How to Rest (7)
How to Rest (7)
The sharp gaze of Monolith Chairman Taylor Blackstar stabbed toward the person on the other side of the hologram screen.
"So."
On the other side of the hologram, Justin Borg—Monolith's Chief of Staff and the Chairman's loyal right-hand man—couldn't lift his head.
"Not only was the fact that they were being tracked discovered, but you also failed to track them?"
"...I'm sorry."
He didn't know the order would get twisted like that.
He wanted to grab the presidents by their collars himself.
It seemed the employees had gone crazy from long overtime hours.
He carefully swallowed those excuses inside.
There was no way such excuses would work on the iron-blooded monarch who was Monolith's Chairman; also because the Chairman's piercing gaze was lodged like a dagger at the edge of his heart.
Justin Borg simply waited with his head bowed until the Chairman's anger subsided.
Some time passed.
The Chairman opened his mouth again.
"It's not like you. If you'd at least captured him, that might have been something, but this is neither here nor there."
"...That's right."
"The outcome is the worst."
"I'll take whatever responsibility is necessary."
The Chairman let out a light sigh.
"......Haa."
Given his years and his position, the Chairman usually didn't show emotional displays in front of his subordinates.
But it seemed he couldn't hold back a sigh in this situation.
As if that small sigh sounded like thunder, Justin Borg flinched heavily.
Even for the Chairman who'd lived many years, it was a mystery how the simple order to 'track the target's location' had been distorted into 'make the target kneel before the Chairman immediately.'
That didn't mean the Chairman intended to hold Justin Borg responsible.
In the end, it was he who gave the 'order'.
And if you traced the fault, his own mistake of mixing personal feelings into public company business was the greatest.
So the Chairman thought slowly.
Since the target (Lee Si-woon) had noticed Monolith's tracking was underway, naturally his actions would become more cautious.
If he'd been alone, it might have been manageable, but the fact that he had a Super AI attached to him was a problem.
'...My head hurts.'
The Chairman gently pressed his temple and soothed his headache.
He again gave orders to Justin Borg.
"Since things have come to this, continue the tracking."
"...Understood."
"And this time, make sure you 'unconditionally' report to me first."
"Confirmed."
Then, still with his head bowed, Justin Borg's hologram figure gradually faded, and the call ended.
"......."
The Chairman let out another deep sigh.
Truly, humans were creatures of hormones.
'...Is it because I've been seeing his face often lately?'
Only one day had passed.
He wanted to see the Mage who did good work, had no greed (and was even good at running away).
28. A Method of Rest (7)
For George the Orc, it was an unlucky day.
What on earth was going on?
Stepping on gum while walking was a joke in comparison.
Bird droppings fell from the sky onto his head, his credit chip wallet broke, and 'brothers' on a motorcycle robbed him of that broken credit chip.
Still, George thought positively.
'At least they didn't steal my car.'
On days like this, the best thing was to just stay holed up at home.
He told himself that if he sat on the sofa watching Rex Nova's LaEve show, the day's fatigue would melt away.
George consoled himself.
Just as George was about to enter his house, two 'humans' approached him.
"......What's this?"
In Redwood, people didn't use polite language with strangers at first meeting.
Grasping the pistol in his coat, George remained wary of the two.
They were a man and woman who looked like a couple.
Somehow, it seemed to George that the one who had business with him was the woman.
He almost let his guard down at the beauty that transcended racial boundaries for a moment, but thanks to the misfortunes of the day, George quickly came to his senses.
The woman who approached spoke in an oddly strange tone.
"Could I rent your vehicle for a moment?"
"......?"
George lowered his gaze and checked once more whether the two had guns in their hands.
But their hands were still empty.
'...Do they rob people without guns these days?'
Thinking of the brothers on the motorcycle who snatched his credit chip today, that couldn't be right.
George, who had stopped thinking at the odd request out of nowhere, shook his head.
One day of bad luck was enough.
George scowled harshly and opened his mouth.
"You cracker bastards, don't fuck around and—."
George's rough words stopped because of a 'notification' that appeared on his vision interface.
'One, ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand.......'
George blankly counted the amount.
"This amount should be enough credits to buy a new vehicle."
Hearing that, George came to his senses.
With that sum, not just one, but several vehicles, even newer models than this, could be bought.
George slapped his own cheek.
To check whether this was a dream.
"......Angel?"
"No."
"Do you perhaps need a chauffeur?"
"No."
George nodded dejectedly.
* * *
...Was he some kind of sick Orc?
I glanced at the rearview mirror and thought.
The Orc who had lent us his vehicle was still bending at the waist at an angle of 90 degrees—no, 60 degrees.
When Eve walked up to the Orc, I had no idea what she was thinking; I never imagined we could get a car so simply this way.
As expected, someone who'd spent a lot of credits knows how to use them well.
Anyway.
Our escape plan was simpler than I'd thought.
Because Monolith's tactical team hadn't yet taken control of the area.
If not for that, we might have had to carry out a getaway plan filled with bullets and explosions.
Fortunately, it was enough to just safely drive the car we'd acquired through a legitimate transaction.
Having no luggage to pack was a plus.
If we could have called a taxi, we could have devised a cheaper escape plan, but sadly the wait time for a taxi was long.
Because this area was Redwood.
A place where guns and Orcs were closer than law and police.
We had no time.
All we had was the money we'd squeezed out of Koozaka.
Anyway, through that process, we succeeded in getting out of the Redwood area.
On the way, when I saw Monolith tactical helicopters and airborne MPVs crossing the sky, I got a bit of a chill.
If we'd been even a little later, we might have been caught by them.
Honestly, even if our location had been tracked, I just thought a few hotheads like Catherine would come looking for us.
I never imagined Monolith's tactical team would be deployed.
The Chairman I knew wasn't the type to floor it like this.
I felt a bit strange about that, but in the end, the tracking had started.
【Stop the vehicle.】
I looked forward instantly.
Fortunately, it was a notification from the traffic light. I let out a light breath and stopped the vehicle.
There's a saying: when in a hurry, go around.
There seemed no need to run away breaking signals for no reason.
"......Where should I go?"
I muttered briefly and thought.
Honestly, even contacting Tom was all because I hadn't known the gravity of the situation.
If I'd known Monolith's tracking would continue, I wouldn't have gone to Tom. Come to think of it, I'd have to contact Tom, too. I'd do it later.
If it were up to me, I wanted to keep driving around the city, but thinking of the Monolith employee John, who at this very moment was combing through surveillance footage, made that difficult as well.
What on earth should I do?
I turned my head toward the passenger seat.
"Eve, what do we do now?"
I called to Eve with the feeling of Nobita shouting, 'Doraemon, help!'
Eve was sitting, hugging a 'shopping bag' tightly in her arms.
Knowing the contents of that shopping bag, I almost reacted, but I didn't let it show and pretended not to notice.
Eve opened her mouth calmly.
"As long as I am with 'Si-un', I don't mind anywhere."
It was a line worthy of a heroine who'd run away for love.
No, I'm thankful, but that's not the answer I wanted right now.
I changed my question.
"...Where would it be most efficient to hide?"
Eve looked at me slowly.
Just then, the light changed. I stepped on the accelerator.
The old engine's sound and vibration transmitted through the worn-out seat.
"How about an entirely different city?"
"......That's a bit."
In the first place, I didn't have a passport right now.
For reference, in this world, even going between cities required a passport. It was info I hadn't known in the game, so I was surprised when I first found out.
.......
Come to think of it, thanks to Eve's skills, a passport wouldn't be a big deal. It wouldn't matter if we hacked it anyway.
"Hmm."
I shook my head and continued.
"I really don't intend to film an escape movie."
It would become not just 'running away' but 'fleeing'.
And if that happened, the reactions of the other housemates could get more serious.
I planned to return in about a week anyway.
There was no reason to go to another city and deepen their worries.
Moreover, even if we went to another city, we wouldn't be able to escape Monolith's grasp.
Monolith, with nearly a million employees, had branches in each city.
At my answer, Eve fell silent.
I also used that silence to think briefly.
Honestly, if there was really nowhere to go, I considered going to the 'Sin Sector' in Chinatown. Aside from the poor security, it was a perfect place to hide.
And then, Eve broke the silence and spoke.
"What about ———?"
"Huh?"
I doubted my ears.
If I hadn't been stepping on the accelerator, I'd have turned my head to look at Eve.
"That place is—."
As I was speaking, I thought.
...Hmm.
Hard for Monolith to track. Good facilities, enough that I could laze around comfortably. And a place owned by someone who'd (probably) gladly let me stay.
"......."
...Was that right?
I don't know.
It's true we had nowhere to go anyway.
Still, we should contact them before going.
I thought as I operated my vision interface.
* * *
[......So you're saying you're coming here?]
"Yes. I'll be imposing on you for a few days."
[.......]
In the hologram screen, after hearing my words, Koozaka's Vice Chairman, 'Kozaka William', placed his hand on the bridge of his nose.
He definitely had a handsome middle-aged appearance, but unlike last time I saw him, he looked several years older.
It seemed work had been very tough lately.
I'll keep quiet and leave later.