Chapter 134
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 133
Chapter Title: How to Survive in Fusion Punk
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They say you can tell a person's character by looking at their room.
In that sense, the owner of this space was undoubtedly an intellectual type, someone engaged in mental labor.
A data panel dominated one wall.
Recent work data and productivity graphs were neatly organized and floating over the thin, semi-transparent display.
Beneath it, a metallic shelf with a subtle sheen held a digital calendar and a high-end coffee machine.
The floor was impeccably clean, gleaming like glass,
and in the corner, a small air purifier hummed silently with a [Comfortable] label glowing softly.
Wonder, seated at his office desk, twirled the fountain pen in his hand.
His calm gaze swept left and right over the report, his neatly pomaded hair unmoving.
In his perfectly poised posture, only the rustle of turning pages filled the air.
Ding.
A light notification chime rang out.
Wonder's eyes flicked sideways.
He tapped the desk's touchpad lightly.
Whirr.
A round hologram materialized before his eyes.
"What is it, Silvia?"
His even tone made the hologram's surface spike sharply, pixel by pixel.
[T-Team leader! Did you hear about that?!]
Wonder let out a sigh.
"What story? The production team's missing monthly performance report? Or the material cost adjustment from finance? Or maybe the changes to the new client contract terms during negotiations?"
His businesslike tone continued.
"I've told you time and again to report clearly and concisely when handling work."
[Uh... um... sorry. Hehe...]
The hologram's surface shrank timidly, mirroring the cowed voice.
"So, what is it?"
[Well... um... concise. Concisely.]
"Relax. Who's going to bite you?"
[Ah! Y-yes! Sorry!]
The hologram spiked up again with renewed vigor.
[You're off the executive candidate list this time! What the hell? How is that even possible? Just your contract performance this quarter exceeded the target by 500%, and you boosted our product's market competitiveness dramatically! Hell, we're selling vending machine pistols from some crazy company, but you packaged it with that innovative madness vibe!]
Her voice rose higher.
[And that's not all? We've gotten positive signals from the Gerstein family lately. Do they even know their young master praised our product as usable? Argh! So frustrating! There's a limit to mistreating someone designing and executing new market entry alone. Seriously...!!]
Her words ended in huffy breaths. She must have been pretty pissed. Wonder could picture her face clearly without seeing it.
Wonder raised an eyebrow.
Leaning back in his chair, he said,
"So you called during work hours just to tattle?"
[Eek?! No, that's not it. I thought I should inform you accurately. And I'm just so mad...]
"You do know this is the company network, right?"
[Gasp!]
Did she realize the company might be eavesdropping on her passionate gossip? The voice flinched.
[Sh-should I hang up?]
Wonder remained unfazed, of course. R&D wasn't some neighborhood hole-in-the-wall. This level of gossip was no issue.
Yeah. 'This level' was fine.
"If the board made that decision, they must have their reasons. So let's focus on our work."
[Okaay...]
"By the way, when are you submitting the Vog weapons regulation countermeasures report? I've reminded you several times. Finish the priorities first, then... "
[Ah, team leader! Sorry, urgent call coming in! I'll call back later!]
The connection cut off abruptly.
Wonder stared at the empty space where the hologram orb had vanished, drumming his fingers on the desk.
It was his habit when deep in thought.
Wonder knew it too.
That he'd been omitted from the executive candidate list.
Yes, "omitted" was the perfect word. Something that should have been recorded was missing.
In other words, no one on the candidate list had outperformed him.
And it wasn't just the last year's results.
Even excluding his overwhelmingly dominant quarterly performance, Wonder had consistently exceeded averages.
Yet, omitted.
Silvia was outraged by the board's decision.
But the reason was simple.
Wonder had backed the wrong horse.
And spectacularly so.
"......"
Suddenly, Wonder's gaze landed on the wall straight ahead.
At the end of his line of sight.
The logo blending R&D nicely.
Luger & Dolman.
As the name suggested, it was a munitions manufacturer founded by two engineers, Luger and Dolman.
The legendary eccentric Luger and Dolman, who excelled at handling such weirdos, made a great pair.
That synergy propelled them to industry prominence.
Everything was great up to that point.
Until Luger vanished abruptly a few years ago.
The disappearance of the company's co-CEO and chief engineer?!
Naturally, it was massive news that would tank the stock price.
So it was buried.
Unlike the front-facing Dolman,
Luger had always been a recluse, avoiding all external activities.
Silencing a few close aides kept the secret intact.
And Wonder was one of those aides.
While others signed NDAs and left in droves, he stayed—for some reason—in this Dolman faction stronghold.
That was the story.
Slurp.
Wonder sipped the espresso from the coffee machine and sat back in his chair.
His eyes naturally drifted to the digital calendar.
A quiet mutter escaped.
"...Less than two months left."
The moment executive absence hit three years,
the bylaws would force-sell Luger's shares soon.
After that, it wouldn't be called R&D anymore.
"......"
As his gaze deepened on the calendar,
Ding.
The alarm chimed again, and Wonder sighed.
Silvia again?
What was the immature subordinate fussing about now? Her face flashed in his mind.
He set down the mug and turned his gaze aside.
"......!"
Startled, he hurriedly swiped the touchpad.
Ahem. Clearing his throat, he spoke.
"This is Wonder."
The hologram orb rippled energetically.
"Long time no see!"
Jin was in deep shit.
Excuses about his terminal's power didn't fly with Kalifa.
He'd followed the Pilgrim without a word and hit the pilgrimage road, hadn't he?
Was it so hard to send one message before the signal cut?
With the city buzzing daily about Apophis's crash, if a Solo on a mission went radio silent, wouldn't the Linker freak out? Huh?
Kalifa's eyes blazed like embers.
Jin responded with an awkward smile.
I'm alive, so that's okay... no!
Wait. Sorry. Put that down...!
He dodged the manager wielding 10cm stilettos like grenades, weaving his upper body wildly.
"We usually get along fine."
"...You sure?"
"Of course. These cookies alone—she prepared them all for Jin."
Poh pointed at the mountain of cookies with a smile,
and Bagmar cleared his throat, glancing around.
The cautious gaze typical of a visitor in unfamiliar surroundings.
Poh asked gently,
"Feeling awkward?"
"...Yeah. No. This place feels okay, actually. Honestly, I was out of it the whole way here."
After parting with the Pilgrim.
The dwarf had crossed the highway straight to Downtown, dazed by the neon spectacle unfolding before him.
And no wonder—the gap between the Empire's records and modern Lost City was like centuries of change.
In Area 40s, no less.
When had Bagmar ever seen such sights?
Roads where funky biker gangs popped wheelies on motorcycles, alleys promising hot nights with cheap sex toys, graffiti-covered walls with hate slogans overshadowed by giant phallic doodles.
Nothing matched his expectations.
Even 'humans' more machine-like than Chloe strolled casually.
So Bagmar's shock,
and finding solace in the unassuming Anecdote bar,
were totally understandable.
"Hm."
Poh set down the glass he was polishing.
He walked to the entrance, flipped the sign on the door handle.
[CLOSED]
Making it face outward, signaling rest today.
Click. He locked it.
Then returned to the counter.
"Make yourselves at home. Friends of Jin are friends of mine."
"Ah. Thanks."
"Name's Poh."
"Bagmar."
And so the mechanical dwarf and cutting-edge android shook hands.
Then, simultaneously, without missing a beat,
"Mind if I ask something?"
"Can I ask one thing?"
Awkward smiles crossed at the overlapping words.
"You first."
"Go ahead."
Their timing synced perfectly again, so Poh nodded silently.
The dwarf, understanding the gesture, cleared his throat and asked,
"You one of them androids too?"
"Yes. Correct."
"Ooh. Can't tell the difference from humans."
"Really?"
Poh smiled softly, and Bagmar pulled Chloe over gently.
"Say hi. This is Chloe. My girl. Perfect chance to..."
And just like that.
As Bagmar bombarded with excited questions about android manufacturing, history buff Poh set aside his own curiosity and answered earnestly.
Meanwhile, what was Jin doing?
Politely handing Kalifa the high heel he'd picked up from the floor.
"Sorry. My bad. Sumimasen. Tuibuqi..."
Kalifa tilted her head as she took the shoe, her apology a mishmash of four languages.
Slipping it back on, she glanced at Bagmar.
"Anyone would think I threw it."
"You looked ready to, so I snatched and tossed first."
"I wasn't gonna throw it."
"The looking like you were is what matters... sorry."
Click.
Jin apologized again as Kalifa bristled.
A brief silence.
Then she shrugged.
"Don't do it again."
"Sure. Pinky promise?"
"Pass."
Jin knew how Kalifa viewed Solos as a Linker.
Even that she sometimes drowned her sorrows alone all night when one never returned.
So yeah, this was on him.
Order in the court. He banged the gavel in his head.
Of course, plenty of verdicts remained.
Had to see the Jeki-Jenny siblings,
meet Dr. Andre,
contact the Colonel... maybe later? Just check on Elina.
As Jin sorted his thoughts,
Kalifa set down a plate piled with cookies.
She leaned on the table, elbows down, body tilting forward—wafting sweet, smoky perfume naturally.
"So, that brass dwarf isn't some concept android, but a real soul-possessed being?"
"Yeah, exactly. Dwarf soul fired up."
Jin, mouth full of cookies, mumbled through chews.
Kalifa raised a brow.
"Awakened ego Apophis. A fragment of that Apophis..."
Murmuring to sort her thoughts, she sighed faintly.
"If true, Bagmar's existence might be more precious than any artifact."
Hard to believe humanity's lost tech crammed into that squat frame.
Her gaze on the bartender and dwarf's heated chat grew complex.
"So. What're you planning?"
"Ah, well... kuh!"
As Jin choked, Kalifa handed him a glass of milk.
Not the first time. Second nature now.
"Kyah! Whew! Damn, nearly died. Thanks."
He gulped it down and continued,
"Gonna send him somewhere that can make full use of his skills. Already left a message. Should be here soon?"
"...Who?"
As Kalifa's head tilted,
"Team leader? Says no sales here? Anecdote, right?"
A voice from outside drew all eyes back.
And there,
a face peering through the door, hands cupped around her eyes.
"Her?"
"Nah, don't recognize her."
As Jin said that, popping a cookie,
her roaming eyes locked on his and widened.
Rattle, the hinges shook.
"Ahh! Client! Hello! I'm Silvia from R&D sales! Heard you were looking! But why's the door locked?"
Jin stood.
Ah, one of Wonder's subordinates, he thought.
"Hold on. I'll get it..."
Bang!!
Before he finished,
the door ripped off its hinges and crashed down.
The woman tumbled with it.
Crash!!
Amid shattering glass.
Jin's terminal buzzed in his pocket.
Through the gaping doorway,
Wonder, phone to ear, slowly turned toward them.
His arm dropped slowly.
"......"
The next moment.
Before everyone's eyes, Wonder's waist folded at a right angle like a flip phone.