Ch.14Request Log #003 – For Gremory (1)

I sometimes dream of the Argonne Forest. Not often. Like water leaking through the patched seams of a tank, these thoughts trickle out even when I try not to think about them.

The time spent waiting for the whistle in the trenches, magic shells raining down mixed with regular artillery at a ratio of five to one, the monstrosities summoned by Saxon warlock-soldiers using prisoners as sacrifices… and that baptism.

We crossed too many lines to simply say we were all desperate. That’s all there is to it. I pretend to be calm, take a deep breath, and grab my wrist to stop my hand from trembling spasmodically.

I didn’t gasp for air or choke. Five years is enough time for a person to adapt.

Now it only happened occasionally, on nights when I didn’t drink myself to sleep or stay up all night. I was planning to fill my stomach with something and stay up until morning… but the cupboard was empty. I must have forgotten to restock.

Cigarette smoke won’t fill my stomach, but I take a pack from the desk drawer that’s full of them and put one in my mouth.

Using mana when my head is cluttered would be a good way to singe my bangs, so I light it with a match instead.

Until morning, only cigarette smoke filled the apartment. At 7 AM, I opened the windows to let in somewhat fresh air before the grocery store opened, then left the apartment.

I was the only one visiting the grocery store when it opened. The old ogre who owned the place waved at me warmly.

“Our regular customer is here again today. What are you looking for? The vegetables delivered at dawn look quite good. Oh, no smoking inside the store. I can’t sell vegetables that smell like cigarettes to customers.”

Ogres were always particular about ingredients. I crushed out my cigarette in the ashtray he offered and entered the store.

“You know I always buy the same things, don’t you?”

I grabbed canned goods piled in the corner of the store. I rarely ate at home anyway.

After loading up on tomato soup and beef soup, which I ate most often, I wanted to grab some chocolate too… but the chocolate shelf was empty. To be precise, only Gremory Chocolate Company products were missing.

Gremory chocolate was my favorite thing after alcohol, cigarettes, and coffee. It wasn’t that expensive but tasted good.

I approached the ogre at the counter and pointed to the empty shelf visible from there. Judging by his twitching eyebrow, it wasn’t that he had forgotten to restock.

“You didn’t restock the chocolate? I don’t think there’s ever been a day when it wasn’t available.”

The ogre clicked his tongue as if displeased.

“You mean Gremory? I like it too, so I order directly from the factory, but there’s a strike at their factory down in Pennsylvania, so they’re not delivering. Damn union bastards…”

Huh, a strike at Gremory Chocolate. What an absurd combination of words. What more could they want from a company that provides houses, hospitals, and even schools for factory workers?

I shook my head in disgust and placed the canned goods on the counter. Without chocolate, there was nothing else I needed to buy.

“Gremory isn’t the type of company to bring in strikebreakers either. I heard the owner hates that… Anyway, just ring these up please.”

While putting the canned goods in a yellow paper bag, the ogre complained.

“That’s the problem. Being one of the great demons but being so soft… Oh, and did you hear? Those union guys took down the American flag and put up their union flag, and now the veterans’ association is in an uproar.”

Is this why Gremory didn’t send in strikebreakers? She doesn’t need to dirty her hands if angry veterans will storm in with guns and beat up the strikers themselves.

If she anticipated this, then Gremory is quite an impressive demon. She can reclaim her factory without taking any responsibility. A great demon isn’t called great for nothing.

I paid for the canned goods and returned to my apartment. Taking the creaky elevator back home… there were two men in shabby suits standing in front of my door. One was a kobold, the other a dwarf.

“Sniff! What if this isn’t the right place? We’d lose quite a bit of money… Sniff! Is no one home? Since he wears a suit, he must be an executive, right?”

“Um, maybe? Honestly, we’ve never seen the higher-ups while working. We only occasionally saw Madam Gremory.”

They’re not even giving me time for breakfast. Neither of their suits fit well. The dwarf’s suit was too big, making his shoulders float, while the kobold’s was too small, looking like a straitjacket.

I approached them from behind. They looked stupid, but since they were visitors, I didn’t need to draw my gun, so I left my jacket unfastened.

“I’m Detective Michael Husband. You seem to be here to hire a detective, is that right?”

They seemed somewhat relieved seeing me with the yellow paper bag. By the way, from what they were saying, am I considered inexpensive? Maybe I should raise my rates.

They awkwardly tried to look haughty and nodded. Even being generous, they were both factory workers. Their suits were mismatched, as if borrowed from different people, with jackets and pants of slightly different colors.

“Yes indeed, we’re Willy and Bartholomew from Gremory Company. This is important business, so could we talk inside?”

I’ve never heard that corporate executives talk like people from the Civil War era. And a proper executive would have said William, not Willy.

Still, the name Gremory Company intrigued me. Workers from a company currently struggling with strike issues. Considering the owner, they probably weren’t asking me to fight strikebreakers.

More important than their business was whether they could afford my daily rate of $20 plus expenses, but I decided to let them into my office. I unlocked the door and entered.

I sat at my desk, which was simply placed in front of a few filing cabinets, separated from my living space by a curtain. With these types, pretending to know things usually works well.

Though I had just heard about it at the grocery store, I started talking as if I’d known about it for a long time, embellishing the details.

“If it’s about Gremory Company, I know quite a bit. There’s a major strike at the factory in Pennsylvania, and the union took down the American flag and put up their union flag, nearly causing a clash with the veterans’ association. I hear the owner doesn’t like suppressing strikes with hired muscle. What can I do for you?”

The two men’s eyes began to shine. Detectives in real life and radio dramas were quite different, but sometimes pretending to be like those drama detectives helped.

“You know a lot! That’s why we came to you. Right now, the factory is divided into factions. There are moderates who are already satisfied with company policies and want to end the strike, and hardliners who want to squeeze every penny they can from Madam Gremory. We need you to, ahem, take care of the hardliner leader. Understand? Then the strike will naturally end.”

They seemed to think they were using some kind of code, but their expression was childish and ridiculous. “Take care of.” Based on what I’d heard so far, these two were probably moderates.

I was about to start pressing them when I heard a car parking in the apartment lot. But the engine didn’t stop. Wondering if these idiots had brought someone tailing them, I looked down briefly.

The parking lot of this apartment barely had enough space for residents’ cars. So this must be an outside vehicle… and quite a luxury car at that. No way a hardline union member would drive such an expensive car.

I decided to focus back on my would-be clients.

“From what you’re saying, you seem to be company executives, but how do you know so much about the internal situation at the factory? Did you plant a rat or something?”

At my question about planting a spy, they exchanged glances as if they hadn’t thought of that, struggling to come up with an answer. When a strike begins, company officials are usually the first to be kicked out.

“Well, that is… Yes! A rat… We planted one. He’s doing a good job.”

They seemed to barely remember what “rat” meant, but this wavering was the perfect time to apply pressure. I rose from my desk, took out my gun, and placed it on the table.

“Or maybe you’re factory workers pretending to be company officials. Which is it? Did you think you could fool me by wearing ill-fitting suits and talking like people from the Civil War era?”

Threats worked best in these situations. First, shatter their confidence that their disguise is working by showing confusion, then push hard by showing the gun, and they’ll spill everything in their panic.

These two were no different. They raised their hands in surrender and started talking.

“I told you it wouldn’t work, Tolly! Sniff! Please, please put the gun away first. Sniff, please, please…”

“It’s not because your suit doesn’t fit! We’ll explain everything, so please put the gun away…”

I put the gun away as they asked, letting them feel relieved. Emotional ups and downs disturb the mind, and when the mind is disturbed, information spills out.

The dwarf seemed to be leading this operation, as he took off his old hat and fidgeted with the brim before speaking. His short beard suggested he was a young dwarf.

“Yes, we are workers from the factory on strike. But we desperately want to end the strike now. Really. The hardliners are… a bit strange. Actually, Gremory Company is quite a good place to work. How many companies send factory workers’ children to private schools and provide hospital care when they’re sick?”

Now his speech was more natural. I put a cigarette in my mouth and gathered mana at my fingertips to light it. One puff of smoke cleared my head.

“But a few months ago, some workers who said they came from another factory joined us, and the atmosphere changed. They started agitating, saying that if Madam Gremory is giving us this much, she must have plenty more money to spare. They said we should demand that remaining money for the workers.”

“And an entire factory went on strike because of that kind of agitation? I can only say that’s stupid.”

I actually didn’t know how big the factory was. But it didn’t hurt to pretend I knew. Since there was no objection, the factory must not be small.

“No, no. Most workers were already satisfied. But somehow that guy managed to gather all the Idealists who were working at the factory and expanded his influence. Most are Idealists, and there are only a few real hardliners, so if we just take out the leader, it will all be over. Probably.”

The Idealists were communists. But worse than ordinary communists.

They believed that private ownership of self was as unjust as private ownership of means of production, and had merged their selves into a Hive Mind created by magic. It was more ridiculous than principled to see them chanting about equality for all people while losing their sense of self and following the commands of the Hive Mind.

Anyway, since they were like that, if one could persuade the Hive Mind, it would be easy to control each individual. That somewhat explained why the strike was going so badly.

For now, it did seem like taking out the leader might solve the problem as these two suggested, but an important issue remained. The company belonged to Madam Gremory, not these two.

“Did you get permission from higher up? Or did you come all this way just out of loyalty to Madam Gremory?”

“If we resolve the strike at our level, Madam Gremory will be pleased! She loves her factory workers, so if we can deal with just one person and save everyone else…”

I’d heard the company had a good reputation among workers, but I didn’t know they had such loyal employees. A disturbing possibility occurred to me.

What if Madam Gremory wasn’t just waiting for the strike to be suppressed on its own? What if she was being indecisive because she truly couldn’t send in strikebreakers? I needed to check.

“Has the company sent a negotiation team? I mean, suits with conditions.”

“Oh, yes! They came. But that bastard union leader rejected the negotiations even though they agreed to all his absurd demands. He seems to want to demand more, which is why we’re here!”

This is maddening. Madam Gremory actually believed she could resolve this through negotiation. If that was the case, taking this job might get me in trouble with that demon.

“I could do it, but I won’t. Either come back with permission from higher up, or take me to Gremory Company’s New York branch and get permission in front of me.”

It was an implicit rejection, but they still had hope in their eyes. Before I could explicitly refuse, they each grabbed one of my hands.

“Let’s go to Gremory Company’s New York branch! If workers take action directly, Madam Gremory will surely give permission!”

As they pulled me toward the door, something was blocking it.

It was an ogre. But unlike the typically stout ogres, this one’s body was all rock-solid muscle.

He wore an expensive, custom-tailored suit and had his hands behind his back as if he had no intention to fight. What was he doing here? There was one way to find out.

Though he didn’t seem to be here to cause harm, I sent my two clients behind me and put my hand inside my jacket. The ogre immediately reached out to stop me from drawing my gun, which I blocked by grabbing his wrist.

A normal human could have shaken off an ogre with brute force, but instead of trying to lower his hand, he immediately tried to remove my grip with his other hand. His reactions were quick.

It was an opportunity I couldn’t miss. While his two hands were focused on my right hand reaching for my jacket, I drew my gun and aimed it at his head.

“Who sent you? The two behind me are nobodies, but you’re not. Your reactions are quick, and you’re pretty smart. Aren’t you?”

“If you didn’t realize I’m a half-breed, then you’re the nobody, kid. I’ve embarrassed myself in front of Madam…”

“Have you ever seen a half-ogre this small? Gremory seems to treat her people well. Making two factory workers and a bodyguard come find me on their own.”

The ogre must have been the one trying to park in the lot. As I was thinking about letting him in, the ogre bodyguard smirked as if I had made a wrong assumption and stepped aside.

Damn, I had to put the gun away. A great demon was standing behind that bodyguard, and I didn’t want to do something as stupid as pointing a gun at a great demon.

It was Madam Gremory. Though called “madam,” her face looked like that of a beautiful young woman in her early twenties. With flowing red hair, a black velvet suit accented with gold thread, and a white lace choker, the demon walked forward as the ogre stepped aside. She placed her hand slowly over her chest and bowed her head.

Gremory was a demon that resembled humans. No horns, no red skin. Her eyes always seemed moist with sadness, giving a fragile impression, but she was definitely not fragile. A great demon is a great demon.

“I am the great demon Gremory, president of Gremory Chocolate Company. Thank you for putting away your gun. As you’ve probably heard from these two… could we go inside and talk a bit more?”

But this demon was too nice. If I refused here, she would say she’d come back another time and leave. So it was better for my safety to let her in.

“Please come in.”

I could feel things getting complicated. Seeing a great demon at 7:30 in the morning. And at this rate, I’d have to work for a great demon.