Chapter 86
Chapter 86
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 86
Chapter Title: Serendipity (8)
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Whirr—
The communicator on the table vibrated faintly.
[Eve, you busy? Got some new info coming in—]
"..."
I pretended not to see the message, flipped the screen over, and refocused on the meeting unfolding before me.
One priest stood from his seat to give his report.
"The Radiance Church has now fully secured the northern and eastern suburbs. Statistically speaking, over 94 percent in each district have registered as church believers. Lapsed members remain below 5 percent."
Just as he said, we had now completely taken over half the suburbs.
We had finally finished acquiring the businesses of the fallen mafia families and wiped out even their remnants.
Another priest attending the meeting asked,
"What about the remaining areas?"
"The southern and western districts still have their old powers intact, so not many people are coming to the cathedrals."
The Black Tiger Gang in the south, Paradise in the west. They were mafia groups that had once dominated the suburbs alongside the Salvatore family.
"Are they forcibly stopping residents from joining the church?"
"Not at all. Reports indicate the mafias are holding back their activities as much as possible to avoid provoking us. However... the residents in those areas still fear their influence and aren't coming to the cathedrals on their own."
Once the report wrapped up, Lorenzo stepped forward as a representative of the church's military arm, the Saved Ones.
"With our current forces, we could fully secure both districts in six hours. Why not just sweep away the remaining mafias right now, Saintess?"
He was right. Our church now rivaled even mid-tier corporations in scale. If we wanted, we could easily crush those cowering mafias and claim the entire suburbs.
But I quietly shook my head.
"Expanding our flock through unnecessary bloodshed isn't something the Radiance would want."
As everyone knew, the Radiance Church had no missionaries. We had simply grown this far by helping the pitiful souls in need of salvation. Forcing healthy people to stir things up and believe in God wasn't our way at all.
Our expansion in the suburbs probably ended here.
'But still... I need more believers than this.'
To gather enough 'prayers' to return to my original world, I needed far more faith—much more belief from many more people. That left only one direction to turn our gaze.
"It's about time we moved into the inner city."
Everyone at the meeting nodded quietly in agreement.
We had been delayed by various incidents, but the plans and preparations were long finished. They had all probably just been waiting for my go-ahead. There was no more reason to hesitate.
'I'm a little worried if our influence can spread as well there, but...'
It would probably be fine.
The people I had met in the city so far were a tiny elite of the upper crust, but truthfully, most of the inner city's population was overwhelmingly working-class folk. In a city where the middle class had nearly gone extinct due to extreme wealth gaps, 80 percent of the total population was classified as poor.
There had to be opportunities for religion to help in their harsh lives.
But before jumping straight to building cathedrals in the city, there was one priority issue to address first.
I looked at Lorenzo and asked,
"Any volunteers?"
"Yes, Saintess. We've selected them all."
The site for the first cathedral in the city—where residents desperately needed divine salvation—would likely be the slums or poor districts.
But even in the city, those areas had suburbs-level poor security. Gangs and crime syndicates ran rampant, and the ODPD was corrupt and negligent, failing to keep them in check. Bribery was commonplace.
So the first church personnel deployed to the city couldn't be priests or volunteers spreading doctrine. They had to be armed forces capable of protecting believers. I still hadn't forgotten the devotees we lost to mafia raids that underestimated us.
'We can't let that tragedy happen again.'
Conveniently, there was Celestina's proposed security business for the new headquarters. It was the perfect opportunity to insert church troops into the city under the guise of new hires for a security firm.
Thus, the first batch of dispatched volunteers numbered thirty.
Why exactly thirty? Our church's forces had grown too large overall. Even with Asecure Corporation, we couldn't move everyone into the city at once. To avoid unnecessary attention, we had to proceed gradually in stages.
And another reason.
The former mercenaries being dispatched to the city this time were slated for new cyberware upgrades.
Class 8 combat implant armaments—thirty units procured through Lumina Group's connections.
Items of that caliber weren't easy to obtain even for megacorps, so the first dispatch was limited to thirty.
Not just the price, but hardly anyone could even endure such high-grade cyberware anymore. Maintenance costs were astronomical, and the implantation surgery was agonizing and risky. Embedding a mechanical monstrosity that could drive an ordinary person mad in four days was blatantly dangerous.
Of course, I planned to personally monitor and care for the upgrade subjects closely for a while. Even if issues arose, periodic doses of my miracles would keep them fine.
But that was a problem for later. If someone ever wanted to leave the church down the line, that level of risky cyberware could become shackles holding them back.
Especially since many of our church's ex-mercenaries had experienced Cybernetic Rage from excessive mods. Having once been consumed by that horrific madness, it was natural they'd resist additional implants. They never wanted to lose their minds again.
That's why this mission only accepted purely voluntary applicants.
Suddenly worried, I hesitantly asked Lorenzo,
"You're sure they all volunteered willingly? No pressure or anything...?"
At my question, Lorenzo stared at me blankly for a moment.
"You didn't know? The moment I brought up the upgrades, all four hundred in Los Salvados volunteered on the spot."
"What?"
"You said only thirty slots, and the competition was fierce. Picking the best ones fairly was tougher than... honestly, harder than bulldozing that security corp branch or smashing the mafias."
Seeing him ramble on like that, I could only gape in stunned silence.
It didn't make sense, so I cautiously asked again.
"...Why did everyone want in so badly?"
The implantation surgery itself would be excruciating. My miracles only suppressed side effects and aided recovery—they couldn't erase the pain in the moment.
Plus, gaining greater power didn't mean bigger pay.
If anything, they'd be thrust into riskier missions with heavier burdens.
Why volunteer for something with no real reward...?
Lorenzo smirked at me.
"Who says there's no reward?"
"Huh?"
"I told the upgrade candidates you'd personally nurse them during recovery and adjustment. The second I said that... wow, you should've seen their eyes. Like... no, forget I said that. My bad."
"..."
I couldn't tell if he was joking or serious, so I just stared in bewilderment.
=========
The meeting with the church executives ended like that. As they filed out, I called one person back.
"Yoanna, mind sticking around a sec? Wondering if that investigation I asked for is done."
"Oh, right. That thing you mentioned before? Yeah, I looked into it, but..."
It was right then.
Bzzz—
The communicator, facedown on the table while I focused on the meeting, started vibrating again.
"..."
I tapped the screen to check.
[Major investment news in Vertex Cybernetics...]
[Got word some big players are piling into NeuroLink Solutions stock. If you've invested, might wanna be cautious...]
[Suspicious fund flows from real estate tycoon Falkenberg...]
Typical spam or rumor-mill texts. Normally, I'd block them instantly.
If not for the sender being the vice president of a world-class investment firm.
"Haa..."
I sighed.
I knew these tips came from goodwill. To some, they'd be worth more than gold.
But honestly, they felt burdensome. I had only wanted to cheer up someone struggling—no big enough deal to warrant this kind of payback.
Then, a new message arrived.
[Ah, you saw it.]
I flinched a bit at that one line. It meant she was watching in real-time to see if I read it.
A little flustered, I made an excuse about being in a meeting. About three seconds later, a reply came.
[You free next week? A personal chef friend of mine is opening a restaurant. He was at a three-star dining spot until last year—think you'd love it, Eve. Plus, I've got some business to discuss.]
"..."
I gave a vague reply to defuse things and rubbed my eyes.
Celestina. She kept making offers hard to refuse under the guise of repayment. And they always came with a promise of another meeting as the price. No malice, but... it was getting awkward.
'She's nothing like the rumors.'
A white shark without blood or tears.
Rumors said she had personally bankrupted at least three digits' worth of companies, a money-mad witch who'd sell out family for profit.
But to me, she was just a fragile woman relieved by a hug, timidly asking for dinner for fear of rejection. The contrast with the rumors, this obsessive clinging...
Something felt off.
That's why I had asked Yoanna.
"Find out anything?"
"Yeah, I dug into Celestina Oberschü as you requested..."
The girl continued with a slightly queasy expression.
"A genius investor who, at just thirteen—with only advice from her company's legal team—bankrupted a mid-tier corp and made a fortune. At sixteen, she got her PhD in economics. By twenty, using just her personal wealth, she became the majority shareholder in forty companies. Every fund she's run since has zero losses..."
Yoanna paused for breath, then added,
"And so, at twenty-five, she rose to vice president of Tessellation Investments—not by her CEO father's whim, but with full board approval. Talent, experience, background, looks... she's got it all. Even as a businesswoman, she's celebrity-level popular, featured in entertainment mags regularly."
She punctuated it by noting no scandals in her private life to date.
By that account alone, she sounded utterly perfect.
Then, Yoanna cautiously added,
"Oh, and... three years ago, the Tessellation owner family had an accident."
"Accident?"
"Yeah, officially a traffic crash. But it seemed fishy, so I dug deeper—turns out there are other rumors. Tessellation's famous for aggressive activist investing. One owner whose company it ruined allegedly liquidated everything for a final revenge."
'Revenge...'
I fell silent, weighing the word.
Yoanna shook her head slightly with a sigh.
"But isn't it impressive? If the rumor’s true... Celestina lost her mother, sister, the CEO lost his wife and youngest daughter in one go. Yet Tessellation never softened its aggressive strategy. Still hasn't. Guess that's what it takes to run a megacorp here."