Part 1, Chapter 10, 14

In the end, just like before, no conclusion was reached.

The Azure Syndicate was significantly divided between the Sky Garden and the Underground Kingdom, and I suddenly found myself in a position where I absolutely had to create one of them.

“Neither can be done without a Hydra.”

“Then go catch a Hydra! What are you doing here?!”

It was my job to find executives and awaken them as Spirits, but I was unintentionally being pressured by my subordinates.

In the end, I had no choice but to consult someone about this problem.

Issues concerning land and real estate required the expert opinion of a specialist, and coincidentally, I knew a money-hungry ghost who would jump out of bed even in their sleep if it involved making money.

“What kind of foolish idea is this?”

Perhaps because I woke them up just as they were about to fall asleep, their expression was quite displeased.

I knew how little Eun Yuha slept each day, so I didn’t want to disturb their deep sleep, but the meeting had dragged on for too long and only ended at dawn.

“Sky Garden? Underground Kingdom?”

“Yes. It’s possible, but it’s absurd-“

“Let’s do it right away. Do you have any land picked out?”

“…Eun Yuha?”

Eun Yuha’s eyes, which had been half-closed from sleepiness, sparkled brightly.

“Bring them all. Those things called Spirits. While you’re at it, the light-attribute ones first. Let’s build a new city, whether underground or in the sky. How could you have such a charming idea? Customer-nim, the city’s name will naturally be Yuha City, right?”

“…….”

“Customer-nim. Instead of this, how about we take a tour around Seoul right now? We’ll circle Seoul and find the easiest place to build.”

“N-now?”

“Then if not now, when?!”

Eun Yuha, on the contrary, snapped at me.

“Is sleep important right now?! We’re about to break ground on Yuha City!”

“…….”

This was the first time I’d seen this side of Eun Yuha. Did they really want to create a city named after themselves that much? Come to think of it, they had subtly shown a tendency to want to leave their name behind even in omake.

“Eun Yuha.”

“What?”

“Someone cut the name of Cheonghwa University, yet someone else thinks it’s appropriate to name a city Yuha City?”

“Hmph, Customer-nim.”

Eun Yuha tossed their hair back, revealing confidence.

“……How much should I slip you without Cheon Gaeul knowing?”

“I don’t take bribes.”

“Tsk.”

Eun Yuha even tried to tempt me with a bribe. But it wasn’t yet the stage to buy and sell the name of a city that hadn’t even been built.

“This was something we only discussed today. It’s not too late to think about it step by step from now on.”

“Customer-nim. What’s the point of procrastinating? Come on, let’s go quickly.”

Eun Yuha stood up and spread their arms towards me. Their luxurious golden silk pajamas unfurled.

“Now?”

“Of course.”

“It’s 3 AM?”

“If you woke someone up at 3 AM and set their heart on fire, shouldn’t you take responsibility?”

I wondered if I had woken them up for nothing. But looking at their golden eyes sparkling in the darkness, I couldn’t possibly refuse their request.

“Alright. Then I’ll call the Black Flame Dragon and-“

“Can’t Customer-nim just carry me directly?”

“……?”

I didn’t understand for a moment. Eun Yuha pointed to themselves with a bold expression.

“Customer-nim can just carry me and fly to Seoul directly, why call the Black Flame Dragon? Are you going to make sirens wail in New Seoul from dawn?”

“That’s not it. …Is there no other way?”

I approached Eun Yuha and picked them up. Eun Yuha naturally wrapped their arms around my neck and dangled their legs.

“Then let’s go. I’ve always wanted to try this.”

“Who told you about this?”

“Cheon Gaeul.”

“…….”

Why did Cheon Gaeul spread such strange things? Still, I hugged Eun Yuha tightly and opened the balcony door. The night air was cold, but I used mana to block it.

“Eun Yuha.”

“Yes?”

“Do you have any other requests?”

“Hmm…”

Eun Yuha gently tickled my nape with their fingers wrapped around my neck, smiling with their eyes.

“When we go to Seoul, in human form, and when we return to New Seoul, in monstrous human form.”

“…Understood.”

I spread my wings as I was and soared into the sky. Eun Yuha, startled, clung tightly to my body.

“It’s surprising that you’re trying to make physical contact like this with your main body.”

“This is all a bribe. It’s a stepping stone to create Yuha City. How about it?”

Eun Yuha subtly lifted their pajamas, tempting me. Their uncharacteristic physical assault made my head spin.

“Did you eat something wrong?”

“No. I just changed my mindset. No matter how much I think about it, 0.0625% ownership isn’t enough for me.”

Perhaps shocked that they were merely 1/16 of 1% of 100, Eun Yuha boldly made physical contact, trying to tempt me.

“Pfft.”

“Why are you laughing?”

“No. It’s just that.”

I gently pulled Eun Yuha closer to my body. Eun Yuha’s side chest and my chest pressed together, blurring their form.

“What’s the point of appealing with that when this body is so much bigger?”

“T-there are people in the world who have a demand for small things!”

Eun Yuha jumped up and down in front of my chest, stung by the jab at their complex. Perhaps because it was dawn, or perhaps they had truly changed their mind, Eun Yuha was revealing their true feelings much more than before.

“Cute.”

“Huh?”

“……No, it’s nothing.”

“It’s not nothing. You said ‘cute,’ right? Was that about me, or about my chest? If it’s the former, I’d be very grateful, but if it’s the latter, I think I might get a little angry, you know?”

“……Think what you want.”

It seemed Eun Yuha wasn’t the only one whose sensibility was heightened by the dawn. I hugged Eun Yuha even tighter and circled the Seoul sky.

“Customer-nim, Customer-nim. Then I’ll return the favor.”

Perhaps because it was night.

Eun Yuha’s eyes were sparkling with starlight.

“You know I truly love Customer-nim, right?”

“……What do you mean?”

“Think what you want! Hmph. …Yawn.”

After saying that, Eun Yuha yawned sleepily in my arms. I suddenly felt sorry for Eun Yuha.

“I’m sorry for calling you so late. You should be resting, with your ability disconnected.”

“How could I keep sleeping when Customer-nim came directly? Yawn.”

Eun Yuha blinked their sleepy eyes.

“I can sleep later. Later.”

“Doesn’t your connection with the other dolls get cut off when you sleep?”

“I can just make all seven of them take a nap, you know. If it takes a while until morning… *yawn*, I can just let them all oversleep. They’re all autonomous dolls anyway, so they’ll live according to their input commands for about half a day, so it’s fine.”

Eun Yuha pointed to their nape. The Calculation Auxiliary Device they always wore to assist their Doll Master ability had long since been left on the bedside table in New Seoul.

So, this was the only time Eun Yuha rested as ‘complete Eun Yuha.’ Even knowing that, I deliberately came to Eun Yuha to ask for their opinion.

“…Sleep until we get to Seoul.”

“……You just had to come during my sleeping time… *sigh*…”

Eun Yuha slowly closed their eyes in my arms. Since they were a woman who slept less than two hours a day for the operation of Yuseong, talking with me was practically overexerting themselves.

“……Love, huh.”

I was uncertain about what Eun Yuha meant by saying that to me, but regrettably, I couldn’t reciprocate that love.

The major shareholder was greedy and wouldn’t hand over even a single share.

“I’m sorry, and thank you.”

Hoping that Eun Yuha, asleep in my arms, would sleep comfortably, I flew through the dawn sky with slow, comfortable movements.

Stars were twinkling in the sky.

* * *

June 28th, 10 AM, Yeouido Azure Syndicate Hideout Lounge.

“I heard the story well. You’re debating whether to do the Sky Garden or the Underground Kingdom.”

Eun Yuha, having woken up, stood before the Azure Syndicate executives with a perfectly clear mind.

For them, who had low blood pressure, I washed their hair as I used to, and Eun Yuha, with a clearer mind than ever, threw out the topic.

“Yes. For your reference, the opinions of each executive are…”

Sky Faction. Beacon, Haneulseong, Black Flame Dragon.

Ground Faction. Phantom, Gungseong, Architect.

Incheon Kkakdugi Faction, Deokbae.

“Why am I like this?”

“You said it didn’t matter where, didn’t you?”

“Who knew Deokbae’s vote would be the casting vote. *Groan*.”

For now, the executives respected the principle of majority rule.

So, whenever opinions were divided 3:3 like this, Deokbae was always the problem, but he had no interest in anything other than messing with me, so he always cast an invalid vote.

“But I don’t want to persuade him.”

“Rather than that, it’s better to just tell the Commander-nim.”

“There’s one misunderstanding.”

I pointed to myself and declared to them.

“I have 17 votes.”

“Isn’t that a dictatorship?”

“It’s Phoenix-style democracy. What’s wrong with it? I created this organization.”

Everyone below Phoenix is equal. In the Azure Syndicate, I was both the sun and a god-like being.

“That’s what you’re thinking, right? You’re living completely full of yourself. When you’re alone, you’ll just mess things up again anyway.”

“……I will not permit a gray-area individual who doesn’t state their opinion to speak. Shut your mouth, Deokbae.”

“Mmph mmph mmph!!”

I transformed Deokbae, who was throwing a tantrum, into a Core and threw him onto the sofa, then sought the opinion of our external consultant, Eun Yuha.

“So, Eun Yuha, what’s your opinion as the Azure Syndicate’s sponsor and largest investor?”

“It’s simple.”

Eun Yuha clapped their hands and smiled brightly.

“Why don’t we just make both?”

“…….”

It was a clear answer, but the executives’ expressions still didn’t brighten.

“Is that possible?”

“What are you thinking?”

“It’s simple. We just utilize the existing infrastructure as is.”

Eun Yuha asked for my permission, then took out a map of Seoul from their magic gear and unfolded it as a hologram. The executives eyed the magic gear covetously, but it was still something only I could use.

“The symbolism of the region, and the existing infrastructure already in place. If I summarize all of that simply, my opinion is this:”

Eun Yuha fiddled with the 3D map in the hologram with their hand and revealed their opinion. The executives couldn’t help but be amazed and astonished by the constantly changing appearance of Seoul.

“Wow. Awesome.”

“This… is a little appealing.”

The executives assessed Eun Yuha’s plan from their respective perspectives and added their opinions, and Eun Yuha accepted their suggestions, adding flesh to their framework.

“Commander, is this possible? A sky waterfall.”

“We can leave it to Seok Harang.”

“Boss, what about this? Installing solar power instead of night-glowing pearls?”

“I can do it.”

I took on the role of materializing their imagination from a Spirit’s perspective.

“If we do this, won’t we run out of money…?”

“I’ll make it even if I have to use my own private funds. You’ll help, won’t you, Haneulseong? Architect?”

“Of course.”

“If we don’t do it when the table’s set like this, we’d be idiots.”

Human imagination was boundless, and the three of them began to construct the city, actively exchanging ideas.

About 30 minutes.

Even if temporarily, we had built the framework of a city that would become a new base.

“Customer-nim.”

“Yes.”

“I did well, didn’t I?”

“Of course.”

“Then one of them will be Yuha City, right?”

“……Do as you please.”

“Hehe, Kyaaaaaak!! Success!”

Eun Yuha was jumping up and down with joy more than ever. The executives found Eun Yuha’s changed demeanor quite awkward, but I had already noticed why Eun Yuha had changed like that.

“……That’s the true form of the Doll Master.”

While I was bringing Eun Yuha from New Seoul, Eun Yuha had already taken off the headgear that controlled the dolls and came up to Seoul.

“So, the appearance you usually saw was 1/7 of Eun Yuha. …Since there are 7 dolls, is it 1/8? Anyway. Eun Yuha as the general manager who controls all personalities.”

“Then now?”

“100%. Complete Eun Yuha.”

“Customer-nim. If you talk like that, I get a little embarrassed, you know?”

Eun Yuha crossed their arms and tilted their head up. Having taken the name Yuha City, they were now overflowing with confidence.

“Will you please call me Perfect Eun Yuha?”

“……This won’t do. Quickly divide your consciousness before you get more embarrassed. Especially that…”

I spoke indirectly about what I couldn’t bring myself to say.

“…At least transfer the hooligan inside you to a doll right now.”

“…….”

Yuseongga’s complete hooligan, Eun Yuha.

I had first seen Eun Yuha’s various aspects such as Negotiator, Black Market Chairman, and Yuseong Group Chairman, but originally, the order was reversed.

“What are you talking about? A hooligan? Wasn’t that an act?”

“…….”

Eun Yuha fell silent at Cheon Gaeul’s interrogation. Perhaps because I knew the truth, Eun Yuha was subtly glancing at me.

“That’s not an act, it’s their true nature-“

“Customer-nim!!!”

I got scolded by the superior.

With the help of Perfect Hooligan Eun Yuha, the Azure Syndicate decided to faithfully carry out their respective roles for the Utopia Project.

My assigned role was to find talents and materials to realize human fantasies into reality.

July 1st.

I left Seoul to recruit new Spirits.

…A day early.