Otaku Translation: I! Anomaly Cleansing Agent! C109

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Chapter 109: A Strange Interrogation

“Are you the one they call Leon?”

At the sound of his name, Leon—a figure wrapped in bandages around his hands, shoulders, and back, strapped to a hospital bed—turned his head with some effort. His gaze fell upon an older man with silver-streaked hair and furrowed brows.

“And you are?” Leon asked.

“You don’t need to know who I am,” the older man replied curtly, flanked by two stern-looking guards. His face was as unyielding as hammered steel, devoid of emotion.

“All you need to understand is this: you’re currently the prime suspect in the massacre of the Lion family and under investigation.”

So… was this man an interrogator from the Secret Investigation Bureau? But if he were, wouldn’t he have brought assistants instead of guards? And these weren’t just any guards—they seemed unusually disciplined.

Leon’s eyes flickered toward the pair standing behind the old man. Their rigid posture and the calluses on their trigger fingers told him everything he needed to know about their profession. He frowned slightly before turning his head away again.

“Hmm?” The old man’s sharp eyes narrowed instantly at the subtle shift in Leon’s expression. Like a hawk locking onto its prey, he fixed Leon with a piercing glare. “Do you have something against the military department?”

Leon shot him a sidelong glance, his mind racing as he tried to deduce the man’s identity. Without missing a beat, he retorted coolly, “Is there a law against it?”

As if pulled straight out of a classic thriller movie, the moment Leon threw down the gauntlet, the two guards behind the old man bristled visibly. One of them stepped forward and barked. “Watch your tone! Do you know who-”

“That’s enough.” The old man raised a hand, silencing his guard mid-sentence. To Leon’s surprise, the corners of his tightly pressed lips twitched upward ever so slightly. He leaned in, studying Leon intently. “You want to know who I am?”

“I already do,” Leon said matter-of-factly.

Though the black goat wasn’t around to peer into the man’s soul, Leon could tell from his demeanor that the old man appreciated audacity. With a shrug, Leon laid it all out.

“The fabric over your chest bears strange sun-bleached marks—likely from medals. Though you’re not wearing epaulets now, your jacket still has the clasps for them. The two guards behind you, both likely in their thirties, have calloused hands from years of handling firearms. They’re wearing boots issued exclusively to non-commissioned officers—but these are thicker, the kind typically reserved for commissioned lieutenants. Having two lieutenant-rank officers as escorts, plus the habit of regularly sporting badges and honors, narrows things down considerably. There aren’t many people in the military who fit that description. And among those few, there’s only one person connected to me.”

The old man didn’t bat an eye, but the gleam of satisfaction in his eyes betrayed his thoughts. Leon exhaled quietly, then stated flatly, “Minister of Defense, correct?”

---

“Well, what did I tell you?”

Outside the ward, a female police officer muttered under her breath as she watched Leon deduce her father’s identity within moments. She had been pacing anxiously outside the room, but now she felt a wave of relief wash over her.

“I told you he’s smart. Why go through all this theatrics? Couldn’t you just ask him directly? Ugh…” Shaking her head, she turned to rush into the room but was yanked back by the arm.

“Stay out of trouble,” her mother hissed sharply, pulling her aside. The middle-aged woman sighed exasperatedly, then pinched her daughter hard on the waist.

“Ow!” The policewoman winced, rubbing the spot where her mother had twisted her flesh. She opened her mouth to protest but caught sight of the storm brewing in her mother’s eyes.

“Behave yourself. Haven’t you caused enough trouble already?” The woman growled, delivering another painful pinch near her daughter’s hip.

The memory of her daughter bursting into her bedroom the day before—insisting the suspect in the Lion Blood Night was innocent and had only been at the Lions’ residence to help her investigate the rebels—replayed in her mind once more.

“It hurts!” The younger woman cried, hopping awkwardly.

“Good. It should hurt.”

Dragging her troublesome daughter further away from the door, the mother scolded her fiercely. “Do you even realize how much risk your father took to clean up your mess? Do you think going to the princess with such reckless plans—using this as leverage against the old nobility—is something you can meddle in without consequences? Are you trying to get yourself killed?”

“Yes, yes, fine…” Her daughter mumbled sullenly.

“And another thing—what exactly is your relationship with that man? Why would he risk so much to help you investigate, and why hasn’t he exposed you yet?”

“He’s just a friend…”

“Don’t lie to me. Friends don’t stick their necks out like that. I sent someone to your precinct to ask around. Apparently, quite a few people saw the two of you bickering. What was that about?”

“We were arguing…”

“Arguing about what?”

“Just… regular stuff…”

“Don’t give me that nonsense.”

Frustrated beyond measure, the mother reached out again, pinching her daughter once more when she noticed her craning her neck to peek inside the room while giving distracted, half-hearted answers.

“Ouch! Mom, why do you keep pinching me?” The daughter whined, hopping backward.

“You deserve every bit of it.”

---

Inside the room, the old man listened to the muffled squabbling outside and the sudden tension in the breathing of the two young officers behind him. Glancing at Leon’s enigmatic expression, he cleared his throat awkwardly and gave a command.

“Go. Tell them to keep it down.”

“Yes, sir.” One of the officers saluted stiffly before hurrying out of the room. Gradually, the noise outside subsided, though faint whispers and occasional grunts could still be heard.

“Since you’ve figured it out, there’s no point hiding it anymore.” Ignoring the commotion beyond the walls, the old man straightened himself slightly. Despite his slight stoop, hints of his youthful stature remained evident. Speaking with grave seriousness, he continued, “I am indeed Isha’s father, and I obtained special authorization from the princess to bring you here. This isn’t because of Isha’s pleas—it’s a necessity as Minister of Defense. Now, tell me: what really happened at the Lions’ house that night?”

“What happened that night?” Leon chuckled softly, then answered earnestly, “What should’ve happened long ago.”

“…”

“Before we discuss this overdue event, I have a question or two for you.” Leon met the old man’s furrowed brow with unwavering resolve. Under the watchful, angry stares of the two officers, he asked calmly, “On the day the Lions’ incident occurred, your daughter and I boarded the same train. At the time, she was escorting a rebel. Do you know what happened to that rebel and her husband?”

“Isha told me everything.”

The old man’s expression darkened, and he nodded solemnly. “I’ve already requested personnel from the Secret Investigation Bureau to look into everyone involved in the original incident. Though it happened years ago, the investigation will take some time. Within a month or two, justice will be served.”

“That’s good. But most of her enemies are probably dead by now, so maybe justice won’t matter much anymore.”

Satisfied with the answer, Leon nodded thoughtfully and pressed on. “You must’ve looked into my background too. What about the compensation owed to my family?”

“Before you went to the Lions’, Isha handed me a list. All withheld compensations will be restored.”

The old man paused briefly, exhaling deeply. His shoulders sagged a little more. “As for those guilty of gross negligence in distributing pensions, they’re currently under investigation by the bureau—and the probe starts with me, the Minister of Defense. Before coming here today, I underwent questioning myself. That’s why I’m not wearing my epaulets or medals; they were removed during the process. Once everyone has been reviewed, punishments will follow within two months. Penalties range from docking a year’s salary to confiscating all assets and imposing capital punishment. Any confiscated wealth will go toward compensating bereaved families whose benefits were withheld.”

“That works for me. No complaints.”

After hearing the resolutions, Leon nodded approvingly, noting the remorse etched deeply into the old man’s eyes. Then, without hesitation, he confessed. “The Sun’s report was accurate. Bobby Lion was indeed killed by me.”

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