"Here. This is the intel on those monsters."
When Hai heard Don Quixote accept the mission, he raised an eyebrow, then handed over a file he'd already prepared.
Seeing this, Don Quixote immediately realized Hai had been waiting here all along for his agreement.
He'd been tricked—although this time, Don Quixote accepted it willingly enough.
With this thought, he took the report from Hai's hands.
[Unnumbered]
[Suspected Abnormality]
[Sighted Area: Western outskirts near the City's border]
[Related Evidence: Blackened feathers scattered across the area; extensive scorch marks; burned branches.]
After reading, Don Quixote raised his head again.
"That's it? No other leads?"
Hai calmly nodded.
Don Quixote sighed softly, a resigned look on his face.
"Alright... You really do love tossing troublesome work my way."
He rolled up the report with a faint hint of resignation before shouting into the room behind him:
"Nearl! We're heading out! Got another mission!"
Seeing Don Quixote had no intention of refusing, Hai exhaled quietly and silently left the room.
Most [Abnormalities] could probably be handled by Don Quixote himself. Hai didn't need to worry too much about that.
Hai had something else to do anyway—an inevitable matter that required attention sooner rather than later:
The issue of developing The Great Lake, and eventually establishing U Corp there.
As Don Quixote left for The Outskirts, a group of Doubts simultaneously moved into action. Thousands of Doubts fanned out across the edges of The City, moving stones and soil, rapidly constructing new buildings.
Meanwhile, Obsidian returned once more to the familiar Embryo Factory. After briefly checking on The [Tearful Thing Ampoules'] production rates, he headed to one side, searching among thousands of embryos for a suitable candidate.
The name "Wing of the World" was no longer easy to use as freely as before. People had begun to form their own assumptions about what it entailed, and now even scattered companies within The City were claiming to work toward that ideal. Under such circumstances, Obsidian couldn't casually give out that name again without substantial justification.
With that thought in mind, he carefully scanned the embryos nearby.
Moments later, he stopped in front of an embryo with black hair and golden eyes. After briefly assessing it, Obsidian pressed a button next to the incubator, releasing the embryo.
"Hmm… Physical condition seems good. You'll do."
With a soft sigh, he murmured to himself, embedding part of his consciousness into this new shell, then took a white lab coat from nearby, draping it around the body.
Next was to assign one of the remaining [Identity Credentials]…
"I'll call you X. From now on, you'll be responsible for overseeing Lobotomy Corporation's affairs within The City."
Obsidian spoke quietly, gazing at the new body. For some reason, he felt strongly against naming it "Ayin," as though doing so might invite some kind of hidden trouble. After a moment of thought, he selected another embryo.
"I have someone for internal management now, but we still need someone for diplomatic relations… At the very least, someone who can attract scientific talent to join us…"
Obsidian muttered softly, gazing at the woman sleeping peacefully in the nutrient tank. A faint smile crept onto his lips.
She'll do perfectly.
His eyes lingered on the girl's long brown hair and red eyes. After a long moment of silence, he sighed.
There was something undeniably captivating about this embryo—perhaps some innate charm? During the embryo cultivation process, Obsidian had encountered several such unique cases.
Following standard procedures, Obsidian awakened the embryo, granting her the last remaining [Identity Credential]. Again, driven by the same instinctive hesitation, he didn't lazily name her Carmen.
"As for your name… Let's call you Da'at."
After some contemplation, Obsidian gave the girl this final name.
Da'at—The hidden Sephirah on The [Kabbalah Tree of Life], connecting all other points.
That would be the girl's name.
"So, from today onward, you two will serve as the twins leading Lobotomy Corporation—its directors."
"Do your best... Don't disappoint me—or rather, don't disappoint us."
After awakening the two new identities, Obsidian immediately began handling their respective tasks.
That very morning, Da'at departed The City, heading toward Columbia.
[Ampoules] no longer seemed entirely suitable as Lobotomy Corporation's primary trading commodity, so Obsidian temporarily set aside new trade deals, deciding to wait until a more appropriate product—like [Enkephalin]—could be produced.
However, Lobotomy Corp couldn't wait for skilled personnel any longer. X was already busy calibrating laboratory instruments and preparing facilities for [Enkephalin] extraction. As soon as Don Quixote delivered the [Abnormality], they would immediately start [Enkephalin] production and [EGO] crafting.
Ideally, they needed more hands. Creating additional shells wasn't realistic right now, as each [EGO] required different expertise. Obsidian, as a consciousness cluster, couldn't spread himself thin enough to personally handle all those varying tasks at once.
Therefore, Obsidian decided to travel to Columbia, hoping to recruit skilled researchers.
"Honestly speaking, Ægir would have the best research talent available…"
Obsidian sat on his bed, sighing deeply as he rubbed his temples.
In terms of sheer education and scientific skill, Ægir was undoubtedly the most suitable choice. Unfortunately, reaching Ægir directly as Lobotomy Corporation would prove difficult.
Would it be better to approach them again as "The Speaker," perhaps through Laurentina, to gain Ægir's support?
Obsidian hesitated momentarily, mulling this over carefully. Lost deep in thought, he hadn't noticed the morning steadily slipping away.
But suddenly, a pull on his consciousness jolted Obsidian awake. Immediately, he shifted his focus to Da'at—and his eyes widened in surprise.
Wait, what's this...?
Standing quietly in the wilderness, Obsidian—through Da'at's eyes—silently stared at the blue-haired Orca girl wandering aimlessly. She appeared lost, turning around in confusion…
Yet…
Well, isn't this exactly what I needed?