Carisia was overlooking two elements.
First, Carisia’s speech was heavily influenced by Orthes.
When Lampades first met Carisia, he felt Orthes’s shadow emanating from her, a result of her unique way of speaking.
Even though she was speaking honorifically, there was an unshakable sense of pressure. It was a feeling only those who had experienced Orthes could relate to.
“Nice to meet you. I don’t think I need to reintroduce myself to Mr. Lampades, but it’s our first meeting, Mr. Knemon. I am Carisia, CEO of Hydra Corporation.”
Knemon desperately gestured at Lampades. It wasn’t an attempt at a silent conversation; they weren’t that close.
Using Lampades’s Biological Current Detection Magic, he could read surface consciousness through brain neurons. The eyes are the organs most closely connected to the brain, making them ideal for stealing a glance into one’s thoughts.
An expression urging to read thoughts as quickly as possible.
‘What the hell is that guy’s relationship with Orthes?’
As soon as he used magic, Knemon’s confused emotions were vividly transmitted.
Lampades pondered for a moment on what to say, then simply shook his head.
‘I don’t know either….’
Carisia shook her head excitedly as she watched the two men tense like defendants awaiting a verdict.
‘Orthes said he had three friends.’
She hoped at least one of them could genuinely be a friend. Wishing for a smidgen of luck for her unfortunate subordinate, Carisia turned the page with a flap.
Two sheets of paper rose gracefully into the air, guided by magic, and landed softly in front of Knemon and Lampades.
“Due to concerns about hacking Ether Space, I will be briefing you in a somewhat classical manner. I hope you understand.”
Slowly, and solemnly, the explanation began.
*
“I believe everyone is aware that Etna City is currently in a state akin to war.”
The three mage towers dividing Etna City. Hydra Corporation, with its astonishing control, almost brought Geryon’s faction to the brink of collapse, but suddenly, Kaicle’s mage tower allied with Geryon, causing complications in business.
…On the surface, it appeared so. In reality, all the mage towers in Etna City were already under Hydra’s control, and the fights happening were merely demolition work for swift redevelopment of the city.
Maintaining a state of war was to minimize the Ten Towers’ interest. A mage tower that couldn’t even capture the supremacy of a single city had no reason to draw attention in the magical society.
Carisia didn’t reveal these intimate details. She thought it unnecessary.
“I understand if you find it strange. If Orthes were here, it would be a simple matter to slaughter a tower master in this city,” she said.
This was Lampades’s suspicion. The Orthes he knew might one night suddenly declare, ‘Hahaha. It was a waste to keep them alive, so I took their heads,’ while bringing the tower master’s corpse along.
“Actually, that is somewhat true.”
“Somewhat?”
“I could remove Geryon immediately, but Kaicle is the problem. He has only made supportive statements toward Geryon, but we don’t know where he is hiding.”
Carisia aimed to pacify that suspicion through Kaicle’s disappearance.
While he sometimes entered Hydra Corporation to study collected relics (a matter permitted for creating the Artificial Ten Commandments) or abruptly came to the president’s office to howl for more budget (he was too scared to ask the head of the Divine Investigation Office directly), Lampades was unaware that Kaicle had become Hydra’s lackey. He wouldn’t sense anything odd.
“So, our company aims to adopt a somewhat aggressive expansion strategy.”
Kaicle had gathered artifacts through various channels as samples for the creation of the Artificial Ten Commandments. Originally, this seemed like a somewhat suspicious preference, but in the current scenario where the Ten Towers threatened massive artifact scrutiny, it was different.
“Perhaps this could be described as a tactic to draw Kaicle out. I’ve heard Mr. Knemon has a hobby of gathering weaknesses on the mage towers.”
Neither Knemon nor Lampades was dull in political awareness. Lampades navigated through the checks coming in since the mage tower’s inception, while Knemon acquired skills through the education received as the successor of the mage tower.
Slowly, Knemon opened his mouth.
“Then, CEO Carisia, are you saying you intend to accuse Kaicle of artifact concealment?”
Despite stepping back from the frontline, Knemon still had ears and eyes. He was aware of the rumors that a terrorist organization opposing the Ten Towers had allied with followers of superstition. Thus, it was only natural for him to grasp that the Ten Towers were increasingly sensitive to the relics known as artifacts from the old cult.
“Indeed. If Kaicle responds to the Ten Towers’ summons, we can find him, and even if he doesn’t, the mage tower will likely be dismantled by the Ten Towers. However, I didn’t invite Mr. Knemon solely for Kaicle.”
“Not just Kaicle?”
Knemon felt a strange passion bubble up alongside his fear. Having fled, overwhelmed by Orthes’s madness, he once had dreams of overthrowing the magical society.
In his view, now was the perfect time to reclaim the world; while Argyrion faced off against the Ten Towers, he could consolidate power amidst the everyone’s indifference.
“To be precise, Orthes indeed wanted to call you to deal with Kaicle. The idea from here on out is mine.”
It was Carisia’s consideration. Orthes had seemed hesitant to spout words about screwing over other mage towers in front of Lampades.
So, if Carisia took the ‘screwing over other mage towers’ part as her own idea and indicated to Knemon that her reason for seeking him was simply to find a way to dispose of a business rival, then it wouldn’t diminish her reputation among friends.
‘But first, I wonder if I even have a reputation left.’
Orthes.
Knemon internally repeated the name four times.
At the moment that name hit his ears, he felt the excitement fade away like waking from a dream. What replaced the passion was nothing but dark fear.
His desire to overturn the magical society meant the end of the Ten Towers system. It was about toppling the social structure of the mage towers with a powerful, extra-dimensional force and starting anew atop the equal ruins.
But surely Orthes sought total annihilation, leaving not even ruins behind.
…It was certain that Carisia, who served Orthes, was no different.
“Yes. Other mage towers. It would be very troublesome for those towers that likely possessed significant relics if the Ten Towers were to find out. We intend to build a ‘harmonious cooperative relationship’ using those artifacts they’ve secretly hidden.”
‘The need for other mage towers means… you plan to blackmail them into revealing their visions using the relics.’
This was far too ordinary and trivial for Orthes’s plan. There was no way such a simple scheme would be enhanced by Orthes and his loyal CEO. Another possibility flickered through Knemon’s mind.
‘Subjugate the mage towers… get the Mage Tower Cores?’
The truth that the greater the magical power contained, the greater the explosion was a timeless truth across all ages.
If multiple mage towers could outline a continent-sized magic circle to control them, and the accumulated magic power could solely concentrate on an explosion, it would undoubtedly become the flame of annihilation sweeping over the surface.
‘But is there an artifact capable of controlling and accommodating such scale of magic?’
If such a thing did exist, it would indeed be the Ten Commandments─
‘Orthes and Carisia are envisioning a grand scheme. I can’t think normally about this. It must be a plan that requires the Ten Commandments, and they won’t give up trying to obtain it.’
In the midst of chaos, the name Hydra Corporation beneath the guise of subjugated mage towers. The authority of the fallen Ten Towers.
‘…Succession War?’
It had been the traditional structure for multiple mage towers to unite against one Ten Tower.
‘They plan to take the Ten Towers’ seat and use the Ten Commandments to trigger a chain explosion to obliterate civilization!’
A chill of horror rolled down Knemon’s spine. To ascend to the pinnacle of the magical society and destroy it! That was precisely the kind of thought Orthes might have.
A long silence enveloped the room. Ultimately, the choice lay with Knemon himself. Cold sweat trickled down his forehead.
It was not a new world opening beneath a burned world; total destruction leaving not even ashes behind was not the future Knemon had desired.
“Excuse me, but—”
Suddenly, the door swung open.
“CEO Carisia. I’d like to ask you—”
A figure stood at least twice the height of a typical human, with an enchanted prosthetic eye where the right eye should have been.
It was Kaicle, who had been missing.
“…Oh, my. I didn’t expect a guest at this hour. I will come back later.”
Kaicle bent deeply and quickly exited the room. An extreme display of courtesy towards Carisia. Knemon was thrown into confusion. Did she not just say she was looking for Kaicle to deal with him?
Then the thought struck him.
Orthes was outside the door.
Orthes was the one who let Kaicle in.
Kaicle’s entrance coincided perfectly with the moment he was supposed to express his ‘rejection.’ It was far too coincidental to be just happenstance.
Everything was unfolding as intended.
It was a formality to inform him that ‘even if you don’t cooperate, the plan is already in progress.’
Knemon cast a sidelong glance at Lampades. Lampades wore a face full of questions, whether he didn’t recognize Kaicle or simply didn’t understand what was happening.
“…I accept your proposal.”
If destruction was already assured no matter how much he floundered, he would rather face it head-on. Knemon resolved himself.
Carisia pondered how to manage this unexpected emergency, then decided to take a somewhat brazen approach.
How could she be certain that the person who just came and went was Kaicle? If she insisted they were simply a Hydran employee who looked similar, who would know?
Even if they figured out it was Kaicle, there would be no way to prove it.
If Carisia claimed that the person who passed through just now wasn’t Kaicle, there wouldn’t be anything they could do but accept.
And here, the second element Carisia had overlooked came to light.
“That was truly a wise choice. Lastly, one more thing.”
She thought herself less suspicious than Orthes.
“I apologize for my employee’s mistake. I suppose my guest’s arrival during a meeting caught him off guard.”
“An employee…?”
Knemon muttered.
“Yes, just a mere employee.”
In truth, Carisia was sometimes even more suspicious than Orthes.
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