Toaru Majutsu no Index:Railgun Cold Game
Status: Incomplete
5/22 parts completed
A Certain Scientific Railgun: Cold Game
Part 0
(the_fool)
Urban Sociology Professor Alfonso Brookman once said a bizarre social order exists in Academy City.
80% of its population of 2.3 million is made up of some kind of student. That creates an overwhelming number of minors, yet the city still ensures ease of use for the aged in its roads and elsewhere. Nor is its automobile industry in decline. Smoking areas are maintained over a surprisingly wide area and the convenience stores and supermarkets sell alcohol like normal.
Despite its unique population distribution, Academy City supports all ages in a wide variety of ways. The many do not crush the few with the tyranny of an overwhelming majority. That might sound nice, but there is a small loophole here.
Since their social system is built to match that of the outside world, the city’s majority is burdened with the obligation of maintaining that. Even if the odds of selection are as low as being struck by lightning, they must fulfill that role to their fullest once they are chosen.
For example…yes.
…How does that city’s court system work?
Part 1
(the_magician)
To be honest, few people would know what you meant if you mentioned Sakugawa Middle School. Typing the name into a search engine would only turn up a few results and the school’s official website would only receive a few hundred hits in a good month. Not even all the school’s students would know the site existed.
But even that plain and ordinary public middle school had a certain minor event: a field trip.
“Ohh, ohh. We’re actually at the Central Anti-Skill Station.”
“Saten-san, your eyes and voice look and sound dead. The Anti-Skill officers working here have done nothing wrong, so let’s not do that.”
Uiharu Kazari, a girl with lots of flower decorations in her short hair, gave that exasperated comment to her sailor uniform friend who had long black hair.
Officially, it was the school bowing its head and requesting a visit, but adolescent sensibilities could be cruelly honest, so if they were not interested, they were not interested. Saten Ruiko would have been more excited attaching a rubber band to her smartphone for a simple VR that let her peer into a world of swords and magic. She only felt any excitement at all because this got her out of having to take classes on a school day.
“Besides, Saten-san, I thought you liked hearing about crimes and such.”
“C’mon, Uiharu. My specialty is rumors and urban legends. I can irresponsibly enjoy those because they’re so vague and uncertain. I’m not so indiscriminate that I’d drool over some legit crime that’s not just in the online news but on the old-fashioned TV news and newspapers. I mean, you know someone’s really suffering then.”
The Central Anti-Skill Station was about the same as a prefectural police headquarters outside of Academy City. Saten was looking up at no more than a box of thick reinforced concrete. Since it was a government office, it was not given any unnecessary decorations. And unlike in a TV police drama, there was no one shooting their guns out front and no dump trucks crashing into the front entrance. To be blunt, it was a boring visual.
An Anti-Skill woman clapped her hands a couple of times to gather the uniformed boys’ and girls’ attention.
She wore a track suit instead of a proper uniform.
“Okay, okay. It’s time for the tour! We’ll start with the main lobby. And there’s no reason to be nervous just because it’s an Anti-Skill station. Most of the people here are submitting lost item reports, renewing licenses, and other standard business. It isn’t just wicked criminals who have business here.”
There were more than 100 curious or inattentive middle schoolers, but the Anti-Skill woman managed to keep them together as she guided them. That may have been due to Anti-Skill officers generally also working as teachers.
They walked through the thick glass door and found a lobby much like in a city hall or bank. Several counters were lined up alongside each other and each booth was given a number. There was also a machine that spat out numbered tickets.
A bank or hospital would have TVs set up, but an Anti-Skill station could not do that. They were meant to preserve order in the city, so it would damage their reputation if they angered ZASRAC.
“This is the general reception area. As I said, this is the main lobby for the people here for completely ordinary matters such as lost items or licenses. Dramas tend to show the arrested criminals taken in the front entrance while handcuffed, but we make sure normal people and suspects are never in the same area. Now, let’s head further in.”
The bulletin board was covered in posters with advice for avoiding bank transfer scams and how to use fire safely. But in an age of smartphone VR, the hand-drawn portrait drawings stood out. Would the day ever come that you could put on some goggles and view them from any angle?
“Uiharu, have you ever been to Anti-Skill before?”
“I barely interact with them at all.”
Just then, Saten came to a stop while the group followed their guide.
“What is it, Saten-san?”
“Well…”
The posters were all standard for an Anti-Skill station.
…Wanted for arson. Urgently seeking all information. Have you seen them? This is their last known appearance. The reward money period has been extended. The reward is set at a maximum of 6 million yen. Do not let them get away with robbery! The security camera footage of the Nichimaru Department Store stun gun incident has been released to the public…
Anti-Skill would seek information from the public for anything from locating a missing minor to identifying a wandering old person they had taken into custody, but Saten was looking at the section for wanted criminals with reward money being offered. Red, black, yellow, white… Those posters were given highly contrasting colors to draw the eye and they were covered with images of mean-looking people taken from licenses or security cameras.
“Hoehhh. These are wanted criminals, missus.”
“And the rewards have reached the millions because they’re so hard to catch.”
“I’m not interested in capturing them. I just want a photo of these. Doesn’t it make you feel like a bounty hunter in a video game!?”
“That’s actually a real job people do, you know?”
Just then, Saten’s smartphone made an odd noise.
The two of them frowned and looked at the screen to see something flashing at the top right corner of the photo management app. It was informing them of one of the app’s functions.
“What’s this? The album has started organizing the photos on its own.”
“Which means…the facial recognition kicked in? Eh? It found a connection between the wanted criminal poster…and the photos you’ve taken…?”
They looked in the app and saw two photos in an automatically-created folder.
One was the poster Saten had photographed.
The poster’s photo seemed to be taken from security camera footage. The person had their hoodie’s hood up and it was too grainy to see much of the face within.
They could not tell what the person looked like, but the machine had apparently done some kind of processing to see the face in the darkness.
Then there was the second photo.
It was a perfectly ordinary photo already on Saten’s smartphone.
She had probably wanted to show off on social media that she had gotten a convenience store’s new seasonal product before anyone else, but the selfie showed Saten sipping a toxically pink liquid through a straw.
However…
“Ah, look! There’s a cursor over here…”
“?”
“You can barely see someone on a bike in the back. Isn’t that the same person as the security camera footage on the poster?”
Part 2
(the_priestess)
“Yes, we are right in front of District 7’s Central Anti-Skill Station! Boy A, who was arrested without a warrant, was just transported here, so the press is rushing the place!!”
“It is possible that the person known online as Loophole was working alone. As you might guess from his name, he has committed various brutal crimes as a way of pointing out the flaws in our legal and social system, so we can predict that he has simply gathered a large number of followers from the people who are displeased with Anti-Skill and Judgment.”
“You can’t find this on TV! They’re stuck following those boring broadcast regulations!!”
“Here is the information we have on the suspect, Innai Chigiri (15).”
“These are the cases most likely connected to Loophole: the Suicide Assistance Video Case (In which an incurably ill individual was sought out and euthanized. Was it acceptable or not to free him from his pain?), the Loan Shark Office Arson Case (In which a registry of people with multiple debts was burned. Was it acceptable or not to free people from debt placed on them through illicit means?), the Takarabune Bank Vault Imprisonment Case (In which a banker was threatened and locked inside the vault while the air was gradually removed. Was it acceptable or not to leak the internal structure of the vault to an external rescue team in order to save an individual?)”
“And the Cold Sleep Murder Case. A frozen girl’s corpse was discovered below a skating rink in District 15, which is known as Academy City’s largest shopping district.”
“Be as accurate as possible: the frozen girl’s name was Asajimo Saemi.”
“Have you seen what they’re saying on TV? The murderer is only called Boy A while the victim’s full name is given. There really is something wrong with this country…”
“Mattsuu> Huh? If she’s in cold sleep, isn’t she still alive?”
“ANZEN> Her brain and heart aren’t functioning and is there any way to safely unfreeze her? Biologically it’s uncertain and legally she’s probably considered dead. Even if she’s left like that for a few days, she’s officially in cardiopulmonary arrest until a doctor signs the documents. This really is the kind of thing Loophole would be a part of.”
“A comment on this article: Tah dah☆ But is this guy a winner or loser as far as esper powers go? Is he a high level intellectual? Or a Level 0?”
“Not much information has been released so far. Among the employed, unique abilities are more often seen as something that creates a feeling of alienation from those around you…”
“Chief! The investigation was having difficulties and rumor had it the case would never be solved, so what was it that led to this arrest!?”
“Well, I can only say that the tireless and diligent efforts of our many investigators have borne fruit. But this was also in large part due to a civilian-supplied photograph showing a bike thought to belong to the suspect. The license plate was a fake used by the current suspect and it led us to his hideout.”
“Once Boy A has had a psychological evaluation by an expert, it seems likely the prosecution will indict him to a criminal trial. This has been brought to you from in front of District 7’s Central Anti-Skill Station.”
Part 3
(the_empress)
“…Ugh. This has gotten out of hand.”
It was the next day. The entire world seemed to have changed in just one day.
Saten Ruiko commented on the current age of maximum speed trials.
The administrative agencies were gathered in District 1. She did not visit that area often, but today she had been brought there by a black van. Their destination was Academy City General Courthouse. It was generally known as a “court of first instance”, but they did not approach the front entrance. Needless to say, that was due to the TV and newspaper reporters and the voyeurs who claimed to be online journalists who were waiting outside.
The prosecutor in the van with her was supposedly the person who cornered the defendant until they were found guilty, but…
“L-let’s do our best, okay!? After causing so much trouble, that Loophole boy has finally been arrested and indicted, so we have to free the victims from their regrets and bring a normal life back to the surviving families!! Let’s do this!!”
(Ehhhhh!? We’re about to start the trial of the century, but this adult sounds panicked and can barely get the words out!? I thought prosecutors were supposed to be people who were nicknamed “the demon” and stuff like that!?)
If even a carefree middle school girl like Saten Ruiko was growing pale, then the world truly was over.
But while dramas often depicted the choice between a court-appointed attorney and a private defense attorney, they rarely showed a change in prosecutor. This woman in a cheap and baggy suit looked like a puppy giving you an upturned look. She wore her hair up to force a formal adult look, but it seemed more like something from the Shichi-Go-San festival. She may have been even shorter than Saten, but now that things had started, she would have to stick with it to the end!
She must have noticed Saten’s extremely uneasy gaze because thus spoke the puppy prosecutor (who was more toy poodle than Doberman):
“It’s unlikely, but there can be a risk if a witness’s identity is discovered. So your personal information will be hidden as much as possible. That’s standard practice.”
“U-um, then do I really have to speak from the witness stand…?”
“Your photograph was the defining piece of evidence in arresting and building a case against Innai Chigiri, so you need to provide testimony on the circumstances of taking that photo. I know it won’t be easy, so thank you for cooperating!”
“…”
It was not supposed to be like this. Saten Ruiko felt like holding her head in her hands.
She had not wanted to become the talk of the town and she had not wanted the reward. She had even refused the reward, but Anti-Skill and the prosecutor had not left her alone. Having lost the reward and gained nothing, Saten Ruiko was on the verge of tears. For one thing, she had not done anything at all. It was her smartphone that had found the suspicious face in her album app. But next thing she knew, all of this was going on. Part of her seriously wished they would just take her smartphone into the interrogation room and feed it the katsudon.
“Sigh.”
Her name had yet to appear on the internet, but for the past few days, she had felt a squeezing at her heart every time “the person who supplied the crucial information” had come up on message boards or social media.
Discussing these things online was so much different than being the topic of discussion.
A large group of complete strangers were searching for information on her. That was more than enough to scare her. Plus…
“L-Loophole has followers, right? I heard he has a lot of secret fans.”
“He is Innai Chigiri, the defendant. No more and no less, kay?”
(Kay?)
“They won’t try to take r-revenge on me for testifying, will they!? Will they!?”
“If you’re worried about any risks, then the best course of action is to make sure Innai Chigiri is found guilty and sent to the juvenile hall. Letting him go free would be the most dangerous option.”
Saten Ruiko really did hold her head in her hands now and the baggy suit puppy tossed her something wrapped in clear plastic.
“Um, what is this?”
“Let me ask you something instead: Do you really plan to appear in court wearing a uniform that identifies your school? Didn’t I say it’s standard practice to hide as much personal information as possible? C’mon!”
While wondering if this was some new diet that helped you lose weight by making sure you did not have an appetite, Saten tore open the plastic and spread out the contents.
It was a suit made of thick black rubber.
She could only assume it would be skintight from the neck down. Her bodylines would be entirely visible. Why did this dog prosecutor have what looked like a costume for a female phantom thief?
“…Are you serious?”
“Very serious. These days, the reporters can use a single strap to determine what store you bought it at and the general area in which you live. It wouldn’t hurt to get rid of every little thing of your own.”
The black van pulled around behind the courthouse, drove down a gentle slope, and entered an underground parking garage. A few people in black were waiting there. Fortunately, this was not a foolish team of 101 tiny puppies, so Saten breathed a sigh of relief. The suit-wearing Dobermans had apparently already gotten rid of any reporters trying to disguise themselves as staff members.
“Okay, let’s go.”
“Wah, wait! The zipper! I still have to zip it up!!”
Blushing, Saten pitched forward and stumbled out into the parking garage.
The puppy prosecutor stretched upwards and confiscated Saten’s flower-shaped hair decoration.
“I said a single strap, didn’t I?”
While surrounded by men in black like she was the president, Saten was led through a space of bare concrete. She nervously looked around, and…
“Wh-where are we going now?”
“There are waiting rooms for witnesses. There are snacks and drinks there for you, so try not to come out until the trial. If you absolutely must use the bathroom or something, use the phone in the room to contact us. We will construct a safe route for you.”
“Ugh.”
“During the trial itself, you will be partitioned off by frosted glass so the defendant and gallery can’t see your face. The only real danger is when you’re waiting in the back. A lot of different people claim to be journalists these days. It isn’t unusual for them to use the internal staff or small robots, so don’t trust someone just because they’re walking around like they belong.”
She smoothly answered Saten’s questions, but it was not that reassuring when the woman looked like a puppy. Were they really headed in the right direction? She wouldn’t accidentally open the wrong door and dump them right into the middle of the press, would she? Saten could only pray that hellish kind of thing did not happen.
They rode up in an unusually small elevator, walked down a small hallway that made lots of twists and turns, and finally arrived in an area that looked like a hotel. Either that or the waiting rooms in a TV station. A long hallway was lined with doors that needed a card key to open.
The prosecutor in a black suit opened one door, but she did not give Saten a card key.
“Even if someone knocks, tells you it’s time, or yells that there’s a fire, do not carelessly open the door. Make sure to check over the phone first. Do you understand?”
“It’s not like I have any other option…”
“Good.”
“Um, uh, couldn’t you leave someone in front of the door?”
“Umm. Only if you want to advertise which of these many doors has the witness behind it.” The prosecutor clenched her tiny fists at face height and gave a snort from her nose. “Okay, let’s work together in court!”
(I’m worried…)
“Oh, and…become deliiiicious!!”
(I’m super worried!!)
After the men in black left, Saten was left all alone and the loneliness pressed in on her from all directions.
Actually being part of a criminal case was so different from just hearing about them.
And this case was not normal.
“…”
Unlike a movie or a drama, the prosecution and defense did not keep their evidence hidden and reveal it during the trial itself. They would declare in advance what their claims were and request for the evidence they needed. Even if they needed some other evidence afterwards, they could not bring it to court if they failed to request it. In other words, there would be no unexpected twists from a shocking new piece of evidence.
Thus, Saten had already been given an overview of the crimes committed by Loophole, aka Innai Chigiri.
The focus this time was on the Cold Sleep Murder Case.
A 14-year-old girl named Asajimo Saemi had been abducted, stripped naked, and frozen. The ice in the center of a District 15 skating rink had been removed and the “coffin” had been placed inside instead. Then water had been sprayed in from above to fill in all the gaps and the rink was back to normal in time for business hours the following morning.
The first to discover the corpse had not been an employee at the skating rink.
After seeing the perfectly smooth ice surface, they had apparently opened the rink like normal. It had been one of the first customers who screamed.
The crime scene investigation was complete and the part of the thick ice containing the girl had been cut out and sent to a university hospital for storage.
The culprit’s identity had been unknown because he had cleverly avoided the surveillance cameras when entering and exiting the skating rink late at night, but that was where Saten came in. Her selfie had coincidentally photographed him leaving the skating rink and preparing to board his bike.
“Sigh…”
Saten sighed.
Her cellphone itself had not been confiscated. She looked down at the screen out of unease and loneliness and she saw a few emails and missed calls. Misaka Mikoto, Shirai Kuroko, Uiharu Kazari… She smiled at the names of those friends who knew her situation, but then doubt crept in.
(…Huh? I can’t let people know my phone is here, can I? With the signal, I mean.)
She just about replied out of habit, but her fingers stopped. She breathed in and out. And she reconsidered. …It would be best to avoid any risk. So she decided against replying and turned off the phone altogether.
The public prosecutor was a government worker. And the defense attorney would protect the defendant.
But what about the witness?
Saten Ruiko belatedly realized she had fallen into an unexpected gap, so she breathed a heavy, heavy sigh in the empty room.
She was certain today would be an adventure.
But what good was an adventure she could not post about online?
Part 4
(the_emperor)
“Oh, the line’s moving. And everyone’s getting a lot noisier.”
Meanwhile, Misaka Mikoto was standing in a very long line of people that stretched outside of the courthouse.
District 1 was seen as a strict place what with all of its administrative agencies and Mikoto felt like she would drown in the atmosphere if she stood still for too long. Other than one convenience store sign with restrained colors, nothing seemed allowed to draw attention to itself. Instead of the normal drum-shaped cleaning robots, Anti-Skill was accompanied by quadrupedal armored robots that played the role of military dogs, so everything felt higher pressure than in other districts.
“Y-you sure are lucky, Misaka-san. Weren’t the odds of getting into this trial 1-in-208, making it a new record?”
“Uiharu-san, I’m more impressed with you and Kuroko for casually getting in using special educational Judgment slots…”
Mikoto stood in the line of gallery members who had won the lottery for a ticket. They passed through a metal gate, underwent a security check, and stepped into the courthouse.
“Uuh, this is all so annoying…”
“That gate there is emitting far infrared beams. By intentionally messing with our body heat, they can lead already unstable people to make a mistake, allowing easier detection of suspicious people. It’s a civilian application of an anti-sleep weapon. It only raises your body temperature by 0.5 degrees, but by emitting the far infrared beams in a grid, it can stimulate individual organs to leave you in an unstable state of mind.”
As their gadget expert, Uiharu Kazari explained it for them.
Shirai Kuroko looked exasperated as she walked by Mikoto’s side.
“…This is a normal school day, Onee-sama. There’s something wrong with how the world works if Tokiwadai’s Ace is skipping class for some stuffy court case.”
“I submitted the proper paperwork so it will count as an extracurricular lesson on the justice system. Of course, that means I’ll have to write a report on it afterwards.”
“That wasn’t my point.”
“I’m better than them, aren’t I?”
A deep electronic tone sounded. A girl hanging her head such that her bangs covered her face was caught by the metal gate and had a digital camera and voice recorder confiscated.
“A blogger claiming to be a journalist?”
“She might just be one of Loophole’s followers.”
“If cameras and recorders aren’t allowed, isn’t it weird for them to let us keep our phones?”
“Please turn that off, Onee-sama.”
Photographing the trial was not allowed, especially during a case involving minors. …And yet 80% of the city’s population was some kind of student.
Uiharu spoke nervously as she caught up from behind.
“Th-these Loophole-related cases have given him cult-like popularity online, haven’t they? The odds of getting a ticket were 1-in-208 and I heard people were reselling tickets or counterfeiting IDs to get in.”
“And the people who lost the lottery are gathered around the courthouse. It’s like a concert for some famous person. …And if they’re treating a criminal like an idol or cult leader, the electronic world must be as insane as ever.”
“Well, that actually helps us out in a way.”
They were not foolish enough to mention the name Saten Ruiko here, but it was said that a tree was best hidden in the forest. It might have looked suspicious if Saten alone took the day off of school, but with this many people skipping school, she could pretend to be the same as all of them.
“Gallery members, please follow the officials’ instructions and move to Court 103. I repeat…”
An announcement played, but a few young people were arrested after pretending to be lost and heading toward the off-limits waiting rooms.
Mikoto’s group obediently walked to their destination.
The double doors opened and they entered the courtroom.
“It’s just like a drama set,” said Uiharu.
“…Isn’t that because the drama staff did their homework?”
A few rows of benches were lined up like in a movie theater. Those were the gallery seats for Mikoto and the others. A metal fence blocked the way to the actual courtroom that felt separated from ordinary life.
The witness stand was in the center.
The prosecution’s seats were on the left from Mikoto’s perspective.
There was a wall behind the awfully-short prosecutor and it blocked off a box of frosted glass. That probably surrounded a door. That would be for witnesses who wanted to remain unidentified, like Saten. The double doors opened and someone entered the box, but they could not tell if that was Saten or not. They could not exactly call out her name or wave to her.
The defense and defendant were seated on the right.
That meant Innai Chigiri, who went by the name Loophole.
“…”
Out-of-place cheers filled the courtroom.
While the female glasses attorney whispered something in his ear, the boy leaned back in his chair, looking completely relaxed. His facial features had an androgynous beauty that made him look unrealistic and fairy-like. His beautifully glossy black hair and bright white skin had such fine lines that he looked like he would melt away like snow in your hand if a human so much as touched him.
His esper power was unknown.
Was it high or low? What kind of power was it? To protect a minor’s personal information from the press, the Bank had been locked down, but that had only added to his strange charisma.
It was thanks to people wanting to see him like this was a concert that the odds of winning a ticket had risen to 1-in-208. Just like a bizarre medieval torture device, he had something that charmed people and drove them mad.
“(A criminal’s charisma, hm?)”
Loophole certainly had that, but the female glasses attorney by his side also looked the part.
They looked like a handsome male idol and his beautiful manager.
“(Tsujinaka Kyouka, was it? They mentioned her on TV so much I couldn’t help but remember her. That lawyer has grown quite famous. She’s been active on video sites as something like the midpoint between a sharp-tongued commentator and a fashion leader.)”
“(So by sending a friend request to a serial killer’s social media account, you might have a chance at making a name for yourself?)”
“(I can see how he got so many irresponsible followers…)”
At the very back of the courtroom, the seats for the judges and lay judges were lined up alongside each other. The presiding judge sat in the center. There were three professional judges, including the presiding one, and there were six lay judges chosen by lottery. Some of the lay judges wore sailor uniforms or blazers, but others had changed into black full-body tights, perhaps to hide what school they attended.
Mikoto frowned.
“The lay judges are the same age as us. Well, I guess that’s not surprising when 80% of the population is students…”
“They apparently have a large computer assisting them so even minors can fulfill their civic duty.”
Uiharu was right. Every seat had a flat-screen monitor, but the lay judges’ seats had far more equipment. The gravestone-like box was not the computer itself. It was the relay equipment that connected to a giant supercomputer.
“So they go through the trial in the same patchwork way as someone using their phone’s word prediction?” Shirai sounded exasperated. “That seems a little too casual to me…”
The sound of a wooden hammer filled the courtroom.
The trivia that Japanese courts did not use a gavel flashed through Mikoto’s mind, but when she looked closer, she saw the presiding judge had placed a finger on his keyboard to play an electronic sound.
The elderly man spoke through a microphone.
“Order in the court. It is time. The court will now begin the trial and I would like to start with the oaths.”
He lightly raised his right hand and continued.
“We, the judges and lay judges, hereby swear to follow the fair and strict ideals of our judicial branch and to reach an impartial judgement for this Cold Sleep Murder Case with no falsehoods or exaggerations.”
The judges and lay judges to his left and right repeated the exact same statement. The middle and high school lay judges chosen from the population at large sounded nervous. It was a lot like a choir competition in which the entire school year participated.
Next it was the prosecution’s turn.
“We of the prosecution hereby swear to follow the fair and strict ideals of our judicial branch and to pursue an impartial judgement for this Cold Sleep Murder Case with no falsehoods or exaggerations.”
It was almost the same with just the relevant parts swapped out. It seemed to be a standard statement that they did not give much thought to. Court was apparently not a place in which people suddenly pushed their glasses up their nose and shouted at the top of their lungs.
However.
The opening oaths had seemed like a tedious rite of passage, but that came to a premature end.
The entire courtroom was enveloped in the same uncomfortable tension as hearing a record needle skip.
That was due to the excessive time the next individual took.
The glasses attorney sitting next to the defendant slowly opened her mouth.
“…Your Honor.”
She was just like a stage actress.
She knew how to gather people’s attention and manipulate a crowd’s emotions.
“I apologize for the suddenness, but I cannot make that oath.”
“Objections are made during the prosecution’s closing argument or during the defense’s argument. The defendant has no such right during the opening oath. As an attorney, you should be familiar with these rules.”
“But I cannot make an erroneous oath. My contract with the defendant obligates me to faithfully defend him, so I am unable to bear false witness against him.”
“Continue with this and I will advise that you are removed from the court. You are no more than a private defense attorney, so you are not a necessary part of the court proceedings. We can always bring in a court-appointed attorney and reopen the trial. We are seeking a reliable trial, not a hasty conclusion. Do not forget that.”
If she took this too far, she could be removed for contempt of court or obstructing the trial.
Defense attorneys came in a variety of skill levels and attitudes. As you might guess from the fact that most defendants paid high prices to choose their own attorney, a private attorney whose remuneration was influenced by the outcome would participate in the trial much more actively than a court-appointed one that was paid the same either way.
But the glasses attorney did not stop speaking.
Was that due to her own charisma, or was she merely borrowing the charisma of the pretty boy seated next to her?
“My conclusion is as follows: the Cold Sleep Murder Case mentioned in the oath does not exist.”
Conclusion.
Did everyone there realize the significance of her choosing that word in particular?
Her opinion was so extraordinary that it inspired blank stares and confusion before anger or animosity.
“The brain and heart of the frozen victim, Asajimo Saemi-san, have ceased to function. Simply looking at her brainwaves or heartrate might lead you to believe she is no longer alive, but since she was put into cold sleep, she can be brought back to life if she is unfrozen using the proper method. Thus, this is not a murder case. I cannot disadvantage the defendant by discussing a crime that never occurred in the first place.”
The cracks of that silence were smoothly filled by the voice of the pretty boy’s representative.
Even a representative could fill in and solidify that space.
“And allow me to provide one piece of ‘advice’.”
This was the same as primitive humans acquiring fire to sweep away the darkness and gain peace of mind.
You felt uneasy when you did not know what a creepy person was going to say, but once you knew their reasoning, you could accept it. You felt like the danger had passed. That was why the words of a madman had such a strange power. If you understood them, you could predict their next action and restrain them. This took advantage of how reasonable people found peace of mind.
“Of course, I will not say he was entirely unconnected to this case, but the techniques used remain hidden in his mind. He can revive the poor victim. But if you mistake the charge, meaninglessly extend this trial, and find him guilty, that could change. If his freedom is unjustly taken from him, the frozen girl will die with no chance of being revived. …There are many different kinds of cold sleep, after all. With some varieties, long-term storage will damage the cells and make it impossible to unfreeze the subject once enough time has passed. You can think of it like the juices leaking from a block of frozen tuna if you leave it in the freezer for too long.”
The glasses attorney’s mouth split open in a crescent moon smile as she made her final statement.
“…It is not he who will decide whether the poor victim lives or dies. It is your judgment here which will make that choice.”
At that very moment, someone silently raised his hand.
It was Loophole, aka Innai Chigiri.
That pretty boy, who took his nickname from the legal loopholes he took advantage of, opened his mouth for the first time.
“Trial results are a noble thing. And that is why you must choose very carefully.”
His statement was short in comparison.
But its attractive power was far greater. The true, non-borrowed charisma bared its fangs.
“You may not be charged with a crime, but the fact that you killed someone will be forever recorded in a public institution where anyone can view it.”
