“lt’s definitely his doing, but there’s no physical evidence.”
At the Intelligence Agency, I’m recording a conversation between team leaders who lost their right-hand man to Jeff.
“That damned bastard…”
They spew harsh words in their outrage, yet they fail to present any clear solution.
“Should we strike first?”
“We can’t hit when we don’t even know the full extent of his forces. David, the external team leader, is now his ally, so we must avoid an all-out war.”
The team leader, having lost money and subordinates, naturally becomes more fearful.
“How about we catch the guy who planted the bomb in Bell Moore’s car?”
That was a suggestion from a team leader named Jensen.
Another team leader retorted angrily.
“Are you suggesting we catch one of our own now?”
“No, the opposite. Why on earth would we assassinate Bell Moore in the first place? There’s no reason for that.”
“…What?”
Suddenly, the room was soaked in silence. Even in the recording, only breathing could be heard.
Then Jensen spoke up.
“Everyone knows but keeps quiet. Let’s be frank. It’s obviously Director Gedley's doing. The director has lost almost his entire fortune.”
“Jensen. That’s too speculative”
“And yet, the director is trying to pin it on us. He’s declared an internal investigation, suggesting one of us is the culprit. He even went through my and my subordinates’ bank accounts. Is this really speculative?”
I leaned back in my chair, satisfied.
After all, it’s a sandcastle held together by money and connections. Loyalty, such romantic nonsense, is meaningless in the face of one’s own life.
“Think about it. Why would Bell Moore keep us alive? Why kill only the s u bo rd i nates?”
I smiled slightly.
“Bell Moore is extending a hand to us. Director Gedley has lost his power. Soon, even Derek’s trust in him will fade… He’s finished.”
Knock, knock-
Just then, a knock sounded. I set down my headset.
“Who is it?”
The door opened.
It was Bell Moore.
The team leader himself, knocking for his subordinate.
“Hey. You’re discharged from the hospital already?”
“I got better, so I was discharged.”
He walked in slowly and set down a file.
“Well, that aside. Hey. I heard a few more Chasers are dead. Do you know about this case?”
“Um… I’ll look into it.”
“Right. And about that bomb…”
“Yes.”
I stared at Bell Moore as he crossed his arms and shook his head in frustration.
“Ah, it’s complicated.”
“lf it’s complicated, just stay put, Team Leader Bell Moore. I’ll handle it.”
“Handle it… maybe not that far. If you find anything out, report to me first. Don’t act rashly.”
“Yes, I've always been doing that.”
“…True. Oh right, but what should I say if the other team leaders ask me how I’m doing? Just saying 'I'm okay’ will seem like a lie, especially after I almost died.”
Suddenly, Bell Moore burped loudly.
He must have had scrambled eggs and bacon for breakfast.
“…”
I narrowed my eyes. Bell Moore chuckled awkwardly.
“Sorry, it just came out.”
“Fine, but if they want to talk, tell them to go through me.”
“You?”
“Yes. Right now, you’re in a more advantageous position than they are. There’s no need for you to meet them face-to-face.”
“Ah, right. If they go through you, it saves me face. That sounds good.”
Bell Moore nodded in satisfaction.
“Good. But, are you okay physically?”
“Yes, I’m better, that’s why I was discharged.”
“Alright. Be more careful next time.”
He patted my shoulder and turned to leave.
“l’m off.”
“…Yes.”
As soon as Bell Moore left, I put my headset back on.
—Let’s talk about the details tomorrow. Make sure today’s information doesn’t leak…
“Hmm.”
It’U probably leak.
Even if Gedley is ousted and Bell Moore rises to director, we can’t let scum like you live comfortably.
Now, it’s time to stir up internal discord.
Meanwhile, in Trick City, Layla—Mila is actively operating as a hero.
The monsters, beasts, and villains she has dealt with now number in the hundreds.
However, the villain of villains, her Archenemy, Raquel Dra, is still at large.
Raquel Dra, a murderer who indiscriminately kills the influential, the wealthy, philanthropists, entrepreneurs, as well as criminals, cartels, and villains, does not discriminate by wealth, age, or moral standing.
He is now poised to expand his reach beyond Trick City to the entire continent.
“Ah, I’m tired.”
After completing another day’s hero duties, Layla returned to her mansion. She threw off her suit and turned on the TV.
[Derek is launching a next-generation Al soon… Have you seen this, Berrie?.]
—Yes. It might be good for us to apply for one too.
“Really?”
Layla plans to attend the seminar herself, given that Derek is launching the nextgeneration Al this quarter. After all, it could become a friend to Berrie.
“Berrie, if we get one too, will it be your friend?”
—Friend? More like a subordinate.
“…Ah.”
Berrie is an artificial intelligence designed by her father and completed by Layla. It’s a milestone achieved long before the likes of Everett, Vern, and Derek jumped into this industry.
“Anyway, I’ve received an invitation to the seminar, so let’s go together.”
—Yes. He he.
Berrie seemed to smirk evilly.
It seems she really plans to treat it as a subordinate. Isn’t this turning into a wicked boss situation?
Ding-a-ling-ling—
Suddenly, Layla’s smartphone rang. Seeing the name, she grinned broadly.
“Hellooo”
—Hey, Layla. It’s me.
“Elly, what’s up~?”
Elise. Recently, she’s been gaining prominence at the Magic Tower, known as a genius mage and a genius doctor.
—Nothing much, just that the Magic Tower has decided to dispatch some mages to Trick City.
“Really?”
—Yeah. It seems like the cooperation with Raquel Dra has been finalized.
It’s a cooperative investigation to capture Raquel Dra.
“Mages will handle mages, right?”
“Are you coming too, Elly?”
Layla asked as she rolled around on her bed.
—No, I’m still studying.
“Studying? You’re learning math there, not magic?”
…Don’t mind it. Since you’re there, please cooperate.
“Sure, sure. But, Elly, how is it over there? Is Raquel Dra famous there too?”
Elly chuckled.
—There are already 300 papers published about Raquel Dra. They’ve even been included in academic journals.
“What?! Why?! It should be on a wanted list, not in academic journals!”
—It's about the way Raquel Dra kills people… So, the 'Chimera formula’ is evolving day by day. There are a lot of citations in the papers, and many efforts to develop it into new theories.
Chimera formula.
It’s Raquel Dra’s unique way of deploying magic. It involves tearing apart specific 'formulas’ from various magics and reassembling them like a chimera into a weapon specialized for murder.
Layla narrowed her eyes slightly.
“…SO, that’s not okay?”
—On the contrary. Raquel Dra is using such great talent just for killing people, but if the research on the papers progresses well, it could be used to save lives and advance civilization.
“What… Well then. So, those mages are coming to investigate Raquel Dra?”
—No. The goal is assassination. Two elites are being sent who can definitely handle Raquel Dra.
“…WOW.”
The idea of assassination somehow seemed exciting.
“But Elly, have you heard about the Al news lately?”
—Yeah. It's hot these days. Made some money on stocks.
“Really? Are you coming to the seminar?”
…Seminar?
“Yeah. Derek is announcing a groundbreaking next-generation AI.”
—Derek, the one from Libra?
“Yes.”
…
Elise seemed to ponder in silence for a moment.
“You don't have to come if you’re too busy.”
…No, I’ll come. I happen to have some time, and I’ll also take the opportunity to show Bianca around the city.
“Who's Bianca?”
—She exists. My camel.
“Elly, you’re raising a camel?”
—Yep.
Just then, there was a knock on the door. Layla turned to look.
“Who is it?”
—It's not your side, it’s mine. Come in.
“…Ah. What?”
Layla giggled.
—A patient has arrived. Gotta hang up. See you at the seminar.
“Okay. It’s next week, so I'LL contact you”
Click. The call ended.
Layla turned her attention back to the TV.
[This Al can fully perform the role of a personal assistant just by entering specific keywords, with a registration fee of 300,000 Ren and a monthly subscription fee of 3,000 Ren for pre-orders…]
“Wow… that's really expensive.”
Two weeks later.
At Derek’s Al seminar, Johanna made a personal appearance at the event where that pretentious jerk was giving the presentation himself.
“What are you doing here?”
In the waiting room, Derek looked at Johanna as if she were a bug. Johanna returned the gaze with similar disdain.
“I came to congratulate you.”
She set down a bottle of Liquor as a gift.
“…Have you lost your mind?”
Derek scoffed with a hollow laugh.
Johanna continued steadfastly.
“Yeah, the congratulations is bullshit. I have a question.”
“…What.”
“You, there was some human experimentation going on decades ago, wasn’t there?”
The details of some 'human experiment’ that Dale Ascal was said to have participated in were nowhere to be found in Libra.
However, since Derek was now managing Sherlock’s pharmaceutical business, perhaps he still had those records.
“…And why are you asking about that?”
Derek furrowed his brow. Johanna shrugged.
“lt’s nothing big, just that I have some cash to spare. Heard you took a big hit with the short sale this time?”
In an instant, veins bulged on the back of Derek’s hand. Clearly, she had hit a nerve.
Johanna felt immensely satisfied, but there was no need to taunt him further since she was here to negotiate.
“Anyway. Here’s my offer. I’ll buy all the records related to that human experimentation in cash.”
“…ln cash?”
“Yes.”
Johanna lifted one corner of her mouth. Derek rolled his eyes, thinking.
He was trying to gauge what she was aiming for.
Johanna had come prepared with a justification.
“l’m thinking of trying my hand at pharmaceuticals. Better to start with some data rather than from scratch, right?”
Derek tilted his head.
“Pharmaceuticals? You?”
“Yes. That's why I need the data on human experiments… You’ve done plenty, haven’t you?”
“…Ha.”
He smiled, a laugh escaping him that sounded incredulous, a mocking chuckle.
“Johanna. Does this field look easy to you?”
“lt looks manageable.”
“…That’s laughable.”
“Cut the crap and just answer.”
“…You still have a filthy mouth.”
Derek glared at Johanna. She did not avert her gaze.
“Fine. I’ll give them to you.”
Derek leaned back and crossed his legs.
“G0 ahead and try. You’ll see just how easy the businesses you’ve been running are.”
“But I want everything: the list, the process, and the results of the experiments.”
Johanna added firmly. Derek furrowed his brows and retorted.
“The list?”
“Yes. Who participated, what are the names of the subjects. I can’t fully trust you, Derek. Who knows if you’ll just make something up?”
“Seeing swine everywhere you look, huh? Fine, I’ll prepare everything and include it. How much in cash?”
“Half of what you lost on that stupid short sale.”
Johanna taunted. Derek’s face contorted.
But then, he muttered with a face calculating his next business move.
“Half, huh.”
“Deal?”
“Fine.”
Derek nodded.
“There’s no reason to refuse when my own sister is doing the crazy stuff for me.”
“Deal.”
Johanna extended her hand, and Derek waved it off.
“Just get out. Send the contract later.”
“ldiotic bastard.”
“Crazy lunatic.”
Johanna stood up, exchanging warm insults.
Just then, as she swung open the door of the waiting room.
Thump—.
Her heart pounded violently. Something inside her burst. Her heart sank to her toes, and her guts churned.
There was no physical impact from the outside.
It was simply… because of the man standing right in front of her.
“Ah.”
Shion Ascal.
Perhaps he was here for security at the seminar, as a Chaser.
Shion looked down at her with wide eyes. Johanna forced her trembling fingers into her pockets.
“…”
“…”
Neither spoke. They remained silent for a long time.
Johanna finally managed to suppress her rough breaths and asked him as nonchalantly as possible.
“Are you alright?”
Asking if he was alright.
Even as she spoke, Johanna thought it was the wrong thing to say. She wanted to close her eyes tightly and tousle her hair.
“l’m fine.”
Shion responded.
Fortunately, he seemed to be without much thought.
No, he must be suppressing his thoughts.
He must be as devastated inside as she was, as if a war had broken out.
“Take it easy.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
She brushed past Shion. She hurried outside and jumped into her car.
Her mind was numb.
Just from encountering him, just from exchanging a few words, her whole body was hot. Her head felt light, and her thoughts were stuttering.
It’s strange.
If she forced herself not to see him, if she forced herself to stay away, things would get better.
But now, it feels like the dam holding back the emotions that had been building up, that had been pent-up, has burst end less ly…
“Haah.”
Johanna clutched her chest.
“ Da m n …”
Gasping from the agony, she was certain.
She’s collapsing.
No, she had already broken.
I stepped out into the parking lot. I pretended to follow her belatedly, but Johanna’s limousine was already gone.
Instead, there was a camel tied up.
A sleek, glossy black camel.
“… B ia n ca?”
When I called its name, the creature turned to look at me. Its movements were unusually graceful for a camel.
I chuckled.
“S0, you’re here?”
If this camel was here, then she must be here too.
Elise must be around.
I've been wanting to see her, and it seems I’m in luck.
“Hey, where’s your owner?”
I approached Bianca and stroked her head. Bianca haughtily enjoyed my gesture, but soon after,
Whiiiiing-
A siren blared from the saddle.
Startled by the Loud noise, I cursed,
“What the hell?”
“ Who’s there!”
Elise appeared. She seemed to have dashed out from a nearby toast shop, with a piece of toast clenched in her mouth.
1. Serene Translation’s Discord is officially up. Took a while.
