interpreted to mean that the party actively attacking was responsible for any collateral damage. In accordance with this ruling, the Improvement Special Agency independently sealed off the surrounding area and established safety measures whenever they carried out an attack. They also notified the police--meaning that if the Improvement Special Agency were responsible for the attack, the police wouldn't have been dispatched to seal off the area in the first place.
But it was useless to tell that to the police patrols present.
--
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A female staffer began to dial outside on the archives' telephone, but Inamine stopped her. They had demanded action again and again, but the police just kept telling them, "They're just leaving, they're just leaving," as if they had called a soba restaurant asking about the status of their delivery. Meaning the police didn't intend to intervene. According to the reports of the personnel who had come running from other branches, patrols had arrived and taken measures to seal off the area, but hadn't done anything more combative than that.
"From now on, don't use library phones to call the police! Get on your cell phones, pretend you live in the neighborhood, and demand that they come and put a stop to the fighting! Don't mention that you work at the library! And try not to let them hear any gunfire!"
Staff members with cell phones ran deeper into the archives to escape the noise. If they could hear gunfire from close by, the police would figure out that the call was coming from the library even without doing a phone trace.
The police's indifferent attitude toward the library was nothing new, but this time it was too much. The police had established a tradition of noninterference in the private war between the library and the Improvement Special Agency, but this raid was clearly the work of an unrelated group. The staff of the other branches had tried to explain this to the police patrols who had arrived, but for whatever reason--perhaps it was taking a long time to confirm--the police were still dithering.
Yet the very fact that they were setting up a perimeter meant that they had recognized that this wasn't an attack by the Improvement Special Agency. In their war with the library, the Improvement Special Agency took responsibility for any injuries among the citizenry. The laws had been interpreted to mean that the party actively attacking was responsible for any collateral damage. In accordance with this ruling, the Improvement Special Agency independently sealed off the surrounding area and established safety measures whenever they carried out an attack. They also notified the police--meaning that if the Improvement Special Agency were responsible for the attack, the police wouldn't have been dispatched to seal off the area in the first place.
But it was useless to tell that to the police patrols present.
--
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Warning: the next seven pages or so may be disturbing for some readers. They aren't terribly graphic, but they depict cruelness and brutality beyond what we've seen in our light-hearted novel so far. Be prepared. - ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif)
melithiel
--
Chapter 5, When the freedom of the library is violated, we librarians will unite and fight to the end to protect its freedom.
*
The first charge was swift and overwhelming.
It didn't help that they had expanded into a new building last year, and their personnel were still inexperienced at deploying there. The attack was also just after closing time, when librarians and staff were still in the building, and both the evacuation and defense were disorganized and chaotic. Thus, not twenty minutes had passed since the first charge before the Hino Library's reference room was occupied and the staff had barricaded themselves inside the archives in the basement, under heavy fire from the enemy.
'We are here to bring the iron hammer down upon the library, which to our despair treats antisocial books and worthy books as equals, and disrupts public order and morality!'
As gunfire echoed artlessly like the sound of rain, a staticky, crackling voice outside was shouting through a bullhorn. Handguns had been part of the standard equipment for the security forces at the Hino Library for several years now, but the attackers were armed with shotguns and submachine guns, so they were no match for them in terms of firepower. Anyway, they were accompanied by a large number of non-combatant librarians and staff, so they had no choice but to fight defensively.
As the director of the library, Inamine was in command, but there was almost nothing he could do while under siege inside the basement. At that point in time, there were no dead or severely wounded, which helped.
"The police still aren't here yet!?" a security guard practically wailed, returning fire from the barricade that had been erected outside of the archives. They had contacted the police during the early stages of the raid, but the riot squad that would be required to suppress the attack still hadn't arrived.
--
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melithiel--
The first charge was swift and overwhelming.
It didn't help that they had expanded into a new building last year, and their personnel were still inexperienced at deploying there. The attack was also just after closing time, when librarians and staff were still in the building, and both the evacuation and defense were disorganized and chaotic. Thus, not twenty minutes had passed since the first charge before the Hino Library's reference room was occupied and the staff had barricaded themselves inside the archives in the basement, under heavy fire from the enemy.
'We are here to bring the iron hammer down upon the library, which to our despair treats antisocial books and worthy books as equals, and disrupts public order and morality!'
As gunfire echoed artlessly like the sound of rain, a staticky, crackling voice outside was shouting through a bullhorn. Handguns had been part of the standard equipment for the security forces at the Hino Library for several years now, but the attackers were armed with shotguns and submachine guns, so they were no match for them in terms of firepower. Anyway, they were accompanied by a large number of non-combatant librarians and staff, so they had no choice but to fight defensively.
As the director of the library, Inamine was in command, but there was almost nothing he could do while under siege inside the basement. At that point in time, there were no dead or severely wounded, which helped.
"The police still aren't here yet!?" a security guard practically wailed, returning fire from the barricade that had been erected outside of the archives. They had contacted the police during the early stages of the raid, but the riot squad that would be required to suppress the attack still hadn't arrived.
--
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"What? No! They have nothing to do with each other!" she countered him.
At that moment, the door opened and Doujou came in. Genda, his face a mask of alarm, passed him and fled the room.
Doujou watched him go, a puzzled expression on his face. Shibasaki promptly showed him the magazine. As he scanned it, his expression grew grim.
"Commander! What is the meaning of this!?"
Watching Doujou fly out of the room in pursuit, Shibasaki turned to Iku with a mocking tone. "Overprotective as usual, isn't he."
"It's because he's got an overdeveloped sense of responsibility," Iku replied lightly, then returned her gaze to the magazine.
The article was so good that she could forgive the photograph, but Genda's "huge" comment had crossed the line, so she didn't feel any duty to intercede on his behalf.
...still, it wasn't a bad photo.
Her straight-backed figure did look quite dignified, if she did say so herself. I wonder if I look that way to other people? she thought. It gave her a good feeling to think so.
--
And thus ends Chapter Four--only one more to go! See you next week as we begin the chapter that's already made me cry.
--
Read the full story to date (PDF)
At that moment, the door opened and Doujou came in. Genda, his face a mask of alarm, passed him and fled the room.
Doujou watched him go, a puzzled expression on his face. Shibasaki promptly showed him the magazine. As he scanned it, his expression grew grim.
"Commander! What is the meaning of this!?"
Watching Doujou fly out of the room in pursuit, Shibasaki turned to Iku with a mocking tone. "Overprotective as usual, isn't he."
"It's because he's got an overdeveloped sense of responsibility," Iku replied lightly, then returned her gaze to the magazine.
The article was so good that she could forgive the photograph, but Genda's "huge" comment had crossed the line, so she didn't feel any duty to intercede on his behalf.
...still, it wasn't a bad photo.
Her straight-backed figure did look quite dignified, if she did say so herself. I wonder if I look that way to other people? she thought. It gave her a good feeling to think so.
--
And thus ends Chapter Four--only one more to go! See you next week as we begin the chapter that's already made me cry.
--
Read the full story to date (PDF)
The picture Shibasaki pointed at was a small profile of her standing, taken from diagonally behind. The caption read, "A trooper working security at the event, where the library was harshly attacked. What must she be thinking inside?" The photograph was shot in soft focus, but it was undeniably a picture of her.
"It's a small picture, but don't you look dignified and brave! Not bad, not bad at all."
"I don't care about that! This is terrible, my parents might find out if they see this... Commander!" she scolded before she could stop herself.
Genda came over to look at the magazine. He saw the photographed and frowned. "Damn you, Orikuchi," he rumbled. "Doujou's going to be spitting nails, and I'm going to get the heat for it."
"You're worrying about yourself!? Come on, I'm the victim here, clearly!"
"It's not like they got a clear shot of your face. Play innocent if your parents ask you about it. If push comes to shove, I'll tell them the person writing the article misunderstood. 'She's so huge that they took her for a security guard.'"
"'Huge'!? I don't need that kind of help, thank you very much!"
Genda ignored Iku's rebuff. "Oh, I forgot, we had a phone call from the munchkins." It was no use trying to get Genda to reconsider his words now that he had changed the subject. Iku slumped dispiritedly. "They've started the ball rolling on getting the restrictions lifted from their school library."
Iku and Shibasaki exchanged a look. "Well done," Shibasaki said first, smiling, and a grin split Iku's face too.
"Glad you're happy. Since I gave you good news, that makes us even, right?"
--
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"It's a small picture, but don't you look dignified and brave! Not bad, not bad at all."
"I don't care about that! This is terrible, my parents might find out if they see this... Commander!" she scolded before she could stop herself.
Genda came over to look at the magazine. He saw the photographed and frowned. "Damn you, Orikuchi," he rumbled. "Doujou's going to be spitting nails, and I'm going to get the heat for it."
"You're worrying about yourself!? Come on, I'm the victim here, clearly!"
"It's not like they got a clear shot of your face. Play innocent if your parents ask you about it. If push comes to shove, I'll tell them the person writing the article misunderstood. 'She's so huge that they took her for a security guard.'"
"'Huge'!? I don't need that kind of help, thank you very much!"
Genda ignored Iku's rebuff. "Oh, I forgot, we had a phone call from the munchkins." It was no use trying to get Genda to reconsider his words now that he had changed the subject. Iku slumped dispiritedly. "They've started the ball rolling on getting the restrictions lifted from their school library."
Iku and Shibasaki exchanged a look. "Well done," Shibasaki said first, smiling, and a grin split Iku's face too.
"Glad you're happy. Since I gave you good news, that makes us even, right?"
--
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I'm going to be visiting my folks at the end of the week, so Wednesday's page will be the last one for this week. - melithiel
--
There were also signs that the outcome in Musashino provided support for the other libraries in the Tokyo area.
Then, the week after the forum, the issue of New World Weekly with Orikuchi's article in it came out. The article was critical of the direction of the library lending restrictions debate--the children's participation in the forum had only fanned the flames--so it would probably serve to distract the Board of Education again.
The library had a subscription to New World, so on the day it came out, it was delivered to the First Library; however, an advance copy had already been sent the previous day from Orikuchi to the Library Task Force.
"Lemme see lemme see!" Shibasaki invaded the Task Force office during a break in her duties. Genda handed the magazine over to Iku and Shibasaki with good humor.
"You're the first to come and see it. It's a pretty good article."
"Where is it, where is it?" They flipped to a page that was marked with a sticky note and peered at it together.
"Oh, there's a picture of you, Shibasaki!"
They had used a photograph of Shibasaki refereeing the debate on the first page. She brightened the whole page. Shibasaki didn't seem to be surprised--maybe they had told her beforehand--but she seemed a little disgruntled.
"After I told them that my right side was my good side, too..."
Orikuchi's article maintained a neutral viewpoint, but as one read on, it naturally kindled sympathy for the library. It was an exquisite composition.
Turning the last page, Shibasaki cocked her head.
"Isn't that you?"
"What!?"
( See this scene in the manga )
--
Read the full story to date (PDF)
melithiel--
There were also signs that the outcome in Musashino provided support for the other libraries in the Tokyo area.
Then, the week after the forum, the issue of New World Weekly with Orikuchi's article in it came out. The article was critical of the direction of the library lending restrictions debate--the children's participation in the forum had only fanned the flames--so it would probably serve to distract the Board of Education again.
The library had a subscription to New World, so on the day it came out, it was delivered to the First Library; however, an advance copy had already been sent the previous day from Orikuchi to the Library Task Force.
"Lemme see lemme see!" Shibasaki invaded the Task Force office during a break in her duties. Genda handed the magazine over to Iku and Shibasaki with good humor.
"You're the first to come and see it. It's a pretty good article."
"Where is it, where is it?" They flipped to a page that was marked with a sticky note and peered at it together.
"Oh, there's a picture of you, Shibasaki!"
They had used a photograph of Shibasaki refereeing the debate on the first page. She brightened the whole page. Shibasaki didn't seem to be surprised--maybe they had told her beforehand--but she seemed a little disgruntled.
"After I told them that my right side was my good side, too..."
Orikuchi's article maintained a neutral viewpoint, but as one read on, it naturally kindled sympathy for the library. It was an exquisite composition.
Turning the last page, Shibasaki cocked her head.
"Isn't that you?"
"What!?"
( See this scene in the manga )
--
Read the full story to date (PDF)
"Up until now, our school library highly valued student's desires when purchasing books. Thanks to that, we could be moved and inspired in many different ways by reading. When the Committee for Reflection's restrictions were implemented, a large part of that inspiration was taken from us. If the library implemented those restrictions too, our ability to enjoy books would be drastically reduced, since we don't have much money to spend on them. We pray that the public libraries will protect our literary freedoms."
The audience burst into applause after Yuuma's concluding remarks.
After that, the debate resumed. The Committee for Reflection rallied and asserted the legitimacy of their demands for lending restrictions in increasingly forceful terms, but Inamine's words finally put a stop to this rhetoric.
"A library is not an extension of the schools, nor is it an agent of parental discipline. Of course, I do not deny that it assists with education, but I believe that offering an environment where children can choose books from an open and diverse collection aids in their development of self-reliance. I also believe that above all parents and guardians should be instructing their children on whether to stay away from frivolous works. Isn't pushing that task onto schools and libraries a dereliction of their duty as parents?"
Inamine did not raise his voice once during the debate; it was that very unflappability that was persuasive.
"Members of the Committee for Reflection, parents, I'd like you to think about how you can best fulfill your duties as our children's guardians. If you want our help to achieve that end, from offering our wealth of materials to suggesting books from our children's section, we will be unstinting in our cooperation."
~
After the forum had ended, and Iku and the others were in security headquarters preparing for the withdrawal, Yuuma and Taiga came to say their goodbyes.
"Thank you for everything," they said, both bowing.
Genda laughed. "It was a give-and-take. We got plenty of use out of you too."
Doujou frowned at Genda and his bald statement. "You're talking to kids!" he hissed, but Genda paid no mind.
"They fought a grown-up fight and pulled off a victory. How could we still treat them like kids?"
Yuuma and Taiga exchanged triumphant looks at Genda's pronouncement, then turned to Iku and bowed their heads. "Thank you for backing us up, Kasahara-san. We were happy you supported us."
No, see, I was just snapping at them out of reflex! Iku felt awkward and uncomfortable.
After the two went home, Doujou hit the bull's-eye. "You were just pissed off at the Committee for Reflection, weren't you."
"I'm sorry." Iku slumped.
Doujou continued with a poker-faced expression. "I was right to bring you along for the apology." He muttered, "I couldn't have spoken out at a time like that." It was almost a self-recrimination.
*
At the end of the forum, a survey had been handed out to the audience; the majority did not end up supporting the restrictions. On those grounds, as well as others, the Musashino First Library rejected the Committee for Reflection's demands for lending restrictions.
--
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The audience burst into applause after Yuuma's concluding remarks.
After that, the debate resumed. The Committee for Reflection rallied and asserted the legitimacy of their demands for lending restrictions in increasingly forceful terms, but Inamine's words finally put a stop to this rhetoric.
"A library is not an extension of the schools, nor is it an agent of parental discipline. Of course, I do not deny that it assists with education, but I believe that offering an environment where children can choose books from an open and diverse collection aids in their development of self-reliance. I also believe that above all parents and guardians should be instructing their children on whether to stay away from frivolous works. Isn't pushing that task onto schools and libraries a dereliction of their duty as parents?"
Inamine did not raise his voice once during the debate; it was that very unflappability that was persuasive.
"Members of the Committee for Reflection, parents, I'd like you to think about how you can best fulfill your duties as our children's guardians. If you want our help to achieve that end, from offering our wealth of materials to suggesting books from our children's section, we will be unstinting in our cooperation."
After the forum had ended, and Iku and the others were in security headquarters preparing for the withdrawal, Yuuma and Taiga came to say their goodbyes.
"Thank you for everything," they said, both bowing.
Genda laughed. "It was a give-and-take. We got plenty of use out of you too."
Doujou frowned at Genda and his bald statement. "You're talking to kids!" he hissed, but Genda paid no mind.
"They fought a grown-up fight and pulled off a victory. How could we still treat them like kids?"
Yuuma and Taiga exchanged triumphant looks at Genda's pronouncement, then turned to Iku and bowed their heads. "Thank you for backing us up, Kasahara-san. We were happy you supported us."
No, see, I was just snapping at them out of reflex! Iku felt awkward and uncomfortable.
After the two went home, Doujou hit the bull's-eye. "You were just pissed off at the Committee for Reflection, weren't you."
"I'm sorry." Iku slumped.
Doujou continued with a poker-faced expression. "I was right to bring you along for the apology." He muttered, "I couldn't have spoken out at a time like that." It was almost a self-recrimination.
At the end of the forum, a survey had been handed out to the audience; the majority did not end up supporting the restrictions. On those grounds, as well as others, the Musashino First Library rejected the Committee for Reflection's demands for lending restrictions.
--
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"Zero percent said 'yes,' 42 percent said 'no,' and 58 percent said 'If they were books I was interested in.'
"I think what we can take away from this question is that students who like to read chose the books they want to read themselves. We don't read a book because it's 'good for us,' we read because we want to enjoy a book we personally find interesting. I think reading is 'good for us' when we enjoy a book and it leaves a deep impression on us, or because we learn something from it, or things like that. Even if the books we wanted to read were restricted, we still wouldn't end up reading the books adults want to make us read. So I think it's meaningless to require us to read books that are 'good for us.'"
"We received a lot of opinions here, but one of the most overwhelming was 'I wish people wouldn't think that just because a minor who liked graphic books and movies committed a crime, all children are going to do the same thing." Another common one was 'I wish people would believe in children's judgement and morals more.'"
--
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"Zero percent of respondents answered 'yes,' 92 percent answered 'no,' and 8 percent answered 'I don't know.' Supplementary opinions given by the 'no' respondents included, 'I read books because I want to be deeply moved, so I don't think I'll ever be negatively influenced by them,' 'I've read graphic books and found them cathartic, but I don't think I would ever imitate them in real life,' 'I can keep fantasy separate from reality,' etc. The people who answered 'I don't know' said, 'I haven't been negatively influenced yet, but I don't know.'"
"The most popular choices were, in order, 'I wish people had more faith in children,' 'I feel disappointed at the lack of faith it implies,' 'I think it's pointless,' and 'I am suspicious of adults who don't have faith in children.'
"Some of the people who answered 'I think it is the right thing to do' specified that they supported restrictions on those books that they could objectively agree that children should not be reading. However, that should not be taken as an endorsement of the Committee for Reflection's standards for restriction.
"No respondent chose 'I think even stronger measures should be taken.'"
--
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"Don't parents tell their children, 'if you apologize and mean it, you'll be forgiven'? If you accept their apology and then turn around later and use their actions as ammunition to attack them, aren't you just teaching them that there's no point in apologizing in the first place!?"
The audience burst into applause. Shibasaki returned the microphone to the first man, who made a follow-up attack. "Wouldn't you say it was 'unfair' to not mention that the children apologized?" He then looked up at the children on stage. "Please continue. We'll hear out your opinions to the end."
Yuuma nodded, and once again approached the microphone. "I've already discussed the results of question 4, the thoughts of those who had no opinion on the restrictions, so I'll move on. Next..."
Iku listened to Yuuma's voice as she made her way back to her post. Komaki greeted her with a smile. "Well played," he complimented her. But since her outburst had been nothing but a conditioned reflex, Iku just gave him an awkward smile.
5. Do you think that reading fosters crime?
"Twelve percent answered 'yes,' 63 percent answered 'no,' and 25 percent answered 'I don't know.' The 'yes' respondents included those who said, 'There might be a few people who have been influenced by books.'"
--
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The audience burst into applause. Shibasaki returned the microphone to the first man, who made a follow-up attack. "Wouldn't you say it was 'unfair' to not mention that the children apologized?" He then looked up at the children on stage. "Please continue. We'll hear out your opinions to the end."
Yuuma nodded, and once again approached the microphone. "I've already discussed the results of question 4, the thoughts of those who had no opinion on the restrictions, so I'll move on. Next..."
Iku listened to Yuuma's voice as she made her way back to her post. Komaki greeted her with a smile. "Well played," he complimented her. But since her outburst had been nothing but a conditioned reflex, Iku just gave him an awkward smile.
"Twelve percent answered 'yes,' 63 percent answered 'no,' and 25 percent answered 'I don't know.' The 'yes' respondents included those who said, 'There might be a few people who have been influenced by books.'"
--
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Applause broke out here and there, in expression of agreement with the speaker.
"We the Committee for Reflection are asking for the implementation of these restrictions based on the recommendations of the Board of Education. You mustn't give the same weight to the ill-considered opinions of callow young children and the policies of the Board of Education. Do you think to criticize those policies?" The chairman's rebuttal was suffused with irritation.
The man replied, "But as far as I could tell from their report, their survey questions and tallying methods were solid. I don't think it's the kind of childish opinion that you can dismiss as 'ill-considered.'"
"The children in charge of this group are the same ones who threw fireworks into one of our gatherings for a prank! Are you saying you can trust children like that!?"
"Objection!" Iku cried out in unthinking response. She used her normal voice, but it resounded throughout the auditorium. She quivered as the entire audience turned around at once to look at her, but--
"Someone from the library has some thoughts on the issue?" Shibasaki summoned her with a suggestive smile. Her nervousness disappeared. Komaki gently pushing her, she began walking toward where Shibasaki waited. Shibasaki collected the microphone from the man and met her.
"Yes, the children pulled a prank, but then they went to the Committee for Reflection and apologized properly! You accepted their apology yourself, didn't you, Chairman?" Iku railed into the microphone Shibasaki was holding. On stage, the chairman trembled visibly. The audience buzzed with suspicion.
--
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"We the Committee for Reflection are asking for the implementation of these restrictions based on the recommendations of the Board of Education. You mustn't give the same weight to the ill-considered opinions of callow young children and the policies of the Board of Education. Do you think to criticize those policies?" The chairman's rebuttal was suffused with irritation.
The man replied, "But as far as I could tell from their report, their survey questions and tallying methods were solid. I don't think it's the kind of childish opinion that you can dismiss as 'ill-considered.'"
"The children in charge of this group are the same ones who threw fireworks into one of our gatherings for a prank! Are you saying you can trust children like that!?"
"Objection!" Iku cried out in unthinking response. She used her normal voice, but it resounded throughout the auditorium. She quivered as the entire audience turned around at once to look at her, but--
"Someone from the library has some thoughts on the issue?" Shibasaki summoned her with a suggestive smile. Her nervousness disappeared. Komaki gently pushing her, she began walking toward where Shibasaki waited. Shibasaki collected the microphone from the man and met her.
"Yes, the children pulled a prank, but then they went to the Committee for Reflection and apologized properly! You accepted their apology yourself, didn't you, Chairman?" Iku railed into the microphone Shibasaki was holding. On stage, the chairman trembled visibly. The audience buzzed with suspicion.
--
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"All respondents circled both 'I wouldn't be able to read the books I want to read' and 'I value my freedom to read whatever I want.' The next most popular choice was 'I don't think the reasons behind the restrictions are valid.' Quite a few people wrote their own supplementary opinions in the space provided; the most common were along the lines of 'It doesn't make sense to restrict access to books that even the Media Improvement Committee doesn't censor,' 'The Committee for Reflection's standards are self-righteous,' 'I doubt that any grown-up who's not in the Committee for Reflection would support their standards,' etc.
"Those who answered 'I rebel against any attempt to restrict my freedom' also added supplementary opinions. These included 'They're being too overprotective,' 'It won't help us grow and become independent,' etc.
"Other opinions included 'The Committee for Reflection's interference will instead damage the relationship of mutual trust between children and adults,' etc."
As the presentation continued, the Committee for Reflection's audience section began to buzz with conversation. Compared to the violently aggressive demands made by the Committee for Reflection during the first half of the forum, this objective presentation of survey results by Yuuma and his group, even in voices flat from nervousness, appeared much more rational. The unaffiliated audience members were all listening intently.
"Stop this at once!"
The woman shouting from the stage was the Committee for Reflection's chairman, the one Yuuma and Taiga had gone to apologize to. The children were shocked into silence by her outburst, and she seized this opportunity to lash out at the advocates from the library.
"Did you let the children participate in this forum just so that they could criticize the Committee for Reflection? This puppetry is unfair! I demand that the children leave immediately!"
"We allowed the children to participate on the condition that they come up with their arguments themselves. Some of our staff made suggestions based on the children's goals, but there is no truth to the accusation that the library guided their decisions."
This prompt rebuttal came from Inamine--his communication with Genda, the instigator, was impeccable as usual.
"We never heard that this would be the kind of 'participation' we could expect!"
"Pardon me, but it sounds as though you wouldn't have endorsed their participation if their presentation didn't support the Committee for Reflection? That would be unfair. The important thing is that the children independently studied the issues of lending restrictions. It appears that they have more than achieved their goal of learning about the value and responsibilities of societal activities."
As Inamine and the chairman continued their argument, hands began to rise in the section where the unaffiliated were seated. Shibasaki, without a moment's pause, borrowed a microphone from one of the debaters on the library's side, and announced, "It appears that the audience has some thoughts on the matter, so let's hear from some of them!" Forcing the debate to a halt with her usual quick-wittedness, she descended from the stage and hurried over to the audience members with their hands raised.
The first man to take the microphone was a middle-aged member of the PTA. "As a parent, I would like to hear the children's personal opinions out to the end. I wasn't concerned about this lending restriction business before now, but if our children have spent so much time thinking about it, I think that as guardians we have no choice but to start thinking long and hard about it too."
--
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"In order to consider the voluntary lending restrictions from a middle school student's perspective, we conducted a survey among Musashino middle-schoolers. The number of valid responses received was 3,281. You can see the results in your handouts."
The results of the survey were in the materials that had been handed out at the entrance. The hall was briefly filled with the sounds of paper rustling.
1. What do you think about restrictions on lending library books to minors?
"Three percent answered 'I support them,' 82 percent answered 'I oppose them,' and 15 percent had no opinion. If you look at question 4, you'll see that the participants who had no opinion told us that they have no interest in reading itself, therefore almost all of the students who read books oppose restrictions. Also, even among those who don't read, a great number expressed opposition based on the belief that it was wrong for adults to restrict children's reading liberties. I believe that this means that many view their right to read as a symbol of children's independence and self-respect, and they value it even if they don't exercise it."
2. For those who answered "I support them" to Question 1, why do you support the restrictions? (Circle all that apply.)
"Among those who agreed, their consensus was 'I don't think that over-18 materials should be lent out, but I oppose the Committee for Reflection's standards for restriction.' Zero percent supported the Committee for Reflection's standards for restriction."
--
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The results of the survey were in the materials that had been handed out at the entrance. The hall was briefly filled with the sounds of paper rustling.
"Three percent answered 'I support them,' 82 percent answered 'I oppose them,' and 15 percent had no opinion. If you look at question 4, you'll see that the participants who had no opinion told us that they have no interest in reading itself, therefore almost all of the students who read books oppose restrictions. Also, even among those who don't read, a great number expressed opposition based on the belief that it was wrong for adults to restrict children's reading liberties. I believe that this means that many view their right to read as a symbol of children's independence and self-respect, and they value it even if they don't exercise it."
"Among those who agreed, their consensus was 'I don't think that over-18 materials should be lent out, but I oppose the Committee for Reflection's standards for restriction.' Zero percent supported the Committee for Reflection's standards for restriction."
--
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The Library Task Force had assumed security duty for the large auditorium where the forum was being held. Iku, as a member of Doujou's squad, was posted in the auditorium itself, mixed in with the audience members. It had been expected that the audience would consist mostly of Committee for Reflection members and mobilized library troops, but as it turned out, the number of ordinary citizens was surprisingly large. About half of the auditorium's five hundred seats were filled. The reason for the unexpected windfall seemed to be that Yuuma and his friends had appealed to the schools and begged their guardians to attend.
"It's Rule #4 of grown-up fights," Yuuma grinned. "'You'll be at a disadvantage if you don't have as many lackeys as your opponent.'" Genda's training at work again.
Where was Genda, so sure already of their victory? Holed up in their security headquarters--if he showed his face, he would intimidate their guests too much.
"So--why is Shibasaki up there?" Iku cocked her head in puzzlement as she looked up at the stage from her post.
Komaki, whom she was partnered with, answered, "She was press-ganged into facilitating the debate. A woman both brave and beautiful--she sure is handy to have around."
Shibasaki was following the progress of the debate, handing out materials and refilling water glasses as necessary, dedicatedly going about her work. Every so often a flash would illuminate the auditorium--probably Orikuchi.
The first half of the debate ended without either side budging an inch from their positions, and the next order of business was announced.
"We will now hear a research report from a group of interested middle school students."
Applause rose from the floor as a few students, with Yuuma in the lead, left the wings and made their entrance on stage.
I hope they'll be okay, Iku fretted, watching the stage. Even from this distance it was clear that Yuuma was nervous. He had a stiff manner and spoke in a stiff voice. There was not a trace of his usual loquacity.
--
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"It's Rule #4 of grown-up fights," Yuuma grinned. "'You'll be at a disadvantage if you don't have as many lackeys as your opponent.'" Genda's training at work again.
Where was Genda, so sure already of their victory? Holed up in their security headquarters--if he showed his face, he would intimidate their guests too much.
"So--why is Shibasaki up there?" Iku cocked her head in puzzlement as she looked up at the stage from her post.
Komaki, whom she was partnered with, answered, "She was press-ganged into facilitating the debate. A woman both brave and beautiful--she sure is handy to have around."
Shibasaki was following the progress of the debate, handing out materials and refilling water glasses as necessary, dedicatedly going about her work. Every so often a flash would illuminate the auditorium--probably Orikuchi.
The first half of the debate ended without either side budging an inch from their positions, and the next order of business was announced.
"We will now hear a research report from a group of interested middle school students."
Applause rose from the floor as a few students, with Yuuma in the lead, left the wings and made their entrance on stage.
I hope they'll be okay, Iku fretted, watching the stage. Even from this distance it was clear that Yuuma was nervous. He had a stiff manner and spoke in a stiff voice. There was not a trace of his usual loquacity.
--
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toshosen_tsl- Toshokan Sensou Novel Translation
Page Summary
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 277 [+0]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 276 [+0]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 275 [+0]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 274 [+3]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, pages 272-273 [+4]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 271 [+2]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 270 [+0]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 269 [+4]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 268 [+0]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, pages 266 [+12]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, pages 265 [+0]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, pages 264 [+1]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, pages 262-263 [+5]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 261 [+0]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 260 [+0]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 259 [+2]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 258 [+0]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, pages 256-257 [+2]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 255 [+0]
- melithiel : Toshokan Sensou, page 254 [+0]
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