“……You’re telling me that’s the Chairman?”
Did she hear what I called her?
Hei Lu, the Tactical Organization Officer of Heishukai, asked cautiously.
“…Excuse me, but may I ask your name?”
It was different from when she asked for my name earlier.
Her tone was exceptionally careful.
The Chairman responded the same way.
“That’s not the important part right now; I just want you to tell me what business you have with my companion.”
He continued speaking with his arms crossed.
His sharp golden eyes shot at Hei Lu like a dagger.
“…It’s internal matters of Heishukai, so if you have no relation, you should leave—”
“Why would I be unrelated when it’s about my company’s employee?”
Of course, it was true that I was actually unrelated.
I wasn’t really an employee of Monolith.
But still, it was correct that I borrowed that identity to attend the party.
So, the Chairman wasn’t totally wrong.
I quietly observed the conversation between the two.
Honestly, I wished I had some popcorn.
As our conversation dragged on, people around us started gathering their gazes.
Did Hei Lu notice this fact too?
After a brief pause, he gradually raised his voice.
“You said you’re from the same company, but there are two of you. As far as I know, this party is fundamentally a one-person entry per corporation, you know.”
Hei Lu let out a scoff with a blank expression. His smile remained unchanged.
“Enough with the lies. It seems like you’re a relatively new company with low corporate ranking… Don’t act like a frog in a well.”
Then, suddenly.
As his words finished, the lights in the banquet hall dimmed ominously.
It wasn’t completely dark, just one level lower in brightness.
A spotlight shone from the ceiling.
A man, dressed in a stylish suit, appeared.
“First of all, I want to thank everyone for attending the ‘Quantum Nexus’ party.”
His amplified voice echoed through the banquet hall.
“I’m the entrepreneur and entertainer, Rex Nova, in charge of the opening this time. Believe it or not, I’m also the CCO of Resurrection Corporation.”
Laughter followed his joking remark.
It seemed I had seen him more on entertainment shows than on the news.
So, this kind of person comes here too.
“But! This time, I have some shocking news to share!”
He continued with exaggerated gestures.
“Upon hearing that news, I thought it wouldn’t be appropriate for me to keep thanking everyone. So, I asked that person for their understanding and requested to take my opening greetings!”
At that moment.
The spotlight shone on us.
Specifically, the spot where the Chairman was standing.
“I can hardly believe it myself! It’s the Chairman of Black Monolith Corporation, Taylor Blackstar!!”
Could it be just my feeling?
Maybe it was because of the bright spotlight.
Hei Lu’s complexion looked as white as a sheet. His smile had frozen and couldn’t move.
The Chairman also appeared pale, but it felt different.
Her skin was remarkably clean without a speck of dust.
The spotlight’s owner, the Chairman, grabbed the microphone.
“So, what’s it?”
With that voice, Hei Lu couldn’t respond.
—
The next moment, it looked like Hei Lu vanished as if fleeing. The sweat flowing like he was submerged was quite impressive.
[“Hei Lu,” I’ve saved in the database, I express.]
……
For some reason, scary Eve was a secondary issue.
Anyway, I didn’t find Hei Lu’s action hard to understand.
If the person he was fighting was the chairman of a famous conglomerate.
……Ugh.
It was a situation I didn’t even want to imagine.
The Chairman didn’t drag out her greeting.
“No need to go lengthy with greetings, right? Let’s all just have a good time.”
Even though it was informal at a public event.
It seemed no one cared about that part.
The Chairman handed the microphone to a waiter.
Naturally, applause erupted from all directions.
“…‘The Emperor’ is here? That’s impossible. This was a place for Monolith subsidiary presidents to attend.”
“…I don’t recognize that face; is it really her? I can’t be that forgetful about Monolith’s Chairman.”
“It must be a newly crafted body; why are you asking so much? Is it a feminine form? After all, she was born a woman. It’s really impressive that she’s reached the chairman position.”
There were murmurs along those lines too.
“……”
I thought slowly.
The Chairman’s appearance.
Even though I did defeat those members of the Chinese mafia thanks to her assistance.
To be honest.
It wasn’t necessarily a good thing for me.
The Chairman walked towards me.
At the same time, all eyes in the banquet hall fell on me.
It was inevitable that their discussion topic shifted from the Chairman to ‘me.’
“…Is she an employee you came with? If it’s Monolith’s Chairman, it is possible, but I’ve never seen that face before.”
“Hmm, if the Chairman brought her here, then we’ll have to do some checking.”
No, everyone.
I’m not an employee or anything.
I’m just a person who deceived my profession to be here.
I wanted to shout that out loud.
I also wanted to pull out the mask I had hidden away.
……For now.
I slowly moved towards a corner of the banquet hall.
I tried to ignore the Chairman who followed behind.
Okay.
Since we got this far, no one should be able to eavesdrop on our conversation.
The Chairman asked me.
“Did you wait long?”
“…No.”
I replied reflexively.
“I didn’t wait too long.”
I just didn’t expect the Chairman to come.
I swallowed the part I wanted to add afterward.
“…You said you were busy; how did you make it?”
“Hehe, it’s not like I’m too busy to come.”
……
Well, that could be possible.
I decided to ask my curious question first.
“Um, Chairman.”
“Yeah?”
“Your body seems a bit small.”
I expressed that indirectly.
While some parts were quite large.
“Ah, this? It’s a new body we just cultured.”
She lifted her black dress slightly.
“I took it out a bit earlier than planned, so it’s not fully grown yet, but there’s no major issue.”
I thought it would have been better if she came in her usual middle-aged male body.
But since the Chairman said so, I couldn’t argue.
Get a grip.
The person in front of me is the chairman of a mega-corp that boasts the top corporate ranking.
I took a short deep breath.
The Chairman asked me again.
“Did you find that guy, Smile John?”
“…Not yet.”
There’s a limit to wandering around alone.
Especially my disguise limits had reached their peak.
“I do have some voice data analysis of Smile John.”
“Oh.”
“So, it’s not impossible, but no likely candidates have appeared yet.”
The Chairman switched from arms crossed to arms folded.
Naturally, her chest popped up.
“Good, that means I can help with that.”
“…If you do that, I’d be grateful.”
I awkwardly nodded.
“Then I’ll start talking, so you just stick behind and stand there.”
If she offered to do that, I was definitely thankful.
If the Chairman of Monolith were to approach and talk, no one here would ignore her.
“Alright, let’s go.”
“Yep.”
We moved toward the center of the banquet hall.
“Oh, have you tried the food here?”
“Yes, it was delicious.”
“Hehe, I saw last time during our meal that you really seem to like this kind of food. Let’s sit and have lunch together sometime.”
“Hahaha, sure.”
I answered without much thought.
The Korean-style greeting popped into my mind.
“Let’s have a meal next time.”
That was probably the intent, right?
Well, anyway.
Smile John.
I should be able to find him soon.
I thought that as I followed the Chairman’s lead as she walked slowly.
—
There was none.
“…I feel like I’ve checked everything slowly, but no one was here?”
“…No.”
There really wasn’t anyone.
Did the InfoSeller7 lie to me?
I thought that until there really was no one.
The highest probability of identifying him was 9%.
It was too far-fetched to suspect him as Smile John with such a low probability.
At that moment.
A noisy murmur came from one side of the banquet hall.
“Unbelievable! Following the Monolith Chairman, we have another guest!”
Along with the soothing classical music, a loud voice intruded.
“The Vice Chairman of Kojaka Corporation! It is Mr. Kojaka William!!”
They handed the microphone to a middle-aged man.
“Hello everyone, it’s great to see you all. It’s truly an honor to meet you at this gathering.”
He was indeed a famous person.
So famous that I could compare him to the Chairman beside me.
Especially someone who appears frequently in the news.
That was peak when my stocks crashed.
I was standing there blankly when Eve’s voice rang out.
[Probability of Smile John, 61%.]
“Huh?”
……
I hoped it wouldn’t be true.
He was the Vice Chairman, which meant he was practically the Chairman of Kojaka.
He was the worst-case scenario for me.
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