Late-Night Commotion at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
“Ugh…. My head is killing me. What on earth was in that alcohol?”
Mimata Chieri, who had been sleeping beside me, woke up pressing her temples and asked the question. She looked genuinely shocked that a single small bottle could reduce her to this state.
“It was an elixir.”
I answered while slipping on the artifact glasses. Yesterday her strength stat had been 5(+5). Now it was 7(+5). Oh…! So she had received the maximum possible effect. That was a relief.
“An elixir?”
“It probably raised your muscle strength. Check it once the hangover passes.”
Since Mimata Chieri already knew about elixirs, telling her the drink from last night had been one seemed to surprise her. The value of such medicine was never trivial, so she appeared both astonished and moved that I had given it to her so casually.
“Why give it to me instead of taking it yourself, junior?”
“Think of it as a gift for this trip. Like I told you yesterday, it’s especially good for women.”
To be precise, it benefited anyone whose strength was below a certain threshold, not just women. But explaining the exact numbers and saying “it has no effect once your strength exceeds this point” sounded tedious, so I simply called it a drink that was good for women.
“Ah, I see…. Thank you, junior!”
“I’ve already washed up, so go back to your room, get cleaned up, and come to the dining room.”
The mansion’s butler had announced that breakfast would be served at 7:30, so we simply needed to arrive on time.
It was still before seven in the morning, so if Mimata Chieri returned to her room to wash up, she would likely make it exactly on schedule. I had woken up far earlier, showered, and was browsing the news online.
Because we had only done it (?) twice yesterday, I was still overflowing with energy. That was why my eyes had snapped open at the crack of dawn.
The Japanese news had nothing noteworthy. On the Korean side, the article that caught my eye reported that the perpetrator of the BS Group building terror incident had been arrested.
It had clearly been an accident that occurred while the two BS Group heirs were busy tearing into each other, yet they were calling it terrorism? This was obviously an attempt to cut off the tail.
If they wanted to catch the real culprit, they would have to arrest either the chairman’s eldest or second son. So instead they pinned it on a terrorist organization or paid off some desperate person to take the fall.
Still, officially the culprit had been caught, which meant Han Yoo-kyung could finally return to her studio apartment near campus. She had been stuck at the main family house except for work-related outings and had complained bitterly about how suffocating it was. I could easily picture how thrilled she must be right now.
Since we were also working with the Dark Merchant, I figured I might as well send her a message.
After finishing the business discussion, I spent a while flirting with YooKyung before it was time for breakfast, so I headed down to the dining room.
Mimata Chieri, freshly washed and dressed, was already seated. When I took the seat across from her, Aris—wearing light-green pajamas—came down with half-lidded eyes, yawning, her hair a charming mess, and sat right beside me.
She was clutching a small teddy bear I had no idea why she had brought, and her indoor slippers were adorable rabbit ones. Aris looked incredibly cute after so long. Normally she gave off a sophisticated, chic model vibe.
“Did you sleep well, Ryuta?”
“Yeah. What about you, Aris?”
“I got back really late yesterday…. I’m going to eat and then sleep some more.”
Ah, so she really had come back late. That explained why I had only sensed Nae Fitzgerald’s presence.
“Is Ms. Nae not joining us for breakfast?”
“She said she would be skipping it,” the butler replied.
Nae Fitzgerald must have felt too awkward to face me after last night’s events and decided to skip breakfast entirely.
Breakfast consisted of simple pancakes, crispy bacon, and salad. Because I had mentioned yesterday that I was a big eater, my plate held noticeably more pancakes and bacon than everyone else’s.
I cut into a pancake and took a bite. It was genuinely delicious. It might have been the best pancake I had ever tasted. As expected, it was nothing like the mass-produced supermarket mix; the recipe from this ancient noble house made all the difference.
The bacon was simply excellent bacon. Crispy and perfect.
When I finished eating and stood up, Aris hugged me tightly with an apologetic look and kissed my cheek.
“Sorry, Ryuta. I’m so tired…. Let’s play together in the afternoon.”
“It’s fine. You seemed busy yesterday, so rest if you’re tired.”
Aris kept apologizing before heading back upstairs to her room. Mimata Chieri, still suffering from her hangover, was frowning and rubbing her temples.
“Senior, are you all right?”
“Ugh…. The hangover is brutal. My head is pounding.”
At this rate I wouldn’t be able to take Mimata Chieri with me. Her condition looked far too poor.
“Take the morning off too, senior.”
“I can’t. There’s so much I need to do for my junior who can’t speak English…”
Even while insisting she couldn’t, she let out a pained “Ugh!” as she fought through the headache. It was doubtful she would recover by the afternoon. The side effects of the elixir seemed extremely potent.
“I’m only stopping by the Dark Merchant like yesterday, so I won’t need a translator. Rest for now.”
“Ugh…. All right.”
After sending Mimata Chieri back to her room and preparing to head out, the butler approached me.
“As I mentioned yesterday, I will prepare the finest steak for lunch, so please return by then.”
“Of course. I’m looking forward to tasting that best-in-class steak myself.”
After finishing the conversation with the butler, I got on the motorcycle and rode toward the Dark Merchant. The best steak, huh? I was actually quite excited.
###
“Ryuta! You’re here!”
Eve greeted me with her usual bright smile. I returned the greeting and entered the New York branch of the Dark Merchant, taking the seat she guided me to. The moment I sat down, I got straight to business.
“Did you contact Energy-Link Industrial Company about purchasing the firm?”
“Yes. They said they understand, but they want to meet with you first to discuss the purpose behind the acquisition.”
Were they that attached to the company? Their level of activity seemed too low for that…. I was curious why they were insisting on this meeting. Most people would be far more interested in how much money they would receive.
“Then we’ll have to go to them?”
“They said they would come to us. However, we cannot provide the address.”
Hmm, that was even stranger. Of course the person who created the steel wolves wasn’t coming, but the president of the company that manufactured man-eating mechanical wolves was still an eerie thought.
“So we arranged to meet in Tokyo in two weeks!”
I couldn’t stay in America indefinitely, so if the schedules didn’t align, meeting in Tokyo was the only option.
“We’ll just have to have a good talk there.”
“I’ll help too!”
If Eve was going to help, we would probably need to meet inside the Dark Merchant’s Tokyo branch. Since she was a hologram, she couldn’t appear outside.
“And how would you like to handle the shares for the company we’re partnering on?”
“My real objective was the AI of the steel puppy I obtained yesterday, so you don’t need to give me many shares. I’ll take about… 10 percent.”
I had been thinking around 30 percent, so 10 percent was less than expected. If the Dark Merchant held more shares they could invest more, but since I had sufficient funds, fewer shares on their side was preferable if I wanted to run the company freely.
“Then since the discussion is over…. Oh, I’d like to purchase one piece of information.”
“If it’s something I can provide, I’ll give it to you for free. Consider it a celebration for becoming business partners ♥”
“Has the Kurotsuki-do combat unit that came to capture Otagi arrived? And what kind of unit is it?”
Eve fell silent for a moment at my question.
“It’s not confirmed, but I believe the Shadowless Squad—the execution unit of Kurotsuki-do—has arrived.”
They were formidable opponents. I wondered whether Otagi Yuka could defeat the Shadowless Squad. If she mobilized every vampire ability she possessed, she might be able to hold her own, but the squad surely had established protocols for dealing with vampires.
From my standpoint, it wasn’t bad news. It meant Dang So-hwa and Yang Seol-hee would be that much safer.
“Understood. I’ll be going now.”
“Yes! Please stop by the branch in the next city on your itinerary~!”
Eve waved with a smile, as if she already knew I was heading to LA. I left the Dark Merchant building through the secret passage. Not much time had passed.
In that case… it seemed like a good time to return to the Brooklyn Navy Yard to retrieve the item.
----
Unused Pajamas
Barefoot Aris.
Pajama-clad Aris whose eyes are sparkling so brightly she looks ready to head out at any moment.
Aris who has finally begun to feel sleepy.
Aris who was enjoying herself until a suddenly appearing kitten ruined everything.