“!? Oh dear…! I’m a bit worried that my boast might have been misinterpreted and conveyed incorrectly. Could it be that Mr. Lagus has come here in person…? Just…??”
“…There was a bit more possibility of that than I expected.”
Since Paradise is a place where regular commerce with the general public is commonplace, Richard was expecting maybe one or two staff members and possibly one intermediary to handle paperwork, but…
What actually came thundering down the elevator was a large group, including the branch manager Lagus, who borrowed the name slightly.
In fact, there weren’t many white-collar workers dressed sharply to look job-related, and the majority were armed with heavy weapons and wearing the unique full-face masks of the collection team. What on earth is going on? Is today the day of my funeral? Damn it, what is this? Please, let me live.
“Ahaha…?”
After controlling the sweat glands activated by the emergency communication network, he tried to look for an appropriate greeting while rechecking the real estate management program.
[ Paradise Corporation’s Engineer Plaza 36th Floor Double Room: Currently under sale. Assigned broker Richard Haworth. ]
Fortunately, the application had been submitted properly, and the transaction status was showing normally.
Then, despite the atmosphere being a bit—well, a lot—grim, there was no need to panic. If there was some misunderstanding, they could try to communicate… and if he hadn’t made a major blunder, it must be that the other side had made a mistake, so it could be resolved well!
Moreover, the client waiting for him in the room was from Enema.
In any case, the likelihood of both sides getting seriously flustered was far lower, so as a mere broker, he just needed to focus on his work. There was no need to act as if he had something to hide.
…Of course, Lagus, leading the group, already looked quite red, but anyway.
“Did you happen to have an event nearby? If I had known you would come this quickly in person, I would have gone out to the lobby much more politely to greet you!”
“Spare me the flattery. …Well, sending one vacant room while doing courtesy isn’t a problem. But honestly, who wants to request a proxy deal to move into a technicians’ residence without proper justification?”
Just like the new recruit who had caused discomfort to his superior earlier and this mysterious guest as well.
Was this a sign that some generational change was about to occur? He suppressed his anger along with the sentiment that there were indeed some bold talents emerging.
It wasn’t too late to watch the situation play out before taking action—cuffing someone immediately and restraining them was a specialty of those who engage in bad behavior; it was far from the elegant money games Paradise aimed for.
“It seems the entrance identity verification was passed in place of your guarantee. I can’t imagine how much embarrassment this person has. Or maybe… they are quite secretive. Is that requester still in the building?”
“Oh, of course! They’re in the room! A person so passionate that they desire to move in immediately and would rather settle the payment altogether rather than get a loan? Now, now, let’s go inside. It’s been a while since I welcomed someone of Mr. Lagus’s stature, so I might be feeling a bit awkward!”
“…Hah.”
Every time Lagus sighed, the complexion of the finance team member who accompanied him for smooth work was growing darker, which was quite a humorous sight.
The broker was busy picking up any information the other side might inadvertently drop while communicating with the nonchalant broker, wondering if he was connected to that gambling addict who had caused everyone to gather in this neutral zone.
…Calm down; even if one were to get things figured out, the one who would ultimately decide would be the man silently chuckling behind, pretending not to care.
He just needed to carry the situation smoothly to that point, regardless of whether the actual transaction went through or not.
“By the way, I think I’ve seen the distinguished gentleman behind you a lot in the news recently. Do you often appear in the press or something? Is it proper to address you as Mr. Drayfuscus?”
Richard, who had stood out among the crowd at the sliding door, turned to the golden-haired man who had quietly followed the branch manager into the room as if he was about to enter together.
Complimenting the immaculate appearance was akin to slyly asking if they were acquainted, but the intended guest responded casually through the slightly open gap of the door.
“You can just call me Drayfuscus. Since I was invited, there’s no need to think of it too seriously.”
“…?”
His eyebrows furrowed at the exceedingly arrogant expression that seemed to omit the phrase ‘I won’t eat you.’ Was he joking?
However, not long after, his thoughts quickly aligned as he pondered the strange attire that so suited Paradise, the soft yet chilling gaze, the convoluted way of speaking, and that rare name Drayfuscus.
Richard’s mind successfully recalled one of the ‘celebrities rarely seen in Neo Haven’ he had relegated to a corner.
“Uh… then should I address you as Mr. Drayfuscus? ………Wait, Aaron Drayfuscus? …Hic!?”
★ ☆ ★ ☆ ★
‘…Damn.’
Just moments ago, he had felt satisfied, stroking the pretty large table as if it was too big for one person, but now it felt incredibly cramped, suffocatingly so.
Why? Well, the first reason was that three grown men and poor me were all crammed together, leaving almost no space to breathe.
The second reason was that Mr. Richard, who needed to carry out the sales procedure, was being overwhelmed by the pressure, struggling to perform his duties smoothly.
…And if a third reason were necessary, it was the fact that none of the four seemed to clearly grasp what on earth was happening in this situation.
“…Ahem♪”
““……””
“Ahaha….”
‘Damn…!’
Even with a painfully awkward smile, even as he internally cursed, reality did not change.
Excluding the other staff lined up in the hallway, the two intruders were inconveniently all familiar faces.
The one humming a tune while scanning the faces of the audience was, of course, Aaron.
His relaxed demeanor, as if he had found a delightful new toy, really didn’t sit well with Richard. Just by glancing around, it was evident that he had a rank far above what he could handle here. Annoying guy.
This one really looked like he understood the reason behind this mess.
No matter how much he shot him a dagger-like glare, Aaron only nodded graciously, never passing him any information, which was truly frustrating.
Damn it. Even though they were both in the same boat, could he not send a quick call or text? Or at least explain what the hell was going on?
‘…Ugh.’
Forcing himself to look away from Aaron, who only seemed willing to cooperate when he felt like it, he decided it would be better to focus on the other person for now.
“The immediate request for a proxy deal made me think you would have your face completely hidden…”
“It is, hahem! My client is not a criminal; what’s so impure about their request? In this day and age, there’s no better safety measure than distributing ownership, right?”
“Y-Yes, certainly.”
With a smile plastered on his face, Richard sent the standard contract containing the sales procedures and forms over.
With the questions that felt like poking him, Richard barely regained his composure and began to play the role of the representative. He didn’t really have any reasons to refuse or feel concerned, so he promptly jumped on board.
Well, wasn’t it said that both were faces they knew?
After hearing the audacious response of the other person he had just tried to tease, Richard noted that the top of the Paradise Neo Haven branch, Lagus Angelus, who still seemed suspiciously keen on paying attention to him and Richard, was indeed one of the names on his list.
He was rather rigid, it seemed. Was it right to call him a man of traditional business sense lacking flexibility?
Ah, behold his solidly well-hidden intentions; though capable of entangling you effectively, he surprisingly showed signs of discomfort which would push anyone into confessions.
To call him rigid… that might be unfairly dismissive, but all in all, he served as a bridge between the president of Paradise and the protagonist in the original work.
As the ultimate responsible figure for all actions and plans of Paradise taking place in Neo Haven, he struggled to remain politically neutral amidst complex disputes.
In the end, resigned to the fact he was not someone capable of judging, he passed the treatment of the protagonist to higher-ups, leading to a certain tragic turn of events.
…Though that led him to embody the cliché of being hostile only to end up shaking hands later, sometimes even facilitating quests or assignments from Paradise… quite an incongruent job for him.
To rephrase, Lagus Angelus was originally the highest-ranking named character from Paradise, excluding the president, yet he had an image of someone enduring great hardship between the whims of the president and the protagonist, who both often found themselves amidst major incidents.
“…Hmph, you look too young, yet you seem to have quite the skill.”
“Yeah… well, I earned it fairly with my life on the line…?”
His words, spoken after seeing the hefty sum deposited into an escrow account established by his broker authority, reflected that hint of scrutiny regarding the source of funds.
Once, there were careless discussions among users like, ‘Why did you make the branch manager such a disposable character?’ and ‘With that many enterprises, I suppose they could do that?’ but meeting him in person made everything somewhat clearer.
This man was simply quite perceptive in those matters. He didn’t intend to escalate problems voluntarily, nor was he foolish enough to hold onto an obvious bomb waiting to explode.
‘…Ah.’
Thinking further on why he looked so restless that it was visible to the naked eye, he realized that Aaron, who was standing idly at the back, was clearly a man of much higher rank.
Wow, what a fascinating hierarchy in Megacorp! Could it be that in this cyberpunk world, common citizens struggle at the bottom, and the more twisted a character is, the easier it is for them to succeed?
Indeed, in an era of freedom and madness, perhaps there’s a requirement to be somewhat unhinged to become competent? …I feel like I was captured after going mad in a game! How tragically ironic.
“Detailing the negotiation procedures, which is usually included in my commission, would not take me long enough to match Mr. Lagus’s hourly wage, but if there’s someone among the subordinates outside who is the person in charge, I will swiftly finish up and return, yes?”
“Do as you please.”
Oh, as soon as he heard the answer, Richard dashed away like a bullet.
This skillful maneuver, departing without even the slightest noise to avoid drawing any potential interest back to himself, was impressive, but seeing Lagus, who seemed displeased with his departure, suggested he might have been disliked.
…So why did you personally come here?
Is this perhaps the man’s home? If you don’t want to sell, can’t you just say so honestly? There’s no point in pretending to be distant; I’d either go look for places elsewhere or cooperate as necessary!
“May I ask how the lady here showed interest in this place?”
“Uh…? Just… I heard there’s a rare vacancy, and I came via a broker’s introduction.”
“…Do you know why it became vacant?”
“That should be… I think I’ve heard that the previous owner was taken…”
“Then what about the credits…?”
“The source of funds was answered earlier, but… wait, did Paradise conduct a background check when selling the property…?”
“…Cough!!”
As he asked back, his query grew increasingly petty, with only nervous coughing returned in response.
Hey there, if you don’t want to sell, why even put it on the market!
With the increasingly awkward conversation and the hellish uncomfortableness building up, this collaboration felt unprecedented.
He’s speaking so bluntly as if there’s a tragic legend I’m supposed to know, yet he can’t seem to raise his voice in front of Aaron, making the whole situation so painfully troublesome as he raised his finger to tap the table.
If there were any solid reasons to dislike him, then he would think ‘Ah, I made a mistake~’ and come up with a countermeasure, but this was truly frustrating. Damn it.
‘Ugh… should I just close my eyes and ask what the hell is this?’
While it was definitely tiring to engage him directly, against that, if there was nothing to risk, he felt reasonably confident that facing him directly wouldn’t be too bad.
Moreover, Aaron… ugh, I really don’t know about that guy! He’s plenty anxious, but there should be some level of restraint in an emergency. With his sudden appearance, he must have at least some cunning plan in mind.
However, since there was a common denominator to be mindful of, he thought maybe he should speak up if they started digging deeper…
…Ding!
The moment he had made his decision, in true Engineer Plaza fashion, the automated sliding door opened once more, and the broker, who had left quietly, stuck his head back in.
Unfortunately, he brought unwelcome news.
“Excuse me, but while you’re all chatting away… client? Would you mind submitting the relevant documents in advance?”
“Uh…? I feel like I’ve been asked for citizenship validation numerous times; what more do you need?”
“Oh dear client, though Paradise publicly offers services for proxy deals and concealment, this is a notarized document prescribed to be stored in the city’s database, so the form must be completed, right? Just simplify things and provide the approvals and permits, will you?”
“Uh….”
With a nonchalant gesture and a visible belief that it should have been prepared, tragically, he had nothing to show at that moment.
Yet, it would be difficult to ask back… seeing that the branch manager was glaring at him with the sensation of needing to secure at least one deal.
Hmm… über, Zero? What is this supposed to mean?
– …Results indicate that Engineer Plaza is designated as a core technology protection area and an elite management zone, unlike regular residential hotels, requiring a work certificate and residential permit issued by the corporation. Our apologies; many exceptional legal stipulations are inherent in the building, hence the delay in our notice. –
Seriously…? Why did the broker only mention that now? Right, I did entertain the thought that they might be from Enema.
Who would ever think someone would secure a job at Megacorp only to walk away carefree?
And what even is your reason to apologize? I was out of the loop too!
So now, how do I navigate this awkward situation gracefully?
……Alright, let’s shelf the good behavior for a day and whip up something forged.
To be honest, it’s probably wiser to contact Enema again regarding such issues, rather than take the risk of moving in, but giving up on my hideout and single-user PC room (even if second-hand!) now would just irk me.
By maxing out the perceived time and pulling from Zero’s computing power, I should be able to slide it across smoothly…!
But despite all my preparations…
Since I wasn’t directly interacting, but rather relaying through the communicator to the droid calculation device, the heightened acute abilities didn’t come forth particularly sharply.
Trying to evade the attention of the crowd, I had no choice but to retract Zero’s amplification antenna, which had been half deployed.
Because… it seemed that everyone was probably tired of watching or perhaps just too fed up with being cautious, the troublesome observer decided to tidy things up, and I lost my chance to step in.
“Is there really a need to complicate things for Miss Ahsa? You may use my permits, and as for the buyer’s name… I can fill that out later, so perhaps you should wait outside, broker. There might be some other ‘uses’ just in case.”
“……”
Aaron smiled brightly.
…Please, let it not be something too serious.
