Ch.5151. Kathy Elijha

After everything was over, Amon’s party headed to the surface with their companions.

Along the way, they encountered mercenaries who couldn’t hide their greed upon seeing Amon’s party, but they backed off when Kathy, who was still somewhat functional, directed her murderous gaze at them.

A day had passed since then.

“Right! The equipment!”

That was the first thing Amon said upon waking up.

His companions, who had been waiting for him to wake up, gave bitter smiles.

He was certainly a devout person, but looking at this, it seemed he wasn’t without material desires. He was truly hard to figure out.

“We’ve gathered all the equipment.”

Fortunately, the reliable positive mage had collected the security team’s gear.

They couldn’t use it right away since they needed to remove company IDs and modify some security features, but in about two weeks, the party would be able to handle it.

“We’ll be able to upgrade our equipment this time.”

The corners of the buffalo tanker’s mouth turned upward.

[How are we any different from scavengers?]

The mute sniper’s cynical comment made everyone in the room wear peculiar expressions.

If taking equipment from dead people made them no different from scavengers, there wasn’t much they could say in defense, but if they had to justify it, this was self-defense.

If they really had to put a label on it… compensation for damages?

Sensing the awkward atmosphere, the sniper raised both hands to smooth things over.

[Just saying. Relax.]

Only then did the atmosphere return to normal.

Afterward, the party chatted about various things in the hospital room.

Among them were apologies directed at Amon.

“We didn’t trust you. We’re sorry.”

Amon accepted their apologies.

“People can act that way when pushed to extremes.”

“That’s it?”

“What else should there be?”

“Something like ‘don’t do it again’ or something?”

“It’s fine. I’m not asking you to bow down to me.”

Trust is built this way in the first place.

Trust that has been shaken a few times and then strengthened is more solid than trust that has never wavered.

After Amon’s words, the party didn’t ask for forgiveness anymore.

“Right. As an honorable ogre, I’ll show it through my actions.”

Including Vox, they all promised that such a thing wouldn’t happen again, and they would prove it through their actions.

The reflection meeting ended there.

“Now, let’s set aside the feedback on this battle. The question is how to cook the Seanrai Group.”

As if he’d been waiting, the positive mage briefly summarized the information about the Seanrai Group.

Seanrai Group.

A military and magic engraving company that started in Japan.

Currently, their headquarters had moved to California, and they were a large corporation.

“Weren’t they a megacorp?”

In response to Kathy’s question, the positive mage kindly answered.

“They were expected to become a megacorp after absorbing the Howling Darkness’s technology, but they couldn’t digest it properly.”

What’s the point of absorbing technology?

They had neither the infrastructure, personnel, nor ability to utilize it.

According to the positive mage’s investigation, the Seanrai Group, which had been a mid-sized company, experienced rapid growth about a year after the formation of <Howling Darkness>.

But their growth didn’t reach the level of a megacorp.

The executives weren’t competent enough to become a megacorp, and their severely rigid internal system led to poor sales performance.

They showed no interest in nurturing talent, made strange reinvestments, and got stuck at the threshold when they should have been growing significantly.

Above all, they lacked ambition and had a narrow vision.

Why are megacorps megacorps? Because they have absolute power that can replace governments.

Of course, some government projects generate deficits, but many megacorps willingly accept those losses.

Because that’s what makes their power irreplaceable.

But the Seanrai Group’s vision was too narrow.

As soon as they became a large corporation, the executives were satisfied with their position and refused to take any losses, yet they continued with wasteful operations.

“Honestly, they’ve come this far because the megacorp-level companies that form the core of Howling Darkness are too overwhelming.”

Therefore, public opinion about the Seanrai Group was ambiguous.

Quite large for a big company, but not quite at the megacorp level.

“They have money but no power.”

They were quite an ambiguous company.

End of briefing.

The party immediately began strategizing under Amon’s lead.

“Who do we hand the evidence over to?”

Amon’s party wasn’t arrogant.

Although they had managed to repel the enemy this time by leveraging strategy and terrain advantages, they didn’t think this was the full extent of Seanrai’s power.

If Amon’s party was truly confident in their victory, they wouldn’t have taken a convoluted route to the hospital or bribed the hospital director.

The police were obviously out of the question.

They needed to choose a large corporation that could thoroughly crush Seanrai.

The positive mage, as if he’d been waiting, presented a list of candidates.

“Here’s a list of companies that find Seanrai irritating.”

Numerous magic engraving and military-related companies. Seanrai’s competitors.

If they could find companies of sufficient caliber from this list, they might be able to crush Seanrai to the point of no recovery.

Therefore, the party’s focus wasn’t on who would confront Seanrai.

Instead, they concentrated on which company would bring the most benefit to the party.

In the midst of this, Kathy once again offered an opinion.

“Have you thought about what we’ll do if Seanrai goes berserk during the trial and tries to kill us?”

“Oh, right.”

A cornered rat will do anything.

Especially if the rat is big enough, it might not be able to kill the cat, but it can certainly kill the traitor who guided the cat.

They could request a witness protection program, but in this wretched world, there was no way such a program would work properly for a party without any backing.

The party let out a sigh.

No matter how they looked at it, the party wasn’t strong enough to withstand Seanrai’s desperate struggle.

“What about hiding in a dungeon?”

[They’d take our families hostage.]

“Damn.”

The tanker’s suggestion was shot down by the sniper.

Setting aside whether hiding in a dungeon was a good idea, since everyone had at least one or two family members at home, it wasn’t a meaningful method.

The ogre came up with a new suggestion.

“What if we ask a large corporation to protect us and our families?”

“That would just put us on a leash.”

“Aren’t you being too pessimistic?”

“Vox, do you trust megacorps?”

“…Tch.”

He couldn’t refute the positive mage’s pessimistic outlook.

Honestly, trusting corporations was problematic given their average moral character.

Even Amon, who had experienced all sorts of political maneuvering in games, couldn’t think of a good solution.

He usually made sure his character had enough power to have at least minimal choices before getting entangled in corporate politics.

In a situation like this, where they objectively lacked power, there wasn’t much they could do.

When no one in the party could come up with a suitable solution, Kathy cautiously raised her hand.

“I do have… one method.”

All eyes in the party turned to Kathy.

Under everyone’s gaze, Kathy gave a bitter smile and began to speak.

*

A few days later.

After Amon’s party had completed their treatment.

The party members moved to execute Kathy’s plan.

In the downtown area filled with large corporations, they unhesitatingly sought out one company.

<Requetio Corporation>

Their main businesses were investment, stocks, real estate, security, protection, and some PMC operations.

It was a megacorp with a lineage that was incomparable to the Higgjen Group that Amon had previously dealt with.

While not a direct competitor to the Seanrai Group, it was a company that would welcome the opportunity to consume Seanrai, and it was a megacorp with sufficient caliber to digest the technologies that Amon’s party was selling.

Amon confidently headed toward the lobby.

Having already dealt with one megacorp, he had no reason to feel intimidated.

Following him, Kathy looked slightly awkward, while the rest of the party members tried to hide their nervousness by filling their chests with bravado as they entered the lobby.

Kathy, the architect of this plan, spoke to the reception desk as the representative.

“We’re the Amon Mercenary Group. We should have an appointment.”

Amon’s gaze pierced the back of Kathy’s head, wondering when such a name had been established, but she paid no attention.

After confirming the appointment at the reception desk, they boarded an elevator with a security guard.

The elevator continued to ascend.

Initially, they assumed that given the nature of their business, it would be discussed on a high floor.

‘Maybe as high as a senior executive or vice president.’

Indeed, the button for the 90th floor was pressed.

As the elevator approached the 90th floor, Amon’s party prepared to exit.

However, just before they could get off, the security guard accompanying them stopped them.

“You’re not getting off here.”

“?”

After saying that, the guard held the door open button, and someone from the corridor approached the elevator.

It was a dapper middle-aged man with “Executive Director” prominently displayed on his chest.

The man bowed slightly to Amon’s party and nodded to the security guard.

The guard nodded back and pressed the button for the floor just below the top floor.

They were surprised once when the executive director of a megacorp politely greeted them, and surprised again when the elevator headed for the top floor.

While they were still processing this, the elevator arrived at its destination.

The doors opened, revealing a split path.

To the left was the secretary’s office, to the right was the chairman’s office.

As they watched in disbelief, they were guided to the right, not by the security guard but by the executive director.

“This way, ladies and gentlemen.”

Speaking in polite English.

Bewildered by the situation, they headed toward the chairman’s office, with Kathy leading the party.

There were many questions they wanted to ask Kathy, but for now, they proceeded to the chairman’s office to continue the negotiation.

The door opened, and a young man greeted them.

However, none of the party members were fooled by his youthful appearance.

[Chairman Frey Requetio]

People might not memorize the personal details of every megacorp chairman, but they do know their characteristics.

One of them is anti-aging treatment.

While it’s impossible to completely stop aging, with enough money, a mind that won’t deteriorate, and some connections with the Vatican for miracles of mystic power, living for hundreds of years wasn’t just a dream.

Whether Frey was middle-aged or elderly.

It was clear that his face didn’t reflect his age.

“Welcome. Let’s talk over some tea.”

Whether it was the intimidation from his position or the overwhelming presence from his years of experience.

Amon’s party obediently took their seats.

The chairman casually continued the negotiation.

The peculiar thing was that it was Kathy, not Amon, who was leading the negotiation.

Some terms were exchanged that Amon’s party couldn’t understand.

Only an implicit agreement seemed to pass between them through their gazes.

‘From now on, Kathy will handle all the party’s financial matters.’

As if anticipating that the party members might not understand, she handed Amon a memo summarizing the negotiation contents.

The content was roughly as follows:

—————–

– The company will provide 1% of the profits generated from the technologies brought by Amon’s party.

– All profits from short-selling Seanrai Group before the upcoming trial will belong to the company.

– In return, the company will bear all costs for providing security for Amon’s party and their families during the trial period.

– Technologies acquired from the acquisition of Seanrai Group will belong to Requetio Corporation.

– In return, the rights fee will be provided in the form of Requetio Corporation stocks.

—————–

After reading the entire content, Amon asked Torso, the buffalo tanker sitting next to him.

“What’s short-selling?”

“You’re asking me? I guess it’s something good?”

“Then is getting paid in stocks a good thing?”

“I don’t know.”

As people who had never dabbled in stocks, they weren’t sure.

Amon, not understanding that investment companies make huge profits from lawsuits and short-selling, or that paying whistleblowers in stocks is a way to launder money, had no idea what was going on.

Amon just sipped his coffee and passed the time.

But he wasn’t anxious.

‘My parents were right. It’s good to have someone who knows the law nearby.’

He just had a vague trust in Kathy.

And so, the negotiation ended with Kathy’s one-man show.

Kathy, who had somehow become the party’s representative, shook hands with the chairman.

Amon, who had been able to enjoy a genuinely delicious coffee after a long time, reluctantly gulped down the last sip.

At that moment, he heard something from the chairman that he couldn’t ignore.

“Anyway, I wonder who you take after to be so cold-hearted. Even though I said you could live outside until I retire, aren’t you taking your party’s side too much? It’s not like I’m digging the ground for business.”

“I am Kathy Julia. And I know you’re making a profit from this, so stop exaggerating.”

“Yes, Ms. Kathy Julia. Just like a Requetio.”

“Let’s stop this.”

No one in the room was foolish enough not to understand the situation after hearing that conversation.

Getting a free pass to meet with a megacorp,

The executive director being unusually polite,

Her unexpected expertise in money matters,

The Requetio chairman calling her Requetio.

There was only one answer.

“*cough*”

‘Damn, it came out through my nose.’

Kathy Julia Requetio.

She was a high-society lady.