episode_0106

“What reason could Ayakashi possibly have to summon me…”

While she certainly wasn’t engaged in anything ‘like that,’ Luna admitted that her current positioning could appear vulgar depending on one’s perspective. Regardless, a pot-bellied executor suddenly appeared at a truly perplexing moment. Luna, sitting with her legs crossed in the seat of a high-end Ayakashi aircraft that was swiftly flying over the upper city, shot him a displeased look.

A direct summons from Ayakashi.

Not to mention they had arbitrarily taken away her long-time friend and colleague that morning, so there was no way this would be viewed favorably. A summons from a megacorp, with its unclear and vast intentions, naturally instilled fear.

Yet, the fact that she couldn’t refuse to go was truly malicious.

However, a big shot like Luna from Eclipse Point could at least send a small, silent protest by showing her displeasure to the messenger.

“Haha. Don’t look at me with such passionate eyes! At my age, you’ll make me blush, won’t you?”

“Tch.”

She might appear to be merely a tanned beauty with a great figure in light clothing, but even the executor couldn’t adopt too high a posture in the face of the mercenary’s discomfort, for she was a legend who had weathered countless hardships.

Killing her was possible at any time, but as someone acting on orders, if she were to arrive at the company building and start rampaging, killing executives just because she didn’t like the reception, Dustin would be in a truly awkward situation.

With such lighthearted, nonsensical jokes, he activated the video display inside the aircraft.

“Surely, the master wouldn’t summon you without any business! Take a look at this.”

The hologram panel displayed Ayakashi and Rossmore executives presenting their stances in a seemingly amicable, demonstrative scene.

They announced that the series of incidents were due to a malfunction of Ayakashi’s military equipment, not a deliberate act of terror, and that Ayakashi extended full compensation and a sincere apology to Rossmore.

Rossmore, the unilateral victim, viewed Ayakashi’s heartfelt apology and response positively.

They spoke in a contrived manner, as if to announce to everyone that the deals had already been finalized behind the scenes.

Meanwhile, Kathleen was also present for the proceedings, and the conclusion was that Ayakashi and Rossmore would enter into a friendly agreement.

“Well… having overheard everything you and Kathleen-ssi were coordinating, listening to what I already know just hurts my ears.”

“You young people are so impatient!”

As if telling her to watch until the end, Dustin stroked his sizable belly and tapped, *tap tap*, on the window behind where the hologram was displayed.

“What more is there to see here… huh?”

Just then, a figure walked into the hall.

Black hair and black eyes. He had the typical appearance of an East Asian individual, yet his looks were too young, almost childlike, to be a corporate executive, and his aura was a mix of untamed fierceness and an underlying hint of naiveté.

For Luna, it was a familiar face.

“Dojun?!”

Wasn’t that Dojun, who had been dragged away by Ayakashi?

Luna couldn’t even guess why he had appeared in that hall, so she lifted herself off the seat entirely, as if that would help her see better, and pressed her face close to the hologram panel.

His usual comfortable jumper and sturdy cargo pants were nowhere to be seen; instead, he was dressed in a lavish, high-end suit appropriate for the occasion, confidently stepping onto the stage. This sight was incredibly awkward for Luna.

So much so that she mistook him for someone else who just looked similar.

And the next moment, Luna couldn’t close her mouth at the first sentence uttered by the man who resembled Dojun.

[“Allow me to introduce myself for the first time. I am Ayakashi Jun.”]

* * *

Ayakashi Corporation, EP Branch, top floor, Ryokan Sector.

This section, with its corridors and rooms deliberately laid out in a bizarre fashion to create optical illusions, maintained, contrary to its visual effects, a calming scent of old wood and warm, slightly humid air.

The artistic quality of the wooden corridors in this luxurious accommodation, meticulously maintained by loyal employees working in bodies with their higher cognitive functions removed, contained a beauty capable of inspiring awe in anyone stepping foot there for the first time.

Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.

Regardless, someone was swiftly traversing the corridor, paying it no mind.

Her healthy, light brown skin, and a long, flowing two-toned ponytail with blonde strands mixed within her black hair, swished with every step she took.

That beauty, exuding an aura like a beast of prey, headed towards the tatami room located in the westernmost part of the Ryokan Sector, as if she already knew her destination.

*Slide!*

Then, as if it didn’t matter who was inside, she forcefully slid open the paper-paneled sliding door.

Inside the room…

“Hmph~ Do you not know how to eat? Worry not. Here, *aah~* It is a special favor from this one herself feeding you, so do not be shy.”

“No… you took the chopsticks, so how am I supposed to eat…?”

Inside were the boy who, just moments ago, had been eloquently introducing himself as Ayakashi Jun on the hologram panel, and a red-eyed girl sitting so intimately close to him, arms linked, that there was no space between them, as she fed him.

A scene of overflowing affection.

The intruder, silent, looked down at the two with cool eyes. The two already present, realizing her presence, turned their gazes, and their eyes met in the air.

“…”

“…”

The woman and the boy continued their long silence, staring into each other’s eyes.

Of course, it was the boy who was unilaterally sweating profusely and fidgeting.

“Hey.”

“Yes.”

At the indifferent yet familiar address, the boy quickly knelt.

“Explain.”

“I will…”

* * *

“So… the true nature of the special serum that transformed you was something designed to artificially produce beings called Zashiki-warashi that Ayakashi was hiding, and the real identity of the little girl clinging to you is that very Zashiki-warashi and the true master of Ayakashi?”

After a long explanation, Luna, despite having successfully conveyed the situation, looked at me with a face that seemed to say, “What on earth am I listening to?”

Even with her staring so intently, all I could say was, “That’s how it is, so what do you want me to do about it?”

“Even if one calls me master, the true ruler is Nojaburo, that old man full of stubbornness, he is.”

To Luna, who was gaping, Hiko readily confessed that she was less of a figurehead CEO and more of a figurehead symbol, but that didn’t change much.

“I’m going crazy… I knew it was something extraordinary, but if it’s involved this deeply, it’ll be hard to get out.”

“Hmph. Regrettably, this one’s elder brother has taken the Ayakashi name. To flee now would be unthinkable.”

As Hiko, as if showing off, nestled deeper into his embrace, Luna’s eyes gleamed menacingly.

Facing Luna’s murderous aura, which felt as if she had brought a literal beast of prey into the room, Hiko slowly turned her head to meet her gaze, and the room’s temperature felt as if it had dropped by about three degrees.

‘Ah, it’s soft. Is it because the fabric is good?’

During the eye-to-eye battle between the two, who seemed capable of killing a person with just a glance, I desperately tried to escape by focusing on the softness I felt through the thin yukata. Then, Hiko, letting out an amused laugh, released her arms from around me.

“Heeheehee… how frightening.”

As if that was the sign of a truce, Luna, with a sullen face that showed her displeasure, sighed and quelled her murderous aura.

I, too, felt relieved that I no longer had to tremble in this deadly atmosphere and let out a sigh, only to be cursed at with her eyes. *Hmph.*

“So what’s the reason the true master of Ayakashi, someone of your caliber, summoned me too? It’s annoying, but… you said it was done, right? If that plan was thwarted as intended, it seems there’s no longer a need for my intervention.”

Luna’s gaze shifted slightly downwards.

It was because Hiko had, without a shred of shame, revealed every detail of the intimate affair she had shared with me.

While listening, Luna had fidgeted a bit, as if her sitting posture had become slightly uncomfortable.

Anyway, for Luna, who now understood that the plot for Nojaburo to become the true emperor of Ayakashi, having used the serum to become a Zashiki-warashi and elevate his authority even further, had fortunately been thwarted, this current meeting might feel like mere notification or deception.

“Nojaburo, that man is cunning. Though he failed to acquire legitimacy, he remains the chairman of Ayakashi and the one who wields the strongest power, he does.”

“Who in this world doesn’t know that…”

Despite the sarcastic reply, Hiko paid no mind and continued her explanation.

“This one’s elder brother has been introduced to the media as Ayakashi Jun, a member of the Ayakashi family. This was possible not only by this one’s influence but also because Nojaburo himself granted permission. That man possesses a nature that will use anything he holds, even a loss, to turn it into a profit.”

As her thin, slender fingers moved, the names of several corporations appeared in the air.

Each was either an information-related megacorp or a competitor of Ayakashi.

Dozens of prominent names scrolled up and aligned themselves.

“Ayakashi Jun. As someone who has never appeared in the financial, political, or legal worlds before, seemingly dropped from the sky, attention will undoubtedly converge upon him. People will seek to discover which faction within Ayakashi he belongs to, who his backer is, and what he has been doing, pouring vast credits, time, and manpower into these inquiries.”

To prepare, one must first know the enemy.

Even if not an enemy, for war, one must know whether that beside them is a sheep or a jackal.

“But what will they uncover, I ask? Tracing his identity will reveal he was a mercenary in the lower city, and suddenly, with no apparent connections, he was introduced into Ayakashi.”

Intelligence agencies will expend immense effort to find more accurate information, or to uncover any hidden information, until a halt order is issued from above.

Beyond his identity, how could they possibly find out which faction he is aligned with?

He truly has no backer, and even if Hiko were his backer, she is a hidden existence within Ayakashi, not part of the owner family.

Of course, financial losses might be tolerable for a megacorp, but as attention converges on me, won’t Nojaburo be doing something behind the scenes?

“This one despises the current Ayakashi, which is naught but a birdcage. However, as this one is merely a bird confined within that cage, she seeks those who can act as her hands and feet.”

“…I’d think that executor would be enough.”

“Certainly, Dustin, that child, fulfills his duties responsibly and admirably, but in the end, he is merely this one’s bodyguard. This one requires those with more freedom to act.”

In other words, it was a recruitment offer.

“Hold…”

“Establish a PMC (Private Military Company). I will provide all necessary funds.”

Before Luna could utter another word, at the ensuing proposal, Luna and I stared at each other dumbfoundedly.