Chapter 10

It was one afternoon. On my way back to the office after taking a turn around the courtyard, I heard voices clashing at the corner of the corridor. There were two civil officials. Each was holding a stack of documents of different thicknesses. “Therefore, I am telling you we should use the new method.” “It is too dangerous. The proven old method is sufficient.” I stopped walking. “With the new method, we can process the construction permit and material application simultaneously.” “But that talks about unifying the ledgers, right? If a deficiency arises, where do we stop it?” “Right now, we are writing the same content for every department. It is a waste.” “Even if it is a waste, confirmation is being taken. That is safe.” Apparently, it was an argument about the processing method for construction applications. “What are you arguing about?” When I called out, the two of them turned toward me in unison. And then, they made blatantly unpleasant faces. A member of the royal family heard their argument. They probably realized that this alone would increase their troubles. I didn’t care and said, “Show me the materials.” What was handed to me was: One was the “Application Procedure of the Conventional Method,” and the other was the “Processing Draft of the New Method.” In the old method, application forms are passed around by human hands. Documents written on-site are first sent to the relevant department, and the content is transcribed into a ledger. Next, it is passed to accounting, where the same content is recorded in yet another ledger. Finally, an auditor checks it and repeats the same thing again. If even one deficiency is found anywhere, the document is remanded, and they have to start over from the beginning. It also prevents alteration along the way. It takes time, but you can tell immediately who checked it by looking at the document. The new method is different. Application contents are summarized in a single main ledger, and each department simply adds notes and confirms them there. There is no duplication, and progress can be understood at a glance. However—if the initial design is wrong, it causes confusion. I looked through them in silence for a while. “The new one is better.” The shoulders of the two men twitched. “The reason is simple. In this country, construction projects are continuing to increase. However, the number of civil officials is not increasing.” I traced the diagram of the main ledger with my finger. “With this method, you don’t have to do the same checks over and over. If the processing becomes faster, the worksite won’t stop either.” Next, I looked at the old method. “This one is certainly safe. However, if people do not increase, delays will inevitably occur.” The two were at a loss for words. I continued. “I am not saying the old one is bad. But in the future, the new one will become necessary.” Silence. The air in the corridor became strangely heavy. I returned the materials and waved my hand lightly. “The ones who decide ultimately are you. I only stated my opinion.” And then, I smiled wryly just a little. “…I meddled too much.” Saying only that, I left the spot. I sensed the two of them looking at each other behind me, but I didn’t turn back. My steps toward the office were the same as always.