The chairman of Monolith, Taylor Blackstar, shot a sharp gaze beyond the hologram screen at his counterpart.
“So.”
The individual beyond the hologram, the executive secretary of Monolith and the chairman’s loyal aide, Justin Borg, couldn’t raise his head.
“You not only got caught during the tracking but also failed in the pursuit?”
“…I apologize.”
He never anticipated that the orders would unfold like this.
He wished he could grab the bosses by their collars.
He felt like the employees had been working late for so long that they had lost their minds.
Such excuses were carefully swallowed down inside him.
Iron-blooded monarch, the chairman of Monolith, wouldn’t accept such excuses, and the chairman’s piercing look felt like a dagger piercing his heart.
Justin Borg simply bowed his head, waiting for the chairman’s rage to subside.
How much time passed, he wondered.
The chairman finally spoke again.
“This isn’t like you. If you had at least captured them, it would be different, but this is neither here nor there.”
“…You’re right.”
“The outcome is the worst.”
“I will take full responsibility.”
The chairman let out a light sigh.
“……Haa.”
Given the time and the position he’d held, it was rare for the chairman to show emotion in front of his subordinates.
But it seemed even he couldn’t hold back a sigh in this situation.
That small sigh sounded like thunder, causing Justin Borg to flinch.
The simple command of ‘track the target’s location’ somehow morphed into ‘kneel the target right in front of the chairman,’ and this was a mystery even for the chairman, who had lived many years.
That said, the chairman had no intention of holding Justin Borg accountable.
Ultimately, he was the one who gave the ‘order.’
If one were to look at the cause of the mistake, it could most be traced back to his own fault of mixing personal feelings into company business.
As he pondered, the chairman slowly considered.
The fact that the target (Lee Siwoon) was aware of the ongoing tracking should naturally make their actions more cautious.
If he went out alone, it might’ve been a different story.
But with a super artificial intelligence by his side, it was indeed a problem.
‘…This is giving me a headache.’
The chairman gently pressed his temples to ease the headache.
He gave another order to Justin Borg.
“Since things have come to this, continue the tracking.”
“…Understood.”
“And this time, report to me ‘without fail’ first.”
“Confirmed.”
Soon enough, Justin Borg’s holographic form gradually faded as he kept his head bowed, and the call ended.
“……”
The chairman let out another deep sigh.
People really do seem to be creatures of hormones.
‘…Is it because I’ve been seeing her face often lately?’
It had only been a day, after all.
He found himself wanting to see the wizard who did her job well, was unambitious (and even managed to escape well).
—
28. Method of Rest (7)
Orc George’s day was unlucky.
What on earth is going on?
Stepping on gum while walking is pretty trivial.
How about bird poop dropping on his head from the sky?
His credit chip wallet malfunctioning?
Bikers that came up to him robbing him of that broken credit chip?
Yet, George thought positively.
‘At least I didn’t lose my car.’
Days like this are best spent cocooned at home.
Sitting on the couch while watching Rex Nova’s live show would surely ease the fatigue of the day.
George tried to comfort himself.
Just then, as he was about to enter his house, two ‘humans’ approached him.
“…What’s going on?”
For reference, in Redwood, people don’t use honorifics with strangers at first meeting.
Gripping the gun hidden in his clothes, George was on guard.
The two looked like a couple, a man and a woman.
It seemed that the woman was the one with business to discuss with George.
He almost let his suspicion go, captivated by her transcendent beauty that crossed racial boundaries, but due to the misfortunes of the day, he quickly snapped back to reality.
The approaching woman spoke to George in a rather strange tone.
“May I borrow your vehicle for a moment?”
“…?”
George lowered his gaze and checked whether the couple was holding any weaponry.
But still, they bore nothing in their hands.
‘…These days, do robbers operate without guns?’
Thinking about the bikers who’d robbed his credit chip earlier, that just didn’t seem right.
Stunned by the strange request, George shook his head.
Today was unlucky enough.
He frowned and spoke harshly.
“Listen up, you cracker bastards, don’t screw a—”
His coarse words were halted by a notification that popped up on his vision interface.
‘One, ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand…’
George counted the amount in a daze.
“This should be enough to buy a new vehicle.”
Upon hearing that, George snapped back to reality.
This amount was not just enough for one vehicle but sufficient to buy several, or even a newer model than this one.
He pinched his cheek to confirm whether he was dreaming.
“…Angel?”
“Nope.”
“Do you need a driver?”
“No, I don’t.”
George nodded, feeling a little downcast.
—
…Is this orc sick?
I thought as I glanced at the rear-view mirror.
The orc who lent his vehicle was still bent over at a 90-degree angle, almost 60 degrees.
I had no clue what the orc was thinking when Eve approached him, but I never imagined I could obtain a car so easily like this.
It seems those with experience in using credit do it well.
Anyway.
Our escape plan was simpler than I thought.
Because the tactical team of Monolith hadn’t yet taken control of this area.
If it had been otherwise, we would’ve had to execute a getaway plan filled with bullets and explosions.
Luckily, all we needed to do was drive the car we obtained through a legitimate transaction safely.
The absence of any baggage was an added bonus.
If we could have called a taxi, we might have been able to devise a less costly escape plan, but unfortunately, calling a taxi would take a long time.
This area was Redwood.
A place where guns and orcs are closer than the law and police.
We had no time.
All we had was the money we obtained from Kojaka.
Through that, we managed to successfully get out of the Redwood area.
During the trip, when I spotted tactical helicopters and air MPVs belonging to Monolith crossing the sky, I felt a chill run down my spine.
If we had been just a little late, I think we would’ve gotten caught by them.
Honestly, if they were tracking our whereabouts, I expected a few impatient individuals like Catherine to come looking.
I could never have anticipated that the Monolith tactical team would be dispatched.
Based on my knowledge of the chairman, such a sudden outbreak wouldn’t be his style.
In that regard, I did feel something strange, but the fact that tracking had indeed begun was undeniable.
【Please stop.】
I instantly looked ahead.
Fortunately, it was a notification from the traffic light. I took a light breath and stopped the vehicle.
They say to take the long way when in a hurry.
There seemed to be no need to run away by breaking traffic signals.
“…Where to go?”
I muttered briefly while thinking.
Honestly, the reason I contacted Tom was that I didn’t fully grasp the seriousness of the situation.
Had I known that Monolith would continue the tracking, I probably wouldn’t have even sought Tom. Now that I think about it, I should probably contact Tom too. I’ll do that later.
If it were up to me, I would want to drive around the city endlessly, but the thought of the surveillance cameras that Monolith personnel were looking into even now made that difficult.
What do I do?
I turned to the passenger seat.
“Eve, what should we do now?”
I sought Eve with the feeling of shouting ‘Nobita, help me.’
Eve was seated, clutching a ‘shopping bag’ in her arms.
Knowing its contents, I almost reacted, but I remained composed and feigned ignorance.
Eve calmly spoke.
“I’m fine anywhere as long as it’s where ‘Siwoon’ is.”
Her line resembled that of a heroine who seemed to have run away for love.
No, while I was grateful, that wasn’t the answer I was looking for.
I changed my question.
“…Where would be the most efficient hiding spot?”
Eve slowly looked at me.
At that moment, the light turned green. I pressed the accelerator.
The sound and vibrations of the old engine reached through the worn-out seat.
“How about a completely different city?”
“…That’s a bit much.”
After all, I didn’t have a passport right now.
For reference, in this world, a passport is required to leave one city for another. I was surprised when I first learned this because I didn’t know it from the game.
…
Thinking about it, Eve’s presence meant that the passport concern wasn’t significant. After all, hacking would handle it without issue.
“Hmm.”
I shook my head and continued speaking.
“I really don’t want to film a getaway movie.”
It would become real ‘fleeing’ rather than just ‘outing.’
And if that happened, the other housemates’ reactions could become even more serious.
I only planned to return in about a week.
There’s no need to worsen their concerns for no good reason by going to another city.
Besides, even if I went to another city, I wouldn’t be able to escape Monolith’s grasp anyway.
After all, Monolith, with close to a million employees, has branches in every city.
Eve fell silent at my response.
Following the same silence, I briefly thought.
Honestly, if I had no place to go, I was considering heading to Chinatown’s ‘New Sector.’ It’s a good place to hide if you ignore the poor security.
And then, Eve broke the silence and spoke.
“──What about __________?”
“Huh?”
I questioned my hearing.
If it weren’t for the fact that I was pressing the accelerator, I would have turned to look at Eve.
“Isn’t that a place—?”
As I spoke, I pondered.
…Hmm.
A place where tracking by Monolith would be difficult, where the facilities are good enough for me to roll around comfortably, and where someone who can likely permit my stay (probably) owns it.
“……”
…Could it be?
I’m not sure.
Still, it’s true that I have nowhere to go.
But I should probably contact them before heading there.
I manipulated the vision interface and thought.
—
[…So you intend to come here?]
“Yes. I will be staying for a few days.”
[…….]
In the hologram’s display.
The Vice President of Kojaka, ‘Kojaka William,’ placed his hand on his eyelids after hearing my words.
He certainly had a sophisticated middle-aged appearance.
But unlike the last time I saw him, he looked a few years older.
It seems he’s been having a tough time lately.
I should keep quiet until I need to go.
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