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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Simzy
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I was lost in thought for a moment.
I had no idea how to explain Eve’s existence.
‘Eve’.
The super-intelligent AI I named.
Actually, at first, I was going to name her ‘Adam’.
But due to the strong objection of the AI, Eve, at the time, she became known by her current name.
I glanced forward.
Catherine was looking at me, waiting for an answer.
It seemed difficult to avoid explaining.
Right at this moment.
The pressure to answer was clearly conveyed through her gaze.
…Hmm.
Well, there was no reason to hide Eve’s existence now.
In the first place, there wasn’t any particular reason why I hid Eve’s existence.
It was a matter of my conscience.
During a mission with my colleagues.
I had secretly brought along an AI, an entity that could pose a risk.
Of course, now it was a different story.
After living with Eve for a while.
I was convinced that this AI wasn’t a bad entity.
And I wouldn’t deny that Eve’s streaming donations, deposited into my account, had a certain positive influence.
Anyway, ultimately, this was just my perspective and thoughts.
Perhaps my colleagues would think differently.
In the worst-case scenario.
They would advise immediately removing the data module and neural computer chip for information cleansing.
And naturally, I assumed that physical action would follow that advice.
I collected my thoughts.
Catherine waited for me.
Eve, also seeming to read the atmosphere, remained silent, quietly observing the situation.
And in this situation.
The only person free to move was a certain megacorp vice president.
“…Um, excuse me.”
In the silence, Ko-zaka William cautiously raised his hand to express his opinion.
“I think this explanation is going to take a while, could I have some water? The terrible smell is getting to me, and I’m a bit thirsty.”
Being addressed respectfully by the megacorp vice president felt better than expected.
But I wasn’t flustered enough to say it out loud.
I silently nodded.
“Of course, that’s fine. We only rescued you, Mr. Vice President, for our own purposes. We have no intention of holding you captive.”
Since it had been revealed that this wasn’t Smile John, there was no need to restrain the vice president and provoke him.
I kindly added,
“If you go outside, there’s an Orc. If you ask him for water, he’ll probably give it to you.”
“…Hmm, understood.”
He would also need time to process the situation.
Perhaps still not fully composed.
Ko-zaka William walked unsteadily.
Now, with that, it was just the two of us.
I decided to tell Catherine everything honestly.
If I lied here.
One lie would lead to another.
And the situation would only get worse.
Taking a slow breath, I opened my mouth to speak to Catherine.
“To explain about Eve, first─”
It was as I began my explanation.
The Orc, Four-Eyes, rushed in from outside the room.
If my eyes weren’t deceiving me, he was holding Ko-zaka William’s arm behind his back. It was a posture anyone would recognize as restraint.
…What the.
Before I could grasp the situation, Four-Eyes shouted urgently.
“Hey! What are you doing letting the hostage wander around?! If you kidnapped someone, you should keep a tight hold of them! Man, it’s a good thing I was guarding outside….”
Hmm.
Come to think of it, I hadn’t explained the situation to Four-Eyes yet.
I had only told him something like, ‘We needed to kidnap the megacorp vice president for a bit.’
To him, who knew nothing, It must have looked like the kidnapped hostage had just strolled out asking for a glass of water.
For some reason, Ko-zaka William’s eyes seemed to have turned as dull as a dead fish staring at me.
I barely managed to suppress my laughter.
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After my brief explanation of the situation.
Four-Eyes gently released Ko-zaka William.
His movements were as careful as if he were supporting an invalid.
Maybe it was because they were different races, It was hard for me to discern the Orc’s emotions.
But I could easily tell that he currently had a ‘I’m screwed’ expression on his face.
I spoke lightly to Four-Eyes to lighten the mood.
“…How does it feel to be the only Orc who twisted a megacorp vice president’s arm?”
“…Shut up.”
Four-Eyes replied through gritted teeth.
Judging by his response, he seemed to still be sane.
Unlike the difficult-to-read expression of the Orc, understanding the expression of a fellow human, Ko-zaka William, was quite easy.
Ko-zaka William, freed from Four-Eyes, sat in a chair and drank the lukewarm water in one gulp.
His face looked like he wanted to curse.
But unfortunately, because there were no allies around, like his employees, he seemed to be holding back.
Ko-zaka William, setting down the empty cup, slightly loosened the tie that was choking his neck.
It felt like an act of throwing away all pretense, since he’d already shown his worst side.
“…So can you explain now? What exactly is going on, and who are you people?”
It was impressive that he still maintained his composure even after having his arm twisted by an unknown Orc.
Sitting on the opposite chair, I tapped my fingers on the desk and replied.
“First of all, as I mentioned earlier, we rescued you, Mr. Vice President, to achieve our objectives.”
“…I thought someone called it a kidnapping.”
Ko-zaka William muttered, aiming his words at someone with green skin.
Technically, kidnapping was another word for rescuing, but I couldn’t say that so directly.
I smiled politely and continued.
“Well, maybe it’s a communication error?”
“…….”
It was a kidnapping, but ultimately, it was also true that we had saved him from assassins who were after his life.
“Frankly, we’re not stopping you, Mr. Vice President. If you want to leave, I’ll guide you right now.”
“…Alright, then show me the exit─”
“However, I can’t guarantee your safety. From what Chairman Ko-zaka said earlier, it seems like a ninja squad is positioned above the landfill.”
I took a short breath and said,
“Do you think they’re your allies?”
“…….”
Ko-zaka William remained silent, unable to answer.
It was a question he couldn’t be sure of either.
The assassination attempt itself was said to be due to a bribed security officer.
That’s what Ko-zaka William himself had said inside the airship.
Ko-zaka William tried to maintain his composure.
“…That’s a problem that can be solved by calling my staff.”
Perhaps starting to feel safe again, his speech reverted from polite to his usual vice presidential tone.
Ko-zaka William busily moved his fingers in the air, seemingly manipulating a visual interface.
But such actions were short-lived.
“…Outside the signal range? That’s impossible.”
It didn’t take long for his expression to harden.
“…Is there no signal here?”
“That’s absurd, it all works fine.”
There was no reason for the signal not to work underground.
Actually, I had anticipated this to some extent.
Ever since we entered the sewers, the underground, a ‘no signal’ indicator had been displayed in the corner of my vision.
The last time was when Natasha contacted me after we escaped the crashed airship, and since then, the signal had been completely dead.
I suspected that they had implemented a signal jammer targeting the entire landfill.
I smiled and offered the vice president two options.
“Do you want to leave? Or what will you do?”
“…….”
Unable to contact his staff outside.
With a ninja squad searching the entire landfill, targeting his life.
He had only one choice.
“…Alright, then can you escort me inside Neon City, specifically to the Ko-zaka headquarters building?”
My mercenary spirit awakened.
I joked with a smile.
“How much did you inquire about, customer?”
Using words I’d heard many times before.
Right now, I’d offer him the opportunity to hire Neon City’s strongest mercenary (Catherine) at a low price.
This would be beneficial for us as well.
If Smile John’s true identity was indeed the chairman of Ko-zaka Corporation, we were at a loss as to how to deal with him.
If the vice president could help us in this situation, our options would increase.
Furthermore, the vice president also had sufficient motive to hold a grudge against Smile John.
The atmosphere eased considerably.
I pulled up a chair to plan how to proceed.
However, Catherine, who had approached me at some point, gently placed her hand on my shoulder.
I couldn’t bring myself to turn around and check her expression.
Catherine’s voice whispered in my ear.
“…Explain later.”
“…Yeah.”
She was talking about Eve.
Thanks to the Orc who appeared while twisting the megacorp vice president’s arm, we got past it for now.
But honestly, I couldn’t avoid explaining forever.
…I’d have to explain to her later when we were alone.
I thought so.
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Going to the surface, where the ninja squad was searching, was clearly a ‘bad’ strategy.
Waiting here for someone’s support was merely a ‘mediocre’ strategy.
Then what was the best, ‘good’ strategy?
I gathered everyone and explained.
“We’re going to go through the sewers, directly into the Neon City underground.”
Ko-zaka William, fiddling with the empty cup, replied with an anxious expression.
“…Isn’t that dangerous?”
I casually nodded.
“Killer drones roam around, malfunctioning cleaning robots eat people, and there are plenty of homeless people and mutated contaminants.”
“…Then.”
“Still, it’s much better than facing the ninja squad on the surface.”
“…….”
It was true.
They wouldn’t follow us into the sewers, would they?
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