K – Seven Stories - Chapter 7

The old Scepter 4, post-Kagutsu incident. The original text is kindly provided by .

K ~ Seven Stories: 24 Pieces
Piece 7: Habari Jin (Headless Chicken)
by Furuhashi Hideyuki

“Scepter 4 as an organization will be preserved,” Shiotsu declared to Zenjou right after the joint funeral. The usual practice for a clan that lost its king was to be dismissed, but… “It will take a long time for this country to heal after the Kagutsu incident. In time, a new Blue King will appear to rise as a bearer of order, but until then, there is a need to deal with crimes by holders of supernatural abilities. The Timeless Palace on its own is not up for the task.”

That was the public reason. Zenjou kept his silence, waiting for Shiotsu to continue, knowing he would hear the other man’s personal – and true reason – next.

“…Habari told me something once. That an action the troops take as a whole is Scepter 4 itself, and it corresponds to his will. So as long as Scepter 4 continues to take action in the name of justice, Habari’s will will live on… That’s what I believe.” Shiotsu, who was glaring at nothing in particular, looked away for the first time. “Zenjou, what will you do?”
“Hm…?”
“I’ll take care of all the office work. All you need to do is sit there formally as someone who knew the Blue King.”
“…I don’t know,” Zenjou finally said after a somewhat lengthy pause. “I don’t really understand Habari. In the past, I kind of thought I understood him, but… now, I want to give it a little more thought.”
“…I see.”

If Habari were here right now, he’d say something along the lines of ‘Zenjou, thinking is really not for you’ and laugh it off. But there was no one here to say that. That fact drove it home with a sense of finality that the Blue King was no more.

“…Alright, then I will simply do what I can, the best I can, is all,” Shiotsu summed up. It was a vow to himself.

A clan that pushed on after losing its King. The current Scepter 4, and the Scepter 4 the way would remain after this, was like a headless chicken. It kept on running, not recognizing that its head was cut off. But where was it headed?

Probably only Habari in the afterlife knew the answer to that.