The special conference room at Ginga headquarters had no extravagant decorations—just a long table and chairs, as plain as a roadside diner.
Could this really be where Ginga's highest-ranking executives held meetings to decide the conglomerate's future?
Anyone would doubt it at first glance.
Yet in reality, precisely because it was the meeting room of the highest executives, this space required nothing else. These individuals, who barely harbored personal desires, were mere cogs in the conglomerate's machinery, utterly indifferent to luxury in their own lives. Beyond themselves, no superfluous elements were permitted here.
"Let us begin."
The one who spoke in a composed voice was a golden-haired beauty whose age was impossible to discern.
Her blond hair was pinned up at the back of her head, and she wore a sharply tailored black suit. Her figure remained curvaceous, and if Roy had been present, he would have noticed her striking resemblance to Claudia—as if they were carved from the same mold.
"The operation failed?"
Another high-ranking executive—his form flickering with a faint glow, revealing him as a holographic projection rather than a physical presence—directed a low, questioning voice toward the woman, Isabella Enfield.
Among the highest executives gathered here, Isabella was the only one physically present. Everyone else appeared as holograms.
"Were we obstructed by another conglomerate?"
"No. The combat unit never made it ashore."
Isabella's face betrayed no emotion, her eyes carrying a mechanical quality, as if she had long since lost any sense of self.
"That shouldn't have happened."
"It's the truth. Over two hundred people died—inside the ferry."
"..."
The conference room fell into silence.
Two hundred Genestellars, each at the level recorded in the Named Charts, with abilities spanning every conceivable type—deployed to capture the Evil Eye Sorcerer, it should have been a guaranteed success.
The news that they had all perished aboard the ferry undoubtedly shocked every high-ranking executive present.
The loss of so many directly affiliated Genestellars was a severe blow, even for Ginga.
"What about Night Emit?"
After a long pause, another executive spoke, his tone devoid of sympathy or fury.
Right now, identifying the cause of the failure took precedence. Every high-ranking executive had instantly reached the same conclusion.
"Bujinzai returned severely injured. Over half of Yabuki Clan's combatants were lost."
"Did you question him about what happened?"
"According to him, Akatsuki intervened."
Isabella paused, allowing the others to process this information.
"Is this intel reliable?"
"There's no way to verify it. The ferry exploded and sank into the lake."
The executives frowned in unison.
Akatsuki... If it was him, silently annihilating a combat unit directly under the conglomerate wasn't impossible.
No—to be precise, aside from Akatsuki, there were very few who could slaughter so many Genestellars in one go. Even the Evil Eye Sorcerer couldn't have done it; the sheer volume of prana was an insurmountable limitation.
If it had been the Banyuu Tenra, such a feat wouldn't be surprising—but she had signed a secret pact with them, unbroken for decades. Had she truly intended to act, she would never have let Bujinzai escape alive.
"Let's discuss how to handle Akatsuki and the Evil Eye Sorcerer moving forward."
"First, regarding the Evil Eye Sorcerer. We still haven't confirmed his whereabouts. The assumption that he's in Asterisk City is just speculation for now. Let's continue sending people to search, but as for the manpower for the pursuit—"
"Let me remind you, other conglomerates' informants in Asterisk City seem to have noticed something. We can't continue acting so openly from now on."
"..."
The senior executive was left speechless.
The scale of this operation was already considerable. Not only might people within Asterisk have noticed, but even those two hundred combat troops could have leaked information. They couldn't underestimate any conglomerate's intelligence-gathering capabilities.
"No choice. We originally planned to settle everything in one move, but since we've been detected, we'll have to lay low for a while. For now, we'll focus on investigation and contact, seeing if we can obtain the Rune Arts peacefully."
"No objections."
"None here."
"As for Akatsuki..."
At the mention of this terrorist, all the senior executives present frowned.
The terrorist who called himself Akatsuki had always used unknown threads to remotely control others to act on his behalf. His true whereabouts were completely unknown. Even if they wanted to deal with him, they had no way to direct their efforts.
"I have a proposal. The Research Department has already discovered some clues about the threads."
Another senior executive stepped forward—he was the head of the Research Department.
"I propose temporarily shelving other projects in the Research Department to focus entirely on studying Akatsuki's threads. Until then, I suggest we remain covert."
"Have you already made some discoveries?"
Hearing this, the other senior executives perked up.
"I support this plan. No country can live in peace until Akatsuki is eliminated."
"At the very least, we need to develop a device that can detect Akatsuki's threads."
"I also agree."
All eighteen senior executives, including Isabella, unanimously approved the Research Director's proposal.
...
Early the next morning.
Claudia opened her eyes and sat up in bed.
Her flawless skin was completely bare, her curvaceous figure fully exposed, with suggestive kiss marks scattered all over her body. After a night of transformation, the girl had inexplicably gained a more alluring charm.
Her movement as she got up disturbed the covers, waking Roy as well.
"Sorry, did I wake you?"
Claudia looked over with eyes as gentle as water.
"It's fine. I was about to wake up anyway."
Roy shook his head and sat up as well.
He looked full of energy, showing no signs of exhaustion from toiling most of the night.
"That's good."
Watching Roy get dressed, his well-defined muscles swaying before her eyes, Claudia's gaze grew slightly restless, the corners of her eyes tinged with a faint blush.
"You were amazing last night!"
"..."
Roy paused briefly while putting on his clothes.
He turned to look at Claudia and, seeing the growing restlessness in her eyes, immediately knew what she was thinking.
What's wrong with this woman? Once she's had a taste, she doesn't even bother hiding her craving for more. Isn't this usually how men act? At least in the beginning, it's the men who behave like this, right?
And her words were strange too, giving Roy the vague feeling of being treated like a gigolo.
"Today's match is in the morning, you know."
"Oh..."
Claudia came to her senses, her face instantly filled with regret.
You weren't seriously thinking about that, were you?
"Are you okay? Can you move?"
"A little sore, but I'll manage."
Claudia stepped out of bed naked, stretching slightly. Her lower back ached the most, but otherwise she felt fine.
The Genestellar body was truly resilient.
Roy approached and placed his hand on Claudia's body, channeling magical energy into her. Using his body modification ability, he instantly restored her to peak condition.
"That's amazing! I don't feel anything at all now!" Claudia marveled at her own body in disbelief. In just the blink of an eye, all her fatigue had vanished, making her feel like she could go another three hundred rounds.
"By the way... can this part be restored too?" she asked.
"Which part?"
Roy followed her gaze and froze when he saw her thoughtful eyes lingering on his lower body. After a moment's delay, the corner of his mouth began twitching uncontrollably.
"If this could be restored too, we could keep experiencing that passionate love from last night... Can we try?" Claudia blinked up at him with eager anticipation.
Roy cleared his throat softly.
"We'll try tonight."
***
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