Life In The Reverse World

“Hello, this is Hinata Yusuke… Sae?”

The middle-aged man lounged on the sofa, legs crossed, a beer in hand. He picked up the ringing phone, and immediately froze at the caller ID.

His daughter… calling him?

Ever since they’d gotten into that huge fight over her high-school choices, she practically never took the initiative to call. Sure, they still talked at home, but every now and then she’d get into shouting matches with her mom whenever the topic of “life guidance” came up.

Well, teens in their rebellious phase. Who hasn’t been there?

Yusuke remembered his younger days, the shameful era when he thought joining a biker gang and tearing up the streets would be cool, and instantly felt a lot more forgiving toward his daughter’s attitude.

The Hinata family wasn’t exactly ordinary, so he could give his daughter some freedom. But only if she followed the university and career path he, as her father, had laid out.

Still… this was the first time in two years she’d actually called him first. His expression went solemn. He put his beer down and straightened up.

Instantly switching into the same posture he had at work, where he was the Director of the First Division of the Metropolitan Police Department.

“S-Sae? What’s wrong?”

“Dad, one of my friends almost got assaulted by a piece of human trash, so could you—”

CLANG.

“WHAT!? Who!? Who’s the bastard who dared lay even a finger on you!?”

Yusuke shot to his feet, slamming his toes into the table, but ignored the pain entirely as he barked into the phone, face twisting in panic.

“It’s my friend! Friend!”

“Oh… that’s—wait, what friend!?”

He’d almost calmed down, but then it hit him: his daughter didn’t have many friends. The one she said she was meeting today was probably… that Nogami household’s infamous young lady.

…That might actually be worse.

“A new friend. Same class.”

Sae’s muttering drifted through the receiver.

Ah… as long as it’s not the Nogami heiress, that’s fine. Thank god.

“Dad, why’re you making such a big deal out of it? And you call yourself a division director…”

His one and only precious daughter almost got hurt, how could he not panic!?

Sure, he knew he was being overly anxious, but what was wrong with that?

Before he was the Director of the First Division, he was a father.

And as a father, was worrying about his daughter strange?

“…Anyway, that’s basically what happened. Dad, can you deal with that scumbag Yobitani for me?”

“Ahem, Sae, listen. Our country is a nation of laws. We must act legally, and I cannot abuse my authority…”

There were many ways he could crush the little bastard who attempted the crime, but risking his own career over some no-name delinquent wasn’t worth it.

“If nothing is done, what happens to him?”

“He’ll probably just be sent to Juvenile Assessment for education, two to three weeks. Since he’s a minor and it was an attempted crime, even with solid evidence, harsher penalties are difficult.”

As someone working in law enforcement, he was painfully aware of the rising juvenile crime issue and dissatisfied with the penalties, but…

Revising the law wasn’t his job. That was for the politicians.

“But he’s a disgusting creep who tried to assault a girl. He just gets let off like that?”

“That’s what the Juvenile Law says…”

Though that was only if things were handled strictly by the book.

Also… when did Sae make a new friend?

She often hung out with classmates, but few qualified as actual friends.

“Sae, this new friend of yours is…?”

“She’s also Izumi’s friend.”

Was his daughter joking?

That was Yusuke’s first thought.

The Nogami heiress, infamous nationwide, had a new friend?

But Sae wasn’t the type to joke about something like this. So he tested the waters further:

“The other girl’s family is…?”

“Chouko-chan’s from Kyoto. Harutaki said she’s from the Shihou family or something.”

He didn’t recognize “Chouko-chan” or “Harutaki,” but “Kyoto” plus “Shihou family”…