[Blue Archive] I am the Trinity Checkpoint Chief – Chapter 27

The library is full of stories about war. The once divided Trinity tried to impose their interpretations on others.

All such attempts ceased after the Council.

Trinity’s war history is a paradise of eccentricities. Like real-time conscription in a passing village, or a far-off senior who wore a top hat and wielded an umbrella to knock out students. The highlight? Someone decided that if a bomb is good, a bigger bomb is better, and developed a 20-ton steel hunk packed with explosives.

Of course, there’s a lot to learn from war history.

How strategy and tactics overcome numerical superiority, the importance of logistics in the field, and so on.nReading war history, I learned something about choosing between quality and quantity. Quality and quantity are always intertwined, and sometimes you have to sacrifice quality for quantity.

But when superior quality and quantity combine—

—that’s a nightmare for the other side.

Tch.

It’s been exactly five minutes since I gave up grinding cocoa powder.

I always think the checkpoint has too few students.

Eighty-seven.

That’s all we have to cover the vast borders with Gehenna, old Abydos, and the smaller academies.

Just eighty-something people.

Is that right? Is it okay for the checkpoint, which used to have three or four hundred, to look this pathetic? Sure, our checkpoint headquarters has always run with just three or four people, but other places are different.

Over a hundred students who were laid off while working perfectly fine have begged to be reinstated. I wondered why Itsuka-senpai didn’t oppose this disarmament plan. Maybe she was just crushed under Nagisa-sama’s authority.

That’s not right.

With cocoa powder all over my hands, I dialed the phone.

Ring, ring.

“This is the Tea Party.”

“Hey, Admin Officer. It’s me. I’ve got a couple of questions about school regulations…”

A few days passed.

After checking for regulation violations and getting Nagisa-sama’s approval, the checkpoint expanded to an unprecedented size.

Almost four hundred, I think.

“Four hundred thirty, to be exact. Compared to the old days, that’s seventy fewer, but it’s still a lot. Most are first-years, though, so I’m a bit worried.”

“Yeah, no kidding. Even if most of the second-years packed up and left for the Justice Task Force, where’d all the seniors go?”

“Oh, I heard from Itsuka-senpai that most of them got too attached to their clubs to leave!”

That’s what she said. Guess two months was enough for their attachment to the checkpoint to vanish.

Not that I’m complaining because I get it— I’m just a bit disappointed. The seniors are all veterans. If I groveled a bit to Itsuka-senpai about getting hazed, they’d happily go crack some Gehenna skulls for me.

Over three hundred first-year rookies joined. Training them is gonna be a pain in the ass. Sure, it’s an unavoidable choice for the gifts I prepared and for border defense, but still.

This morning, I brought three hundred of them to the open lot in front of headquarters, explaining basic knowledge, how to swap out a rifle stock, and where to stand guard. Just now, I used up all the leftover cocoa powder in the warehouse, brewing it like a drug and passing it out.

I’m exhausted as hell.

“Take a break. You barely slept preparing for the orientation.”

“Nah, I’ve got a lot to do today. Gotta head to the Tea Party, and there’s a delivery coming soon…”

“Wait, delivery? You didn’t mention anything. Is it something big?”

“Probably not. Just about four tons.”

“…What did you just say? Hey, don’t run away! Where are you going?!”

Dodging Sayuri-san’s yelling about whether four tons is light, I hopped into the truck.

Talk about a wake-up call. No risk of drowsy driving now.

That aside, it seems Sayuri-san’s caught on. The gifts are set to arrive before I get back, so my juniors will have to do some sorting.

I didn’t exactly tell them to, but knowing their personalities, they won’t just leave it alone.

“Come back here!! You’re setting me up to get hazed again!!!”

“Calm down, Sayuri-san, calm down!”

Yup, she definitely caught on.

The rearview mirror showed a scene straight out of a warzone, but what’s Sayuri-san gonna do, chase me at 30 miles an hour?

I floored it, and the checkpoint headquarters quickly vanished. It’s all grass and trees ahead and behind. I’ve got at least 70 miles before I hit anything resembling a city, so I’d better prepare to kill the boredom.

Sayuri-san will probably be in a better mood by the time I get back. She’s emotional, but if you sweet-talk her a bit, she calms down fast. In twenty minutes, she’ll probably be joking around with Ritsuko-chan. Just to be safe, though, I’ll grab some food on the way back.

It took an hour to speed through the vast forest. Once I hit the city, I could find my destination without a map. The Tea Party building, along with the clock tower, stands out starkly in Trinity’s skyline.

As I pulled into the Tea Party parking lot, a “No Entry” barricade greeted me. A student practically leapt out of the guard post, startled by the sight of an unfamiliar military truck.

I calmly lowered the window.

“Please show your student ID… Wait, Captain?”

“Yup, it’s me.”

That’s right, this place is under checkpoint jurisdiction too. My junior cracked a joke about my shiny new truck and opened the barricade.

The checkpoint may rank lower than the Justice Task Force, but it’s damn convenient in situations like this. Normally, I’d hand over my ID and wait forever for the barricade to open, but being with the checkpoint is practically a free pass.

I parked the truck in the large vehicle lot and got out. Entering the Tea Party building, I saw the admin officer sitting on the stairs, messing with her phone.

I waved, and she noticed me, scrambling to her feet.

“Why not do that in the break room? If Nagisa-sama or some higher-up catches you, you’re screwed.”

“Nagisa-sama usually strolls around the Tea Party room’s floor, not the main stairs. I’m not likely to get caught, so don’t worry.”

“Pretty brazen. If you get caught, it’s not my fault.”

“Watch out for embezzling cocoa powder, Rifle Stock Senpai.”

Anyone listening would think we’re doing a comedy routine. She’s got great social skills, but sometimes I wonder how she made it to deputy level.

I took the elevator up. After twenty-something floors and some hallway wandering, I reached the Tea Party room’s main entrance. I haven’t seen it much since getting my chief badge, but the Tea Party room’s door has this overwhelming vibe to it.

The students standing guard on either side saluted me. I returned a casual salute, then noticed one of them had an untied shoelace. I crouched down and tied it for her.

She trembled, looking touched.

“Goddamn…”

I don’t know why the admin officer’s cursing at me.

“Hikari-san, is the tea to your liking?”

“Tastes good to me, Nagi-chan.”

I shook my head frantically.

Nagisa-sama and Mika-sama smiled warmly. I forced a smile back.

But inside, I was rotting away, practically disintegrating.

Damn it, I thought Nagisa-sama was the one who called for me.

But another faction leader showed up? Pater, of all factions?

“…Um, Hikari-chan, is something bothering you?”

“N-No, I’m fine.”

Did I just mess up? Or is it just me?

I poured the finest Royal Blend tea into my mouth to calm down.

I can’t exactly break down sobbing here, thinking I’m screwed. At least I need to figure out why Mika’s here.

Let’s think. Two or more student council presidents are gathered, probably because of me.

There’s only one conclusion: I must’ve caused some kind of mess that reached the Tea Party room.

…

I’m screwed.

While desperately trying to keep my panicked mind in check, a document caught my eye.

A petition, written in concise font.

[Request for Correction of Trinity Academy Checkpoint’s Violation of Political Neutrality]

• Pater Subfaction Leader

Pater Subfaction Leader.

Pater.

Subfaction Leader.

Oh, heavens. I finally get how this happened.

This is good news, absolutely. The motor in my head, which wasn’t even idling until now, roared to life. I took another sip of tea for a sugar boost. My logic snapped back on track.

I’ll deal with that subfaction jerk after this hearing.

For now, let’s focus on the task at hand. Deep breath.

Here we go.

“—Mika-sama, I was told Nagisa-sama summoned me, but I think you’re the one behind it.”

“Oh? Heh, why do you think that?”

“Because this petition is from the Pater subfaction. And I think I know what it’s about without even reading it. Political neutrality at the checkpoint means one kind of balance.”

Mika-sama’s lips curved into a smile.

Jackpot.

“Can you tell me about that balance?”

“How often and which faction’s protests we crack down on. And I think the subfaction leader believes—”

“—that Hikari-chan hates the Pater faction.”

Yes, exactly. That’s the answer. It’s a bit weird hearing it from the Pater leader herself, though. I don’t need to see what the subfaction leader’s thinking to know it. To her, the checkpoint suppressing Pater’s “peaceful protests with legitimate demands” is practically the axis of evil. On a scale, it’s about 0.85 Gehenna-level bad.

A coward who doesn’t even join the protests herself. That damn jerk’s only idea to screw me over was, “Let’s file a petition to the all-powerful Misono Mika, subfaction leader!”

“Of course, Pater’s the same as Gehenna. I don’t hate Pater. There are even a few Pater kids at the checkpoint. What I crush are the idiots who think they’re peaceful while shooting up the streets, believing their demands are so justified they can’t be refused. They’re a cancer to society. If you don’t cut them out, they’ll grow and stab us in the back.”

“Hikari-chan, is that how you see Pater?”

“No, of course not. Isn’t it obvious? I’m talking about the… tumors under Mika-sama’s faction. Pater itself isn’t a tumor, but there are some definitely growing inside it.”

I can’t make a list, but they’re definitely there.

And I firmly believe the subfaction leader’s full name is on that list.

“So, Hikari-san, you believe you haven’t violated political neutrality?”

“Nagisa-sama, if I’d violated neutrality and targeted a specific faction’s protests, I wouldn’t have made it to captain.”

“Statistically, there’s no issue.”

Mika-sama was looking at me with disappointment until just now—what’s with the sudden friendliness? Which tune am I supposed to dance to?

Speaking of statistics, Mika-sama’s done more research than I expected. From what I recall, protest frequency is split among Filius, Pater, and Sanctus, with Pater taking the largest share.

She’s more diligent than I thought. If she put that much effort into student council work, Trinity would be a paradise.

“Nagisa-sama, Mika-sama, I love the Tea Party system. I love Trinity too.”

“We know the checkpoint captain’s efforts for Trinity Academy. Should we see this case in that light?”

“I’d say that’s the second-best outcome for me. This petition is just Pater’s overreaction. I hate to say it, but if I’d deliberately targeted Pater, they’d already be gone.”

“Wow, Hikari-chan, saying that in front of the Pater subfaction leader?”

“Mika-sama, I think uncomfortable truths can be more useful than pleasant lies sometimes.”

Luckily, Mika-sama took my hardline stance in stride. Nagisa-sama’s tea-sipping frequency increased a bit, but she probably isn’t mad about my radical claims. I don’t know what she’s thinking, though.

The hearing wrapped up quickly. Nagisa-sama and Mika-sama believed me. It seems the subfaction leader’s credibility is low in social circles.

Nagisa-sama will handle the petition. It’ll probably sit in the corner of her briefcase until she leaves work, then get shredded into dust by a mechanical shredder.

Ten minutes later, I was out of the Tea Party room. Good news.

Of course, something way worse than the hearing is waiting for me.

I got to meet a subfaction leader whose rank is high but whose actions are worse than a child’s and settle the budget discussion. Whether I crush her head with logic or a lead pipe, one way or another, she’s done.

I took the elevator down to the first floor and walked the halls. I found a sign for the “Budget Review Room” and arrived.

I flung the door open. A girl with dark brown hair recognized me and glared.

The star of all my curses.

“…I didn’t want to see you over something like this.”

“What can we do? You and I are both iron-rice-bowl public servants. It’s almost budget revision season anyway, so we’ll be seeing each other a lot, right?”

“…”

“No?”

I smirked.

The subfaction leader’s lips didn’t budge.

And they probably never will.