章 1: Chapter 1 – The Inauguration and Business Plan (1)
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Click, clack. The sound of high heels striking the floor echoed.
It was the only sound filling the otherwise silent meeting room. A woman in a black suit sat naturally at the most prominent seat as if it was her rightful place.
Her white hair flowed as she sat down, and her gaze swept over the surroundings.
Even though everyone was seated at the same height, there was an oppressive feeling as if she was looking down from a higher place. Those who received her gaze shuddered involuntarily.
"Nice to meet you all. My name is Carisia."
Arabella, who was looking at Carisia, thought.
'No, it's not nice to meet you at all.'
This mysterious witch had suddenly appeared over the past few months, disrupting the underworld's balance and crushing several criminal organizations.
Some ignorant fools whispered that she was a 'saint' when they saw the radiance of her light magic illuminating the slums, but Arabella knew the truth.
Though she wielded light magic, her nature was far more ruthless than theirs.
Who could call her a saint after witnessing a person evaporate into golden light right before their eyes?
"Some of you here are meeting me for the first time, and some are not."
Arabella lowered her gaze, letting Carisia's words flow in one ear and out the other.
Despite the polite expressions and respectful tone, the message was clear.
'This territory is mine. Don't mess with me and bow down.'
But there was no way to refute it. Those who tried had long met a dazzling death.
"They say an organization with multiple heads is bound to split. But we will be different."
Like Arabella, eight organizations had chosen to submit to Carisia. Including Carisia, there were nine heads here.
"Shall we borrow a name from ancient mythology? From now on, we will be known as Hydra."
Arabella bit her lip. The Hydra, a monstrous serpent with multiple heads, had unequal heads.
Among those heads, there was a particularly special one, the immortal middle head.
It was a metaphor, almost a threat, about the difference in rank between Carisia and the other eight leaders.
"Then, formally, I declare that our fates are now united under the name of Hydra Corporation."
Bowing her head humiliatingly, Arabella considered the possibility of assassination but then shook her head.
It was because of the man who had been silently standing behind Carisia all this time.
He was so faint that he was almost unnoticeable unless one focused, a man perfectly described by the word 'indistinct.'
If Carisia was the immortal head of Hydra, then this man was the poison within Hydra.
'Orthes.'
Some called him Carisia's bodyguard.
Some called him Carisia's strategist.
Arabella denied and affirmed both.
Neither bodyguard nor strategist sufficed to describe him. In other words…
'Confidant.'
He was the only one with whom the enigmatic Carisia shared her inner thoughts.
As Arabella signed the contract, she licked her lips.
If she wanted to eliminate Carisia, she would have to deal with him first.
***
I thought to myself.
'I'm screwed.'
After living for over a decade under the name Orthes, I realized the true identity of my employer.
And, incidentally, the true nature of this world.
Carisia was the protagonist's enemy, and this world was within a novel.
As I watched the scene that was more of a coronation than an inauguration, I began planning my escape.
***
"Employer."
After the eight leaders who had crawled in to submit to Carisia left, I whispered to her.
Her head tilted slightly.
"May I respectfully request your permission to resign?"
A flash of white light grazed my neck. It was magic launched at the speed of light, in the literal sense of the words.
So ruthless. I glanced at the wall where the light had struck. It had only slightly scorched it, so she hadn't used the spell in earnest.
From the first moment I met her, I thought she had a twisted personality, and it seemed she hadn't changed.
She always overreacted to words like leaving or resigning.
"What's the problem now?"
"On the contrary, what is the problem that makes you want to leave?"
A smiling face. Someone seeing it for the first time might think it beautiful.
But I had been rolling under Carisia for several years now. How many times had I genuinely rejoiced at my superior's smile?
"What more help can I be to you? You've already taken over all the organizations in this city, and the remaining ones aren't worth mentioning. Even without me—"
I couldn't finish my sentence. Carisia was covering her ears with both hands.
An obvious gesture of 'I don't want to hear it.' It was an immature act, unimaginable from her usual cold demeanor.
I couldn't help but sigh. I thought I had done enough as one of the founding contributors, but Carisia still seemed to want more from me.
"Really, why are you doing this?"
"Your title is wrong."
Titles. At first, you didn't even tell me your name, so I kept calling you 'employer.' You've never complained about it until now.
The faces of the people who had just left flashed through my mind as I pondered.
Ah.
Carisia was now officially the president. Even if Hydra Corporation was a semi-illegal business created by gathering the illegal businesses clinging to the city's underworld, the title remained unchanged.
Considering her noble status, it was understandable that she was sensitive to such titles.
"Yes, President."
I whispered with conviction.
Carisia's expression turned crooked upon hearing my words. Did I do something wrong? That shouldn't be the case.
"Enough, leave."
Carisia's hand waved gently. I knew better than anyone that just because her gesture was gentle didn't mean her heart was.
I bowed and left what would now be the president's office.
What should I do now? I moved my steps while faintly recalling the memories of the original story.
***
Carisia sighed. Really, what an unpredictable person.
Does he know that my voice only relaxes in front of him? Carisia blinked a couple of times and then stroked the fountain pen in her suit jacket pocket.
It was something Orthes had obtained from somewhere. Her white fingers slid along the pen's body.
There was much to be done. The founding of Hydra Corporation was just the first step toward revenge against her family.
The nameless magic tower in the underworld that Carisia had wiped out. First, she needed to renew the magic tower's qualifications in her own name.
Reviewing the documents to be submitted to the Mage Alliance, Carisia looked up at the door Orthes had left through.
Despite the time spent together, the man's teasing request for resignation lingered in her mind.
Carisia unconsciously voiced her complaint.
"…I told him to call me by my name."
He still wouldn't call me that till the end.
***
Back in my room, I first checked my surroundings. In this world where the peculiar field of magi-engineering was developed, as long as you had money, you could obtain items that matched or even surpassed the technological level of the modern civilization I once lived in.
This meant the risk of eavesdropping couldn't be overlooked.
Although we had cleaned the entire building once while crushing the organization that originally occupied it, one could never be too sure.
One of the eight Hydra Corporation leaders brought here today might have scattered items enchanted with eavesdropping magic to gather information.
'I'm clumsy with magic.'
For people like that, there are those who sell pre-prepared spells. I plugged a USB into the port on my gauntlet.
The official name was a magical engraving drive, but to someone who remembered life on Earth, the term USB was much more familiar.
With a crackling sound, a green magical glow swept through the surroundings. Several ornaments in the room, like potted plants and clocks, were also dyed green.
"Well, they're quick, aren't they?"
I found and destroyed the hidden eavesdropping devices. A skilled magician might be able to trace the magic back to the caster, but I was no magician.
"I'll overlook today's incident. If this happens again, I'll give you the opportunity for a direct meeting with the president."
One good thing about being under a high-ranking person: you could use their name.
Those who had already been defeated and signed the agreement to merge wouldn't want a one-on-one meeting with Carisia.
Now, shall I organize the story of the original?
I picked up a pen.
***
Hiding quietly in a corner of Orthes's room, Arabella felt her composure falter. Using the latest camouflage suit for optical stealth and her unique magic to mask her presence, she could hide even the vibrations of the air and the reaction of carbon dioxide that any breathing being would produce.
This was the extreme concealment magic she had desperately honed to survive while gathering information in the dark alleys of the city.
And yet, he had seen through it effortlessly and said he would overlook it. What overwhelming skill.
Orthes had said he would give a 'chance for a meeting with the president.' This meant he was warning that the leaders would attempt to contact Orthes.
Her plan to conspire with the president's confidant to plot a rebellion was discarded. Carefully reducing her body size further, Arabella slipped through the door crack.
'Surely, he wasn't warning those who installed the eavesdropping devices, was he?'
Arabella shook her head.
Orthes had only spoken after finding and destroying each hidden device. Clearly, his words were aimed at herself, who had been hiding in the room.
Biting her lip, Arabella accepted that she had to submit to Carisia and Orthes's authority for the time being.
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