Having dangled the fact that their family could be waiting for them on a ship outside, our evacuation from Aurora Corporation’s base ended in no time.
Our part wasn’t that hard with our capabilities. It was the space battle that Strand’s group had to endure that was challenging. Their two ships didn’t come out of it unscathed. I saw numerous hastily patched-up holes throughout the hull, with some parts like the external turrets completely destroyed.
I had to admit their battle was great reference material for when I resumed designing our company’s starships. It helped shore up an area I previously had zero experience in. In order to learn more, I didn’t hesitate to head to the bridge as soon as we returned to Strand’s ship.
“It seems your team succeeded. Not bad,” the middle-aged leader muttered as soon as she saw me walk in.
“Your team as well. I’m not an expert in space warfare or anything, but defeating a fleet with twice your numbers has to be an achievement.”
“Hmph, we had several things working out for us. Their ships were old, and they were caught off guard. If they had been a battle-hardened fleet, we wouldn’t have gotten away with so few casualties.”
“Well, you’ve got the battle-hardened fleet now. Interested in working for my company?”
She looked me straight in the eye with a frosty expression. She held the gaze for a few moments before shaking her head.
“No. We’ve got only one goal in mind. Once we’ve accomplished it, I’ll retire from this life. I want to peacefully spend my remaining days not involved in any of this bullshit.”
“How’s it looking in that regard, then? You guys got an ID on the people we rescued yet?”
This time, she nodded and responded right away.
“Yes, we haven’t identified all of them yet, but we found many of them to be related to my people. Though a significant portion of our families are still missing though.”
“That could mean—they might’ve already—”
“No need to tell me. We already resolved ourselves to that possibility.”
I listened to the usually stoic leader vent about the battle some more while the rest of the crew busied themselves with getting us out of here.
Even if she rejected my invitation to join my corporation, their group was still worth befriending. Like with our previous plan, we could get them to spread positive news about us to attract more potential recruits. I also wanted to obtain their combat logs for further study.
However, I had to wait for the right moment to ask for sensitive data like that. It wasn’t an easy subject to broach, nor was it appropriate during the festive moments of our victory.
After finishing my chat with Strand, I made my way over to the cargo bay, where a makeshift medical center had been set up to treat the people we rescued. I strolled around while observing the situation.
There were small pockets of family reunions there while others were mourning, likely having been told about their family member’s passing. The mood was mixed, so everyone kept their volume to a minimum.
Just as I was wondering how I should get a conversation started to spread a positive impression of my company, the sounds of children giggling caught my attention. I turned to find a large man squatting down while chatting merrily with two kids. I instantly recognized that man to be Thorne.
“And that’s how I ended up getting the groceries back.”
“You were so silly, Mr. Thorne. Did you really do that?” the young boy asked.
“Of course! I wouldn’t dare lie to the boss man, Teo.”
“Heh, I still don’t believe you.”
“In that case, why don’t we look it up on my terminal here?”
Upon flashing the technological device, the little boy’s eyes sparkled. He likely hadn’t been able to use one since his capture, but he still managed to control himself. He looked sheepishly at his older sister for permission.
“Sis, can I go watch some videos with Mr. Thorne?”
The girl silently regarded my friend before sighing at her brother.
“Fine. Just don’t be too loud. You’re interrupting everyone else.”
Seeing the scene, I chose not to interrupt. Instead, I discreetly sent Thorne a message. He seemed to be getting along with the former captives, so as his CEO, it was well within my rights to assign him important tasks. It definitely wasn’t me offloading my work, but simply selecting the right man for the job.
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Thorne was undoubtedly the best choice to befriend these people and teach them about our company, so they could spread the news far and wide.
With that matter settled, I returned to my room. I hummed on my way there, happy that yet another task had been accomplished.
“Are you sure we can leave the matter with Aurora Corporation behind us?” Claire asked as she stared at Thorne and me, bewildered.
“Yes. It seems Thorne managed to realize something during that last mission. Isn’t that right?”
“It’s mostly because there’s nothing worthwhile left to tangle with them for. There’s no point in killing their executives, as they would just replace them. Even if they couldn’t, there would be dozens of other corporations out there who would repeat the same mistakes. I’m satisfied with being able to help those within reach.”
“Good, you’ve sure grown up in such a short time.” I applauded him and placed a hand on his shoulder. “It makes sense for our company to move on as well. Better quit while we’re still ahead. If they find out about our involvement, it’ll just turn into a headache for us.”
“What about Ferrumus Corporation?” Claire asked.
“They…are just another corporation,” Thorne muttered. “The past is the past. It’s a rabbit hole not worth jumping into.”
After saying that, Thorne walked out of the meeting room. It made Claire blink blankly as she leaned in toward me.
“What happened with him?” she whispered.
“Hmm, not sure. Probably found a new perspective.”
“Do you seriously don’t know or fake don’t know? There’s no way he changed without anything happening.”
“Is there really a need to dwell on the reason, though? I’m happy he’s matured through this episode. I don’t really care to find out exactly what caused it.”
“That—”
“I’ll leave playing detective to you. I’m going now, too. That meeting is going to start soon. Let me know if anything important arises.”
I left the bewildered Claire behind and made my way to a hotel run by Arcom Corporation, one of the companies within the West Coast Agroindustry alliance. There, I got a table at one of Joey’s restaurants and waited for my business partners to arrive.
Despite arriving half an hour early, I didn’t have to wait long before the other party arrived.
“Nice to see you again, Kai. Hope you’ve been well.”
“Yes, likewise.”
I shook hands with the near-bald man with a strange ponytail and welcomed him to his seat. I then took a swig of my drink as I forced myself into business mode. It was time to finish the final negotiations about our joint product.
Ship-grade particle beams were an untested market, as the few companies that had the tech to build them didn’t bother selling them to the open market. We had previously made tentative agreements, but now that production was starting up, we had a clearer picture of the financial aspects, so we could now hash out the details.
“Mr. Halls, here is our company’s updated proposal. It includes the channels we can offer, which consist of dozens of our stores located across the solar system.”
I took a moment to scan through them before forwarding them over to my business team back in Elevate City, who were all on standby.
“I see. Before we dive further, I believe it isn’t acceptable on our end to have our product displayed like any other of your merchandise. I believe it needs to highlight both of our company’s names. We suggest designating a small section of your store for our crossover.”
“That—can be arranged. Anything else?”
“Hmm, then while we deliberate on the numbers, I wanted to ask if you have brought what I wanted?”
“Yes, of course.” Kai glanced over at one of her guards standing off to the side, who then quickly brought over the briefcase he was holding.
I received it and didn’t hesitate to peek into its contents. Inside, I found several neatly laid out blades and several data chips.
I quickly plugged those into my handheld terminal to confirm its contents as I forced myself to look away from the blades. Otherwise, the urge to dissect them would be hard to contain, and that wasn’t what I wanted to show our allies after agreeing not to reverse-engineer their trump card.
Still, the allure of blades that could bypass even energy shields with ease interested me. The most intriguing part was that they could be mass-produced. It meant there was some unknown principle at play, and I was eager to discover them.
“What do you think?” Kai asked with a smirk, having seen through the excitement in my eyes.
The two of us both knew there was nothing better to do while our analysis went over the details of the contracts.
“I can’t wait to test them out.”
“Few outside our company ever get that privilege. Do cherish it.”
I caught a glimpse of his strange ponytail waving around, as if it were his tail, showing how pleased he was. I still remember how that was actually a deadly whip that could intercept bullets and assist its user in melee combat. I would’ve asked to purchase that as well if it was possible, but understandably, Ferrumus wasn’t dumb enough to give away all of its trump cards.
Even if they did give it away, I would be hesitant to use it if it meant having to sport that weird hairstyle.
“On another note,” Kai continued. “Do you mind doing Vice President Bi Sun a favor?”
“Hmm? A favor?”
“Yes. To be precise, a favor for his daughter.”
“I’m not sure what I can provide that an A-Class corporation couldn’t.”
“Mr. Halls, there’s no need to be so humble. What I’m talking about is regarding the software business your company has been finding so much success in recently. Specifically, the game ecosystem that has been taking the world by storm.”
I know from our numbers that our games were doing well, but even the daughter of a high-ranking corpo plays it? This is giving me a new level of confidence.
“It depends on the request, but I’ll try my best to cater to her needs. What does she want specifically?”
“Your company did an event recently where random winners are selected to win a particular pet. Also, she would like to know how to get an item by the name of Draconic Heartchange Fan.”
As Kai read out the request, his words became weaker as we both realized how trivial it was. Still, he accomplished his duty, while I struggled to contain a chuckle that threatened to break out at any moment.
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“Just tell me her account number. I’ll see what I can do.”
“Of course.”
Hmm, after working so hard in recent times, I can’t wait until our ventures here on Aegis calm down. I need a vacation.