This Is Huge?
"Managing Director, I apologize for drawing a gun right out of the gate.
But even if I, as a Balrog, could hold my tongue, there are things a mother simply cannot let slide.
The Seha and Hana sitting here took out a life-span contract just to survive, you see.
Two struggling kids, just trying to scrape together money for food, each burned eight whole days of their own life spans.
And what was that I heard? The possibility of a staged incident? That my daughter and her beloved had their life spans shaved down?
Hey. Shall I turn this Trade Center into a sea of fire?"
Hana's mother's voice, cold as a sheet of ice, rang through the room.
The flames on her wings, on the other hand, were a blazing crimson.
I'd never seen a red that vivid before — it looked like someone had dumped a bucket of paint over her.
I got the distinct feeling that the "sea of fire" remark was never going to end as a mere threat.
"Lucienne, that's quite enough. This man came here to be a punching bag in the first place. Threatening him serves no purpose at all."
Elder Yuhava, utterly at ease, sipped her coffee and held her mother back.
With one hand she had conjured an enormous scythe and held it horizontally in front of Lucienne like a barrier.
The magic core at the head of the scythe was quietly absorbing the flames her mother was spewing out.
If Elder Yuhava hadn't stepped in, the room we were sitting in might genuinely have burned down to the last chair.
"Hiiiik… I have no idea who could have made such a reckless statement! I was simply told to convey that this is one perspective that exists…"
"You're the Managing Director, aren't you? Above you there's only the executive director, the CEO, the chairman — men like that, no?"
"Or perhaps the remark came from one of the outside advisors. Well… that can be investigated later.
In the first place, we didn't all gather here to hunt down whoever said such a thing."
"Whew… Fine. Managing Director, if such a dogshit perspective exists, surely there were other perspectives too, no?"
Hana's mother seemed to have calmed down somewhat, her tone cooler than before.
She still slipped in the occasional barbed word, but for a Balrog, that was a remarkably quick recovery.
"Ah, yes! This is merely my personal opinion, but… we must also consider the possibility of the Pure Humanist side.
They've held frequent demonstrations at the Trade Center for quite some time, after all."
The Pure Humanism Faction… still a minority group, but very much active.
A radical faction demanding that all heteromorphic species be driven out so that the world could be returned to humans alone.
Firearm possession is illegal in our country, so violent demonstrations are nearly unheard of here, but they have a track record of pulling off terrorism-adjacent stunts in other countries.
Which is to say, people you really, really don't want to get entangled with.
If they were actually involved… that would be a little frightening.
"Why would they come after me and Seha? What do we even have that's worth taking?
If you're going to commit terror, wouldn't targeting an adult demon of higher standing be more effective than students?"
At that, Elder Yuhava began explaining, piece by piece.
"Well now. If what the Managing Director said is true, then it may well be the case that you two were simply caught up by pure chance.
The sabotage wasn't aimed at demons — it targeted the dimensional portal itself.
Without portals, humans and heteromorphs can't exchange anything with one another, you see.
And a portal malfunction at the Trade Center, of all places — the very institution that leads the way in interspecies exchange?
That would leave quite the striking impression on the public, would it not?"
With Elder Yuhava's explanation, it felt like puzzle pieces clicking into place one by one.
Hana was duly impressed too, going 'Ooooh… she really is the GOAT.'
It was speculation, admittedly, but if true, a great deal of it fit.
This way the Trade Center could also prove that they were victims of the incident, not perpetrators.
But one new question had occurred to me.
"Elder Yuhava, doesn't that mean there's a human among us who terrorized the portal?
Someone who triggered the malfunction only for the exact moment Hana and I stepped through, then restored it to normal right after…"
"Oho? Quite perceptive, aren't you, beloved of the Balrog?"
"Ahaha… anyway, could anyone really manipulate a portal that Elder Yuhava personally designed with that kind of precision?"
It stood to reason, of course — without professional expertise, an ordinary person shouldn't even be able to touch the thing.
"That, this lady shall investigate herself. Humans with any knowledge of dimensional portals are few and far between. And you, Mr. Managing Director."
"Ah… yes!! You called for me?"
"You've offered a splendid perspective. I see now why the Center sent you to face us, hm?
Here — a small gift from this lady. Please accept it and let your grievances melt away."
A fluffy, fur-mitten-like hand settled onto the Managing Director's palm, and a little gift was placed there.
That was… a red ginseng candy?
It was a candy with the logo Mount Demon Realm Red Ginseng Candy emblazoned right across the wrapper.
To put it crudely, it was such an elderly-person taste that…
Yeah, she's a Baphomet all right.
The Managing Director looked equally flustered, unable to manage a single word.
"Heh heh, it's a snack this lady is rather fond of. Being from the Demon Realm, it's absolutely saturated with mana. Who knows — it might even do wonders for that famine-stricken scalp of yours."
"Really?! Thank you, Elder Yuhava!! Thank you so much!"
The Managing Director startled, then burst into tears, and hastily popped a candy into his mouth.
"Hana, is mana actually effective against baldness? Like, does it force the hair to grow back?"
I whispered quietly to Hana, just in case the Managing Director overheard.
"Seha, humanity's exchanged so much with the other races that we've advanced science and medical technology together.
Lots of diseases that used to be incurable have been solved. But… have you ever once seen a news story saying hair loss got cured?"
…How tragic. Even the Demon King couldn't cure hair loss.
Stroking my own hair for no particular reason, I sent a silent word of encouragement to the Managing Director.
"I will convey everything you've raised in this meeting to those above me without omission. Thank you sincerely for granting us this precious time today."
"That would be appreciated. Ah — this lady will send something along to your office later, as well.
We did give you quite the fright, after all; a little compensation is only proper."
"Not at all! You were entirely the victims of this incident.
Frankly, I came here today fully resigned to losing my life — instead, you've looked after me so kindly that I can only be grateful."
"That's a rather poor image demons have, isn't it? Was coming here today really such a life-or-death gamble for you?"
"Well… when a Balrog and a Baphomet Elder announce a visit, one would be strange not to flinch."
"I'll have a word with my husband about it. Let's leave the matter be for today.
Since Elder Yuhava has offered such a plausible perspective, we're choosing not to press further — for now?"
"Of course, madam. We on the Trade Center side will investigate this to the fullest extent as well.
Ah, and Seha and Hana! This is a very small token of sincerity from us.
For the two of you who had your very life spans shaved down, we have no excuses to offer… but would you accept this nonetheless?"
"You really didn't need to give us anything… Hana and I hold no ill will toward the Trade Center."
I don't regret the life span I burned, not one bit.
After all, it became the occasion for Hana and me to have a genuinely serious conversation with each other.
"Seha, declining politely is a fine attitude, but there are times when one simply mustn't refuse kindness. Accept the Managing Director's goodwill. If something is given, something must come in return."
"The madam is quite right. We bear fault as well, for failing to detect the attack."
"If you put it that way~ then we'll gratefully accept. Heh heh."
Hana accepted the tickets from the Managing Director with both hands, then held them up to show me.
'Wonderland VIP Tickets'
"Wait, for real?!"
Hana and I gasped in unison.
"That's a satisfying expression, I must say. My secretary recommended this, so I was a little anxious about it."
"These are the best, Managing Director! Weren't there only ten of these ever released in our country?"
"They were tickets set aside for corporate promotion. They were originally meant for an in-house lottery, but giving them to the two of you seems far more fitting."
"Well, look at this windfall. And there are two of them, even. Hana, want to go together?"
"Heh heh~ Is that even a question? Obviously you and I are going!"
Hana, brimming with excitement, flapped her wings and couldn't contain herself at all.
"And this is the card we intended to give you all along. Consider the tickets a bonus, and please accept this as well."
"These are already more than enough, and you're giving us even more…"
Half-dubious, I opened the envelope I'd been handed.
Inside was a silver check card that gleamed brilliantly.
The card was elegantly finished in silver foil, with a small electronic display attached, showing a balance of 2,500,000 won.
"It's a check card you may use freely anywhere in the Trade Center.
It works at the Center itself, of course, as well as at any of our affiliated complexes and malls."
"Really? That's an enormous amount, though?"
"Yes. I understand asking you to visit the very place where the accident occurred is a bit of a laugh… but if you show that card, every one of our staff will attend to you with the utmost care."
Two check cards worth 2.5 million won each, plus two Wonderland VIP tickets.
The compensation was far more generous than I'd expected.
Granted, it might be less than a formal damages settlement, but honestly, I found receiving it this way far more satisfying.
With 2.5 million won, I could eat every meal at COEX for a whole month.
Maybe we should have dinner here tonight too?
Ah, right — now's not the time to just sit here gawking in amazement.
"We'll accept your gifts with thanks, Managing Director. And Hana and I are perfectly fine. If anything, getting stranded in Antarctica brought us even closer together."
"Is that so? That is the most welcome news of all."
"Hey… don't go blurting things like that!…"
"Daughter dear~? You did tell Mama everything, didn't you? You didn't leave anything out, did you?"
"I didn't, Mother! Nothing happened, I swear… uuuugh."
Hana, delighted and mortified at once, twirled one arm in circles.
Waving her palm like a fan, desperately trying to cool herself down — an adorable sight.
"My, how hot under the collar~ When did your old man and I ever have love like that, I wonder~"
It had gotten quite bloody in the middle, but in the end, we were able to wrap up the meeting with smiles all around.
An unexpected windfall, through and through.
Now, when should Hana and I go to the amusement park?