Ch.15Request Log #003 – For Gremory (2)

Gremory entered the house with the grace of a European noble girl and settled comfortably in the guest chair. Her ogre bodyguard followed, standing behind the sofa with his hands behind his back.

“Thank you for your hospitality. May I get straight to the point?”

I nodded briefly from behind my office desk. The two factory workers who had come here in suits were wide-eyed, like devotees who had just seen the God-President in person.

“Actually, I have only one request. I can resolve this through negotiation, so please don’t touch the union leader. If you try to kill my employee, I’ll try to kill you. Have you ever had your life threatened by an Archdemon?”

Her voice carried weight, but now she seemed a bit anxious. Even when facing an Archdemon, one must maintain control of the conversation. I extinguished my shortened cigarette and replied.

“No, I haven’t. And right now, I’m only receiving empty threats. An Archdemon who can’t even kill a union leader who’s shut down her factory surely can’t kill a stranger she’s just met.”

Gremory’s eyes wavered slightly. She made a short, pained sound as if asking whether I needed proof to believe her, then stood up. She gathered mana and suspended large water droplets around herself.

She spun those droplets sharply, making a sound like a hydraulic stone processor, but it still didn’t look like she truly intended to kill me.

Was this gamble worth it? If I could convince Gremory and secure work directly from an Archdemon, the potential payment would increase dramatically.

I stood up. I walked between the sharp water blades Gremory had created, then lifted my chin to expose my neck, as if daring her to act. Despite being able to slice me, the water blades retreated.

I felt I had gained control of the conversation. I stepped closer to her. After shaking someone, you need to strike. The method was the same whether dealing with thugs or Archdemons.

“Should an Archdemon act so feebly? I heard the union leader offended the pride of those veterans’ association patriots, and I thought you were going to use them to sweep away the strike. But you’re just clinging to negotiations that won’t work. Isn’t that right? This could all end with just one death.”

At the mention of ending with one death, Gremory’s eyes sharpened. This must be her sore spot. The water blades gathered around my neck, rotating as if ready to cut at the slightest movement, spraying water onto my cheeks.

“Do you think one person’s life is something to take lightly? It’s not.”

Having committed to this gamble from the start, I had no other options. With water blades at my throat, feeling like I was dancing with death, I spoke.

“Then, after the veterans’ association gathers everyone and prepares their guns, you’ll realize that many lives outweigh one life. One life weighs less than many.”

It was ironic that I was saying this. But Gremory wouldn’t know that. She retorted.

“Even one life is too heavy, and many lives are too heavy as well. You’re a villain.”

“We may not be able to weigh lives, but we can count them. And call me a contract worker rather than a villain. What I do depends entirely on the contract.”

It was true that I mostly did morally questionable work. People who wanted righteous deeds expected me to work for free out of inspiration for their noble ideals, but those who wanted their dirty work done paid.

“That’s unfortunate. I have no work for you. I’ll resolve the strike through negotiation. That’s my decision, and I won’t change my mind.”

I raised my hand and flicked my fingers a couple of times. The workers who had been sitting and watching Gremory stood up, and she spoke with displeasure.

“Don’t summon my employees like servants or butlers! Really, what an unpleasant human…”

People can’t see their loved ones objectively, but they can see those they dislike clearly. A cold, objective gaze was better than a warm, affectionate one.

As she finished speaking, the two factory workers began to talk. They looked like they were addressing royalty.

“M-Madam Gremory… We don’t want to say this, but the union leader won’t accept negotiations. When you sent negotiators last time, I saw him laughing, saying if you give in to this, he could extract even more. So even if you concede this time, he’ll keep wanting more…”

She seemed not to have considered this possibility, and her eyes wavered. She was kind but perhaps too kind for an Archdemon, so I needed to push a bit more.

“And, just as this detective said, the veterans’ association has started protesting in front of the factory… *sniff!* They seem about to deliver an ultimatum. People in the area know Madam Gremory’s character and are siding with the veterans’ association against the workers. *sniff!* Those people can’t distinguish between moderates and hardliners…”

Good. Now I shouldn’t call them thugs anymore. They had played their roles excellently. Gremory was visibly shaken.

With water blades still at my throat, I spoke. Though I was the one who couldn’t move, it was the Archdemon who was constrained.

“Can’t you be honest? You just don’t want to decide to kill someone yourself. So if you do nothing, you’ll end up making a worse choice. Either let your employees die, or kill the armed veterans’ association members yourself to stop them. Right now, you’d only indirectly cause one death, but then you’d have to directly kill many.”

An Archdemon certainly had such capability. Though she lacked the necessary ruthlessness to actually do it.

To be honest, ruthlessness was a useless trait. Bad things aren’t cool or good. If I had to choose between being friends with Gremory or myself, I’d choose Gremory.

But sometimes that unpleasant trait was necessary. Sometimes it was better to make a choice than to hesitate in goodness like Gremory.

“Choose. Will you make a choice that causes one death, or will you ignore the situation until you cause the deaths of several people you care about? Just make the choice and provide the money—you won’t have to lift a finger.”

Gremory deliberated but ultimately made her choice. Without such decisiveness, she couldn’t have become an Archdemon. The water ring around my neck disappeared.

“I’ll…”

She contorted her expression as if saying something terrible. A tear rolled down from her moist eyes, as if the very act of saying these words was distasteful to her.

“Hire you. Your job is to deal with the union leader. Kill him, but if there’s a way to resolve this while keeping him alive, do that. You don’t need to try hard to find a way to spare him, but I’ll pay extra if you do.”

An Archdemon already crying for a union leader who was about to die. I wish all employers were like this. She also seemed unlikely to kill me even if I betrayed her.

Gremory, who had been crying, raised her head and met my eyes. An instinctive chill ran up my spine. This was an aura I hadn’t felt when she was threatening me earlier.

“But I haven’t changed as a person. If you touch any employee other than the union leader, I won’t hesitate. If you want to know why this tearful woman is an Archdemon, feel free to find out.”

Though I had secured the demon’s permission, it was quite narrow. Her words were milder than her initial threat, but the absence of anxiety or wavering made them more threatening than a death threat.

At the same time, she seemed to have started seeing me as one of her employees. She was generous with her love, but if those she loved were smart, she could manage with such generosity.

“So, Michael. Tell me your plan. A detective who can persuade an Archdemon through semi-threats must be able to form a plan, right?”

Yes, if I’ve earned trust, I should work accordingly. First, I looked over the two workers. I thought they might have more information to offer.

“Did you two sneak out? Or did you leave with a stated purpose?”

“Well, of course we have brains, so we didn’t say we were going to hire someone for Madam Gremory—we snuck out secretly. But, you see…”

I immediately started thinking. I needed a name that could approach the union leader. And I needed an identity that would allow me to enter a factory on strike.

After thinking, something came to mind. There was a group that supported striking workers. I opened a drawer and pulled out a file labeled “Enemies of Entrepreneurs.” Gremory’s uncomfortable gaze fixed on the file.

“Wouldn’t it be better to call them ‘Allies of Workers’ rather than ‘Enemies of Entrepreneurs’? How could businesses run without workers?”

Ignoring her, I continued searching until I found a paper with a red logo. Right, the Industrial Workers of America. They had been supporting unions in numerous strikes until recently, helping them against employers.

As Gremory said, they were on the workers’ side. They even taught workers how to repel employers and hired help like me… workers trusted them like old friends.

I took out the paper and placed it on the table in front of Gremory’s sofa, making sure the two workers could see it.

“You didn’t come to find a private contractor—you came to call someone from the Industrial Workers of America. The union hasn’t fully assessed the situation yet, so they sent someone to report back.”

Gremory nodded briefly.

“And that’s you? You could gain the trust of the factory workers, but if that’s your purpose, you could only stay for a day at most. As you said, you’re just someone who needs to assess the situation and leave.”

“A day is enough. If I can figure out how the union leader persuaded The Idealists, I can negotiate with their Hive Mind. If we just deal with The Idealists, they’re just a handful, right?”

The kobold worker made a loud sniffing sound and nodded. The Idealists, once their strength, would no longer be on their side, and if their leader died, the rest would lose their will.

What if I couldn’t persuade The Idealists’ Hive Mind? At least if the union leader died, they would fall into confusion, and with the greedy union leader gone, Gremory might have room to negotiate.

“Even if I can’t persuade the Hive Mind, I will kill the union leader, Madam. They’ll fall into confusion, and then you can step in and resolve the situation. It’s a performance. Lower the union flag, raise the American flag again, and renegotiate without the union leader who broke off talks—both the veterans’ association and the workers will be satisfied.”

I returned to a polite tone. Since she had agreed to hire me, she was now my client. I show at least minimal courtesy to clients. Just the minimum, though.

If this were a strike by workers who would starve or die from illness without striking immediately, it would take bullets to suppress it. But this kind of strike would be easier to crush.

I had crushed unions that were united for righteous causes before, so there was no reason I couldn’t crush a strike barely held together by one ungrateful bastard’s greed and The Idealists who had no sense of self.

Gremory looked at me with displeasure and then nodded.

“You’re an expert in this kind of work, aren’t you?”

“As I said, I’m just a contract worker… and so-called evil entrepreneurs pay better than people like you.”

“I don’t like your attitude either.”

“I’m quite respectful to those who mention payment before I send an invoice. Of course, if you include attitude in the price…”

Gremory’s expression twisted as if she were cracking walnuts with her molars. Instead of looking at her face any longer, I got up and went into my private space behind the curtain. I needed to take my gun at least. And spare magazines.

I changed clothes, throwing off my shabby outfit and putting on a shirt without a tie and an overcoat. I also put on a clean but inexpensive hat. This would make me look more like a labor activist.

I picked up a travel bag instead of a briefcase. I packed things I would need during my stay in Pennsylvania and items to disguise myself as an Industrial Workers of America member for the day of infiltration.

I packed the God-President’s scripture, which I had been using effectively despite not having been to church in years, and also grabbed a book from the Industrial Workers of America, having skimmed only the important passages.

I carried that travel bag back to the office and set it down on the table. I delivered my prepared speech.

“Let’s go, comrades. We must hurry to help our brothers and sisters standing against the evil entrepreneur in Pennsylvania—we can’t sit on our behinds in New York like capitalist pigs.”

It had been a while since I had disguised myself as a good person. The two workers’ eyes lit up at my sudden change in appearance and demeanor, while Gremory continued to look at me with disgust.

She had a look that suggested she knew how many times I had used these clothes. Yes, it was an outfit I often wore when infiltrating unions. I searched through my drawer and pulled out a business card with a red American map logo.

Peter Weinberg—an alias. I had three other cards with different names, but all three had been used within the past two years, so this time I had to be Peter Weinberg.

“While we’re in Pennsylvania, I’ll be Peter Weinberg. I haven’t used this name in nearly two years, so there won’t be any suspicion.”

The two workers weren’t that familiar with my real name anyway. I placed a card in each of their hands and helped them up.

Gremory nodded with an incredulous expression as she watched me naturally use an alias.

“You’re someone I never want to get involved with again… but right now, I don’t think there’s anyone better than you. I’ll give you my card too—contact me if things don’t go well.”

She took out a card with impressive blue lettering like teardrops and handed it to me. Compared to mine, which was just printed on white paper, hers was on cream-colored paper and was very elegant.

I put it in my inner pocket rather than in my bag where it might be discovered. A pat-down search wouldn’t find it in the flat inner pocket of my suit.

Yes, I only feel truly alive when I’m working. I headed straight to the train station with the two factory workers who liked Gremory enough to seek me out.

The two workers wore expressions as if they were on some grand adventure, but since such expressions would be fitting for simple workers who had gone to New York and brought back help, I left them be.