Chapter 559: Framed
Public sentiment in Japan had become explosive—riots, looting, destruction, all but murder. Originally aimed at East Africa, their fury was misdirected thanks to East Africa's National Defense Security Bureau. After inciting the chaos, the Bureau's agents quickly withdrew. Anyone left behind would have faced serious consequences.
Bang.
Silence fell over the once-chaotic Russian Embassy. The crowd froze.
A single gunshot had rung out—Russian guards had opened fire. A Japanese rioter was shot dead on the spot. Things had officially spiraled out of control.
"You hooligans! We'll demand an explanation from your emperor. This is an insult to Great Russia!"
Before the Russian could finish, the Japanese crowd exploded again: "The Germans killed someone! The Germans killed someone!" A few yelled that the Russians did it, but the chant about the Germans gained more traction—clearly, many had mixed the two up.
Outside the East African Embassy, the student-led crowd stood stunned. They had heard the gunfire too—and now shouts that "Germans killed someone!" But hadn't the East African Embassy gates remained shut? How could Germans have killed anyone?
Of course, there was no rule that Germans had to be East African, or that East Africans couldn't leave their embassy. The confusion was enough.
Curiosity got the better of many. Despite the potential danger, Japanese citizens flocked toward the gunshot. Nothing could deter them.
This was partly due to the complete absence of Japanese police, who usually kept the embassy district well secured. But today, they were gone.
Not without reason. The police had been pulled back, lying in wait. As soon as the gunshot rang out, they knew things had escalated.
Then, police began flooding in from all directions, shouting for the crowd to disperse.
"Clear out! No loitering near the embassies!"
With such a massive crowd, police couldn't access the scene directly. They needed to clear the outer layers first.
At the same time, they wanted to know exactly what had happened. If East Africa had indeed killed a Japanese citizen, the narrative would shift in Japan's favor internationally.
These low-ranking officers didn't know the full plan, but their sudden deployment that morning had made them suspicious—something big was brewing.
Their "baton diplomacy" quickly silenced resistance. As they reached the core of the chaos, they were stunned.
"Wait... this is the Russian Embassy?" one officer asked, dumbfounded.
Inside, the embassy was trashed. Glass everywhere. Furniture overturned. Some had tried to haul it away but couldn't escape, so they settled for smaller items.
Soot covered the walls. Someone had started a fire. The floor was a mess of footprints.
Worst of all, wounded staff lay across the embassy. In the main hall was a Japanese corpse—clearly killed by a bullet to the chest.
"What the hell happened here?" one officer muttered, already feeling dread.
"Quick! Don't let anyone escape! Arrest everyone involved!" the squad leader barked.
"Sir, who are we arresting?"
"Anyone causing trouble! Someone's dead—and a Russian at that. This is a diplomatic nightmare!"
"There were too many people. Unless we block the entire street, most will escape—and we're short-staffed."
"Then seal off the area now! Arrest as many as you can! If the suspect gets away, it's on your head!"
"I can't take that fall."
"Then get moving!" the leader roared, kicking his subordinate.
"Yes, sir!"
At that moment, a Russian staff member stood up, now that the police had secured the area.
"Who's in charge here?!"
The same officer who had just yelled at his men stepped forward with a forced smile. "That would be me."
"And you are?"
"I'm Captain Aitano of the Roppongi Police District."
Upon hearing this, the Russian slapped him across the face.
"You idiots! Get Ambassador Chelsevski to a hospital now! If anything happens to him, none of you will get away with this!"
Holding his burning cheek, Aitano bowed and said, "We failed in our duty. I apologize."
Another slap.
"I told you to help, not to apologize! He's still unconscious from being trampled. Move it!"
"Yes, sir!"
Ignoring his swelling cheek, Aitano ordered his men to assist the ambassador.
"He's breathing. Thank God."
"Captain, there are too many people outside. We can't get through."
"His safety comes first. I don't care if the crowd's packed like rice cakes—push through! Beat anyone who resists!"
"Yes, sir!"
After half a day of chaos, Japan deployed most of Edo's police force. Over 50,000 people were detained—jails and detention centers were overflowing.
Police leadership looked grim.
"Baka yarō! Why was the East African Embassy untouched, while the Russian Embassy was stormed? Can't these fools tell one flag from another? If they don't know East Africa's flag, fine—but the Russian flag?!"
His subordinates remained silent.
"How is Ambassador Chelsevski?"
"He's okay—just a few bruises from being trampled and kicked."
SLAP!
"Idiots! If he had died, all of us—myself included—would be finished! This is already a major diplomatic incident!"
"Sir, we can't be blamed for this. It wasn't our negligence—it was orders from above. We arrived too late. The fault doesn't lie with the police."
"Hmph. Think again. The moment they stormed the Russian Embassy, we were implicated."
Even though the order came from higher-ups, he knew he'd be the scapegoat. Russia would blame Edo's police—since they maintained embassy security.
"These damned students! Useless brats who can't even tell Russia from East Africa. Find the culprits—fast!"
"Captain, the scene was too chaotic. Identifying the killer may take ages—Russia could lash out by then!"
"Then pin the blame on the student leaders. Even if they didn't do it, they're guilty now!"
"But sir, the leaders were from First Tokyo Boys' High. Most are elites—sons of the rich and powerful…"
"I don't care! Someone has to take the fall. Blame them all. When the crime is shared, punishment is spared."
Blatant scapegoating. But the police chief felt no guilt. If he alone took the blame, he'd be ruined. But if enough privileged students were implicated, the heat would be spread around.
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