Chapter 63: Uesugi's Promotion

While Uesugi Sōsetsu and Ikeda Erina were free to finish their business and rest, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department had many more matters to consider.

"Are you not coming back with us?" Watanabe Minami, the face of the Metropolitan Police Department, looked in surprise at Superintendent Okada beside her.

"Miki wants to eat Tsukudajima's moon tofu, so I am going to buy it for her," Superintendent Okada apologized with an embarrassed smile. "I won't be heading back with you."

"Oh? At this hour?" Watanabe Minami's eyes narrowed slightly, her smile remaining fixed.

Superintendent Okada, full name Masayoshi Okada, came from the elite career track and shared family ties with the Watanabe family. Watanabe Minami had always regarded this senior family friend, a few years her elder, like an older brother.

Yet last year, this Keio University graduate had done something baffling: during field duty, he met a female supermarket clerk from Hachinohe and impulsively married her, causing quite a stir among high society.

However, she did not say much more, readily agreeing to let him go before withdrawing with the police convoy back to the Sakuradamon headquarters.

It was now past three in the morning, and the Metropolitan Police Department was filled with a joyful atmosphere.

A complete victory!

Superintendent General Eiji Watanabe, who had already prepared his bedding to spend the night in his office, sat behind his desk with a smile, listening to the reports.

Chief of Criminal Investigation Mouri and First Investigation Division Commander Mikasa stood before the desk, looking both nervous and excited.

"Well done. The First Division has really brought honor to the headquarters today." Eiji Watanabe nodded slowly, a trace of a smile appearing on his solemn face as he turned the computer monitor on his desk toward them.

Major news websites, newspapers, and search engines were entirely dominated by the Fuji TV building lockdown incident. Out of the top ten trending searches, nine were related keywords: "Fuji TV Live Broadcast," "Metropolitan Police Department," "Mai Shirakawa Hosting," "Odaiba Building Lockdown," "Uesugi Sōsetsu," "Female Anchor Corpse Discovered," "Judo Policewoman," "Arashiyama," and "Forensic Explanation."

"This is all thanks to the Superintendent General's prompt judgment and efficient execution!" Criminal Investigation Chief Mouri smiled. "If not for your decisive judgment, how could we have achieved such an overwhelming victory? Not only was it resolved in a single day, but we caught the culprit, and the culprit even confessed!"

"At last, our Criminal Investigation Department has managed to overshadow the Public Security Department. Even the National Police Agency and the Public Prosecutors Office will have nothing to say now, right?" Division Commander Mikasa chimed in with a chuckle. "To be honest, the deadline given by the insurance company was so tight I thought we were finished."

"Heh, you should all thank Uesugi Sōsetsu. If he hadn't found the body, given your search speed, it probably would have been dawn by the time you reached the underground area."

Eiji Watanabe took a document from his drawer and tossed it onto the desk in front of the two men. "Keep this safe. Don't give the prosecutors any loopholes to exploit."

This document was the official request issued by the Metropolitan Police Department to the Faculty of Medicine at Tokyo Medical and Dental University, urgently calling upon Uesugi Sōsetsu to assist in the investigation, complete with the official seals of both parties.

The Criminal Investigation Chief and the First Division Commander exchanged knowing glances, thinking that as expected of the Superintendent General, his work was airtight.

"Uesugi Sōsetsu and that local female patrol officer found the body on their own initiative, which constitutes an illegal search. Why didn't you report it?" Eiji Watanabe rose from his seat, walked slowly toward the two men with his hands behind his back, and continued. "If my daughter hadn't told me about this, and the prosecutors decided to make an issue of it later, things would have been troublesome."

"We are sorry!" Chief Mouri and Division Commander Mikasa admitted their fault sincerely. They had indeed wanted to avoid complications, overlooking the fact that Uesugi Sōsetsu's initial actions constituted an illegal search.

"I have already entrusted the prosecutors' office, asking them to show leniency regarding today's events," Eiji Watanabe said, keeping his hands clasped behind his back.

"Eh?" The two wondered if Uesugi Sōsetsu's involvement hadn't already been regularized.

"Because Kashiwagi Jin from Section Three detained the victim's fiancé, Shimokawa, as a suspect!" Eiji Watanabe turned his back on his subordinates, his expression calm. "Ren Shimokawa has already retained the Nishimura & Asahi law firm, uniting several Minato-ku associations to issue a legal notice to the Criminal Investigation Department... With no other choice, I had to ask the prosecutors for help."

Upon hearing the name Nishimura & Asahi, the Criminal Investigation Chief and the First Division Commander trembled, pressing their hands against the seams of their trousers and bowing thirty degrees in unison.

"It was so difficult to win against the prosecutors once by relying on Uesugi Sōsetsu, yet we had to hand the fruits of victory right back before we could even warm our hands on them," the Superintendent General said slowly, still facing away from his subordinates.

The two subordinates bent lower still, bowing forty-five degrees, not daring to utter a word.

"Afterward, I will have to bow and scrape, explaining to Shimokawa, the National Police Agency, and the Cabinet the reasons why this headquarters suspected him. Being detained as a primary suspect while grieving his fiancée—if Shimokawa decides to publicly open fire on this headquarters in the media over this matter, I will have to step forward and issue a public apology."

The two subordinates were now bent at ninety degrees, beginning to sweat.

"Do not assume that because I also came up through the Criminal Investigation Department, I will unconditionally tolerate its methods." Eiji Watanabe raised his hand high only to let it fall gently. "Very well, in any case, today the Criminal Investigation Department handled matters splendidly, upholding the honor of the headquarters and letting the entire nation witness our capability."

"Good work, both of you. Good work to all members of the First Division." Eiji Watanabe turned around and smiled once more. "This night in the Kanto region belongs to the Metropolitan Police Department!"

Cheers finally erupted inside the room, spreading across the entire floor and out into Sakuradamon!

All of this was thanks to that man, Uesugi Sōsetsu!

After the two subordinates withdrew, Eiji Watanabe began setting out his bedding. As Superintendent General, he still had work tomorrow, so he decided to make do for the night right in his office.

"Please come in." The door knocked, but Eiji Watanabe did not raise his head.

"Dad." Watanabe Minami, the face of the Metropolitan Police Department, pushed the door open. A sweet smile graced her lips—a stark contrast to her usual iceberg Yamato Nadeshiko persona. She hurried forward with quick, light steps, arriving swiftly by her father's side to bow respectfully. "Congratulations, Superintendent Watanabe!"

"Heh, which Superintendent Watanabe are you congratulating, you little troublemaker?" Eiji Watanabe had always dotingly indulged his daughter, and seeing her excitement pleased him as well. "No matter what, there is a good outcome in the end, otherwise I might have broken the record for the shortest tenure as Superintendent General."

"If you had let those fellows in the First Division keep searching, Father would have had to go apologize to the Cabinet in person by dawn." Watanabe Minami leaned in with a smile, extremely ladylike as she helped her father spread his bedding. Without speaking further, her sweet, large eyes harbored a hidden expectation. "Well? Is the personnel department's Superintendent Watanabe any worse than the Metropolitan Police Department's Superintendent Watanabe?"

A doting smile appeared at the corners of Eiji Watanabe's mouth as he reached out to ruffle his daughter's hair. "Fine, we'll count this as you helping your father once. Truly helping your father for a change."

"Heh, then how does Father plan to handle Uesugi-kun?" Having obtained the answer she wanted—though it was within her expectations—Watanabe Minami could not help but display a radiant smile, tilting her head and speaking in a coquettish tone. "He is a talent I discovered, after all. Uesugi-kun's on-site autopsy today was super cool!"

"What? Didn't you say you weren't planning to get acquainted with him so soon?" Eiji Watanabe asked with slight surprise. The majestic master of Tokyo's eighty thousand police officers truly held no authority before his daughter.

"Plans change!" Watanabe Minami protested playfully. "He was going to be brought into the headquarters sooner or later anyway. I spoke with him, and he agreed."

"Indeed, so you are feeling quite proud of yourself, Superintendent Watanabe," Eiji Watanabe teased his daughter.

"I am not!" Watanabe Minami finished arranging her father's bed and sat down, cupping her cheeks in her hands. "So, how does Father plan to arrange for Uesugi-kun to enter the Metropolitan Police Department?"

"Hmm... Let's give him a part-time position as an on-site consultant in the MPD's Identification Division, with a salary based on Tokyo's minimum wage standard," Eiji Watanabe mused for a moment before giving his opinion.

"That's much too stingy!" Watanabe Minami pouted. "Uesugi-kun helped you, me, and the entire Metropolitan Police Department!"

"Don't be absurd, Minami. Uesugi Sōsetsu is already drawing two salaries: Tokyo Medical and Dental University pays him a fixed salary of 280,000 yen a month, and the Metropolitan Police Department will add another 150,000 at minimum wage. He also performs autopsies for local branches, earning at least 300,000 a month from that alone. Once you calculate his taxes and social insurance deductions, his take-home pay is already close to 600,000 yen a month—higher than yours!"

Eiji Watanabe was both exasperated and amused. "That brat's illegal search forced us to clean up his mess, and now you're still sticking up for him?"

"But he is truly brilliant!" the face of the Metropolitan Police Department muttered. "Compared to him, those fellows in the Identification Division look like they belong in Kanagawa."

"On that point, indeed." Eiji Watanabe had also watched the live broadcast and had nothing to say against Uesugi Sōsetsu's autopsy capabilities. However, Uesugi Sōsetsu was not part of the system; he was a regular staff physician at a hospital, and powerful though the Superintendent General was, he had no jurisdiction over Uesugi Sōsetsu directly. "In any case, we will handle it this way. That way, people inside the department and across the aisle will have nothing to say, and from now on the headquarters can rightfully call upon him to assist with investigations. That young man won't be engaging in illegal searches anymore, either."

"Then... from now on, may I represent the headquarters as the liaison for Uesugi's matters?" Watanabe Minami bit her lip and asked tentatively.

"That is only natural."

Having obtained her father's consent, Watanabe Minami was thoroughly satisfied.

Looking at the face of the Metropolitan Police Department, as graceful and beautiful as a butterfly within the room, Eiji Watanabe's expression carried a hint of regret. He was already fifty years old, and throughout his life, he had only this one daughter.

Watanabe Minami was exceptional in every sense. If she were a boy, the joke about "Superintendent Watanabe" might actually have come true.

What a pity she was a girl. In this country, a powerful family must be sustained by males.

Hmm?

A strange thought suddenly surfaced in Eiji Watanabe's mind.

————Divider of Strange Thoughts————

At ten-30 the next morning, Uesugi Sōsetsu woke up in his student apartment bed. Ignoring the obvious tent-pole protrusion beneath the blanket, he reached for his phone, his heart skipping a beat.

Missed calls—everywhere.

Damn it, he had slept far too deeply last night. First he overused his power, and then he was filled to the brim with Mariko Hironaka's soul-energy; his entire body had been trapped in a state of simultaneous over-stimulation and exhaustion, making it utterly impossible to wake up.

Now that he was awake, Uesugi Sōsetsu only felt an insane urge to play Princess Connect.

The retroactive strain of triggering the Soul Contract twice in a row was simply too heavy!

Stumbling through a casual wash and brush-up, Uesugi Sōsetsu checked the missed call logs while brushing his teeth and dialed his father, Uesugi Hironori, first.

Uesugi Hironori answered almost instantly.

His father first congratulated his son on his monumental achievement, telling Uesugi Sōsetsu that the entire main family had watched the live broadcast and felt immensely proud of him.

"You're a big name now! Everyone on the internet and in the news is saying you're truly a descendant of Lord Kenshin! Haha!" His father's triumphant, boastful voice boomed through the phone. "The Yonezawa Uesugi Vindication Records, now serializing in full!"

Uesugi Sōsetsu smiled.

The status of the Kazoku aristocracy was considered elite eighty to a hundred and fifty years ago, but after the war, the entire peerage system had been decisively smashed to pieces by General MacArthur. Those of them who were descendants of daimyo domain lords only maintained decent lives—and the right to call themselves a prestigious house—by tying themselves to local historical and cultural figures and holding some real estate. In reality, fallen nobles possessed no halo; rather, they were prone to becoming the laughingstock of society.

"Well, Pinecone, empty fame is something your old man will help you cash in." Hearing his son's silence and assuming he didn't care much, Uesugi Hironori continued, "I've already discussed it with that old fogey Ukai. Pinecone, you're getting a promotion!"

"What?!" Uesugi Sōsetsu paused.

One could get promoted for this?

Uesugi Sōsetsu was currently an enrolled physician at Tokyo Medical and Dental University, but having already passed his national boards, he had entered the Department of Forensic Pathology as a primary resident on an internship basis.

Due to the previous assassination attempt and the fact that virtually no one wanted to be a forensic pathologist, Uesugi Sōsetsu's two-year residency training was drastically shortened to three months. He was now a fully licensed physician; although still at the junior rank, he was a regular staff employee—a level known as a "Certified Physician."

The next rank up would be "Specialized Physician," at which point one gained the qualification to independently write prescriptions. Ascending from "Specialized Physician" and passing the medical examinations led to "Specialist Physician," a rank that granted attending physician status.

In Japan, reaching the level of attending physician meant one's annual salary basically broke through ten million yen (though one's hairline usually didn't have much left to break through either).

Further up was the "Supervising Physician," commonly known as a "Professor." At this tier, one possessed the qualification to mentor students, lead major research projects, and head medical departments—such as Professor Gōda of the First Department of Surgery, or Uesugi Sōsetsu's mentor, Professor Ōkōchi.

I haven't even graduated yet, and I'm already being promoted to a specialized physician?

"Well, you graduate next April anyway," Uesugi Hironori said, confirming his thought. "So Director Ukai and I have discussed it. The moment you graduate next April and get your full license, Tokyo Medical and Dental University will immediately promote you to a specialized physician."

It could be considered good news, Uesugi Sōsetsu thought, twitching the corner of his mouth. In his field, absolutely no one competed with him.

"Oh right, oh right, there's one more important thing I need to tell you." Uesugi Hironori said smugly, "Snow Pine Ball, it's about time you moved out of that student apartment."

"Huh?"

"I'm serious, Snow Pine. You're graduating next April and promoting to a specialized physician—what kind of look does it give you still living in a student apartment?!" Uesugi Hironori's tone carried an unquestionable decisiveness. "You're a celebrity now; you ought to have living conditions that match."

"The main family happens to have a high-rise apartment lease in Bunkyō-ku expiring soon. We'll give it to you to live in. Get ready to move in over the next few days."

After exchanging a few more words with his father, Uesugi Sōsetsu hung up the phone and looked back with a hint of nostalgia at the student apartment where he had lived for over four years.

Moving to a new home?