The mayor of Neon City, Alexander Harding, quickly moved as soon as he grasped the situation.
First, he contacted a reliable intermediary. Since this person operated outside the city, the chances of getting caught were lower.
“Yeah. That’s right. About what we discussed last time. Yeah. Information on Neo Japan’s citizenship and witness protection. Um, tell them we’ll discuss other details when we arrive in that city.”
While on the call, he hastily gathered his organized documents.
Mayor Harding stuffed all kinds of materials into a security case.
“I’ll be taking a personal airship from here, so let’s meet over the Pacific. I’ll send you the coordinates. A yacht or anything works. Yeah.”
After ending the call, Mayor Harding let out a sigh.
Beyond the glass wall he gazed at, the city’s night view shone dazzlingly. Harding stared blankly at his reflection in the lights.
The once proud mustache he maintained had long since disappeared.
Now, stray hairs poked out here and there, and its luster had faded away.
‘…No time for this.’
His body jolted up as he firmly pressed the security case shut.
Time was running out.
Mayor Harding wheeled the security case toward the elevator.
‘Anyway, my political career ends here.’
He objectively assessed the situation.
He would have controlled the information if it were a minor issue, but there was no way to hide the fact that a ‘giant dragon’ had appeared beyond the barriers.
NCB24, illegal pirate broadcasting, even net space.
The news was even making rounds in cities from other regions.
‘An underground laboratory, a dragon… Everything will be revealed in an instant.’
It wouldn’t take long for the truth of his involvement in all those incidents to come to light.
‘…The Monolith got involved.’
Of course.
Mayor Harding anxiously tapped his foot, waiting for the elevator’s numbers to climb rapidly.
Of course, there was no guarantee that fleeing to Neo Japan would guarantee safety.
‘…But I have to try.’
If he changed his identity, altered his appearance, and even modified his personality, it wouldn’t be impossible.
It was fortunate that he had canceled all his schedules and was hidden away in a safe house.
Having failed to bury the wizard underground, the only option left for Mayor Harding was to escape.
Soon, the elevator doors opened.
Mayor Harding rushed toward the idling personal airship.
The flight path had long since been set.
Once he boarded and took off─.
“Ah, you’ve arrived.”
However, there was already a passenger on board.
Mayor Harding exhaled a low breath upon seeing the guest.
“…Justin Borg?”
“Executive Secretary.”
Mayor Harding couldn’t hide his surprise.
According to reports, he should still be at the ‘power plant.’
In reality, Justin Borg seemed to have hastily arrived from the power plant, donning a dusty ammunition belt over his suit.
Justin Borg casually sipped from a whiskey glass and spoke.
“Are you going to just stand there? Do sit down.”
He gestured kindly while moving the rifle he had leaned against the adjacent seat to the side.
‘……’
A cold sweat trickled down Mayor Harding’s neck.
He cautiously sat in the seat next to Justin Borg.
The airship slowly took off.
Mayor Harding fidgeted as he glanced at Justin Borg.
Justin Borg began speaking in a low tone.
“Originally, the chairman was supposed to come in person, but honestly, you’re not quite up to that level, Mayor. So, I came to see you instead.”
Within his intelligent gaze, a fierce energy flickered.
Just a moment earlier, Justin Borg had been fighting inside the power plant and laboratory, and he rubbed his tired neck.
“You’ve crossed the line this time.”
“…Executive Secretary. I think there’s some misunderstanding.”
At that, Justin Borg slowly closed his eyes and nodded.
Mayor Harding, encouraged by his action, was about to spit out a premeditated excuse.
However, after hearing Justin Borg’s next words, he fell silent again.
“Anyway, this moment is likely your last chance to talk, so feel free to speak your mind.”
Mayor Harding flapped his mouth like a goldfish.
In response to that, Justin Borg added a few words.
“Oh, I don’t mean to suggest your life is in danger. That would be too neat a resolution.”
Justin Borg mumbled that and turned his head toward the airship window. The dark night view of Neon City sprawled out below.
Upon hearing those words, Mayor Harding’s complexion turned as pale as a sheet of paper.
If he stayed like this, it would be the end.
Just as Mayor Harding’s gaze fell upon the rifle Justin Borg had set aside, a Monolith employee sitting silently beside him covered his mouth.
“…Mmph!”
And a sharp sensation shot through his neck.
Mayor Harding felt his control over his body slowly slipping away.
Justin Borg, who had been enjoying the view outside, turned his head back to Harding.
A cruel smile lingered at the corners of his mouth.
“I don’t like spoilers. But you can expect something. Whatever you think, it will be ‘beyond your imagination.’”
Veins bulged in Mayor Harding’s eyes upon hearing those words.
Now, he couldn’t even open his mouth. His body could feel sensations, but it wouldn’t move a muscle.
Watching him, Justin Borg murmured in a very relaxed voice.
“Have a pleasant journey.”
Side EP. Clean-up (1)
An old contact from the Security Department, Mr. Gable, continued to chuckle tiredly from across my hologram screen.
[Hehe…]
“…Haha.”
[Hahaha….]
“…Hahaha.”
I tried to imitate his laughter jokingly, but the look in his eyes was far from there. He seemed to be out of his mind.
(Not even someone with squinty eyes could lack signs of clarity.)
If this kept up, he looked like he might laugh forever, so I said,
“So, that’s what you mean?”
I briefly summarized what I had heard during the call.
“The city mayor and the head of the Security Department are missing. Some agents have suddenly gone MIA, and there are discussions about restructuring the department, yet Mr. Gable, you’re on vacation?”
[Accurate.]
Mr. Gable responded with a manic gleam in his eyes.
[By the way, since I joined the Security Department, this is the first time a vacation has been granted from the higher-ups.]
…Hmm.
“How many years have you worked there?”
[I did quit once in the middle, but I’ve maintained around 17 years of service up to now.]
…No way, the Security Department.
Wasn’t it a total black company?
Technically, it’s a bit tricky to call it a ‘company’ since it’s not civil-operated, but still, the fact that this is the first vacation was quite shocking.
According to Mr. Gable, “the winds of change” were blowing throughout the Security Department.
Since the chairman said he’d handle it, it was somewhat expected.
Mr. Gable scratched his eyes while leaning closely to the hologram screen.
[Honestly, I’m still having a hard time adjusting.]
“Well, if you’ve got a vacation, just take it easy. What’s there to adjust to?”
[…Hehehe.]
However, as Mr. Gable spoke, I noticed the thick bandages wrapped around his fingertips.
It looked difficult to even play the bowling he said was his hobby with that.
“How did you get hurt?”
[Ah, this?]
Mr. Gable opened his hands.
All his fingers were thickly wrapped in bandages.
Did he have some constraint or contract limiting his fingers like in some cartoon?
However, Mr. Gable’s story was something I hadn’t expected at all.
[It’s from the mental counseling I received last time.]
“…Ah.”
Mental counseling.
The city mayor had described it as ‘brainwashing.’
“…Are you okay?”
[Of course. A few nails got pulled out, I watched some videos, skipped some sleep, was forced to drink water, and that’s about it. I had a good rest.]
“…?”
[……?]
Are we even speaking the same language right now?
How could that possibly be okay?
Yet, Mr. Gable’s expression was surprisingly fresh.
Seeing that, I couldn’t even ask again if he was fine.
“…If you say you’re okay, that’s all that matters.”
I felt a slight dip in my SAN points.
After that, I can’t quite recall what else we talked about.
After finishing up with a “Um, okay,” I ended the call with Mr. Gable.
…….
Isn’t this the craziest guy in the Security Department?
I thought to myself.
Anyway,
We had regained our peaceful daily life.
We’d heard the news from the Security Department and checked on Mr. Gable’s (not-so-normal) condition.
Now, it felt like I could just play the game.
Thinking back, I realized I had been going out a bit too much lately.
Subway sewage, party venues, city power plants.
For the next week, I definitely wouldn’t step outside…
“……”
“……”
Until I made eye contact with the ‘two women’ peeking from around the corner, I thought this.
They were Julia and Maya.
Among the housemates, they were the relatively smaller ones. Their line of sight was considerably low.
Waiting for the call to end, Julia and Maya were exchanging glances as they were deciding the right moment to approach me.
As soon as our eyes met, Maya took the lead and stepped forward.
As I’d seen during our last meal time, Maya often took care of Julia more than the other way around. In reality, Julia was older than Maya.
Maya called me in a soft voice.
“…Are you done with the call?”
Hmm.
I sensed an ominous energy.
In this very moment, my sixth sense screamed at me to run away. However, ignoring their cuteness was not an easy task.
I bent down slightly to look at Maya.
“What’s up? Is there something going on?”
Just as I instinctively reached out my hand toward Maya’s head, her voice halted my actions.
“We need to finish the date we couldn’t have last time…”
…Date?
With my question, Maya and Julia continued while holding hands tightly.
“…Yeah. We couldn’t be together because we were taking care of the kids above ground, right?”
“…An underground date.”
Ah.
I think I understood what they meant.
But is it really appropriate to call going down to the lab a ‘date’?
I asked Maya, trying not to show my unease.
“…Does it have to be today?”
I tried to step back little by little, unnoticed.
At that moment,
Maya dived toward me, hugging my chest with both legs while grabbing my shoulders. By the way, Julia clung to my legs.
I desperately fought to keep from falling over.
If not for the Muscle Enhancement Magic, I would have definitely toppled over. Using it too often could lead to muscle soreness.
Maya looked down at me and stuck her tongue out playfully.
“Yes! Today is a must, a must, a must!”
…It’s good that her personality has brightened.
Also, the frequent skinship was becoming a headache.
I closed my eyes tightly.
Even at this moment, there were countless guild members from the Warrior Craftsman Union waiting for me.
– ‘Warriors are superior to thieves…! From now on, I’ll be taking the dealer spot!’
– ‘Guild Master… I’m not tanking well these days, could I take that new shield? I rolled a 1 on a D100 die, but as Guild Master, can’t you let that slide?’
– ‘I should have just raised a wizard or an archer…, um, Guild Master. When did you get here? What were you talking about? Of course, I was saying warriors are the best. Haha.’
…….
I felt like I could toss it all aside.
Anyway,
I had already decided to play the game today.
I looked at the two and opened my mouth to suggest we go out another time.
“Let’s just go out next time─.”
“What? You still haven’t prepared?”
It was then I heard Andrea’s voice.
Squinting her eyes, Andrea walked briskly towards us. I could feel the ‘thud’, ‘thud’ sounds echoing in my head.
With that, she nonchalantly grabbed Maya and Julia, who were clinging to me like cicadas.
“…Ack!”
“……Ah.”
The two were caught in Andrea’s grip and dangled in the air.
They looked just like a cat caught stealing fish.
At that moment, Andrea turned to me.
Her beautiful smile brightened the room.
However, having known Andrea for more than a day or two, I recognized it.
It was a smile reminiscent of a mask seen in a public setting. There were visible veins on her forehead.
“You’re going to prepare for the outing, right?”
“Yes.”
I desperately nodded.
Now that I think of it, the one who wanted to be with me underground wasn’t just two, but three.
