The next day, Anida was attending her music class.
Kisho stood in the corner with his back against the wall, eyes closed as he cultivated.
The pager in his pocket suddenly vibrated. He opened his eyes, took it out and glanced at it, then silently slid along the wall to the door, pulled it open, and walked out.
Jitt was already standing outside waiting for him. He watched Kisho walk up and stop in front of him, then slowly spoke:
"The master is very satisfied with your performance yesterday. The bonus has already been transferred into your card."
Kisho shrugged.
"It's nothing. It was only right."
Jitt smiled and reached out to pat Kisho on the half of his shoulder that had never been injured.
"One week from now, the Bankro family's cargo ship will set sail."
Kisho silently returned his gaze, waiting for what came next.
"Originally, you weren't qualified to take part in this mission. But in view of your performance and strength, the master made an exception and agreed to include you on the list of accompanying personnel."
Jitt raised a hand to adjust his glasses, his tone filled with temptation.
"Once this voyage mission ends smoothly, you'll receive a bonus of thirty million jenny."
"Thirty million jenny?"
Kisho repeated the number.
Although he didn't really have a sense of how large that figure was, judging from Jitt's expression, it was clearly an offer far beyond the normal range.
—If you want a precious fish to bite without hesitation, you have to hang some tempting bait on the hook.
"I understand."
Kisho put on a look of barely restrained excitement and agreed immediately.
But inside, he sneered.
He hadn't forgotten that when Jitt came looking for him yesterday afternoon, Noah Barton hadn't left yet.
Noah's features, identical to those of the experimental subject, had been seen clearly by Jitt; right after that, he promptly arranged this kind of "money-filled future" job for him…
—These guys had probably already set their sights on him.
"Do I need to explain anything to the young lady?"
Kisho asked.
"No need. All you have to do is board the ship at the scheduled time. Until then, everything proceeds as usual."
Kisho nodded.
"Alright."
Even if this group was plotting something nasty, it suited his intentions perfectly—treating the ship as a battlefield was far better than land, where reinforcements could arrive at any time.
If he got lucky, he might even sink the ship outright.
Having received a definite answer, Jitt revealed a satisfied smile.
With a bang, Anida shoved the door open and stormed out angrily.
She shouted at Jitt:
"I heard everything! I don't agree!"
She spoke forcefully.
"Noah Barton is the companion Dad found for me. I don't want him to go along and then not come back for months, or even half a year!"
Jitt spoke helplessly.
"Miss Anida, this is the master's decision."
He thought for a moment, decided to shift the trouble elsewhere, and turned his head to look at Kisho.
Behind the lenses, his cold gaze refracted sharply.
"Besides, Mr. Noah is also willing to take part in this mission, right?"
Kisho: "..."
He felt Anida's furious gaze shooting toward him. Sighing inwardly, he nodded helplessly and said:
"That's right. I also need to earn money. After all, people need food to live."
"You—hmph!"
Hearing his answer, Anida stared at him in shock, so angry that she was left speechless.
Then she turned around in fury and went back into the classroom, slamming the door so hard it shook the room.
"Then go! I'm never talking to you again!"
Kisho: "..."
"Ahem."
As the culprit behind all this, Jitt faced Kisho's resentful look and awkwardly shifted his gaze away.
"There are still a few days before the mission begins. Mr. Noah, spend more time with the young lady."
"...Okay."
After Jitt left, Kisho turned around to push open the music classroom door—then froze, awkwardly raising a hand to rub his head.
Sure enough, the door was locked.
...Night...
Kisho opened his eyes. Looking helplessly at Gelia, who had appeared out of thin air in front of him, he said with a headache:
"Could you at least say hello first? Aren't you afraid you might see something you shouldn't when you come in?"
Gelia stared at him with contempt, then said disdainfully:
"I'm not interested in minors."
Kisho: "..."
"...Jitt let you take part in this voyage, right?"
Gelia didn't plan to continue bantering with Kisho and instead turned serious.
"Over the past couple of days, not only has cargo been shipped out from the factory, but people have also been transferred together with it. The destination is the Bankro family's cargo ship at the harbor."
Her eyes burned as she looked at Kisho.
"Transporting goods is understandable, but transferring experimental staff—what do you think that's for?"
Kisho smiled.
"Although it sounds a bit self-flattering, it's probably for me."
"So..."
Gelia said,
"Can you have at least a little awareness that a disaster is about to strike?"
"I already guessed it when Jitt asked me to join the mission."
"After all, he opened with thirty million jenny, and judging by his expression, he seemed to think I'd be overwhelmed with gratitude over the reward and agree without thinking."
"...Thirty million—that really is quite something."
Gelia said.
"The only downside is that dead people don't get to take it."
Kisho smiled faintly.
"Alright. Since you've already noticed, there's no need for me to say much about being careful."
She looked at Kisho and gave a cold laugh.
"Besides, people from Meteor City all have lives as tough as cockroaches."
Kisho smiled.
"I'll take that as a compliment. Still, thank you for specially telling me about this."
As if thinking of something, he continued softly:
"...After the plan succeeds, the Bankro family will definitely be severely weakened, right?"
"Yes."
Gelia nodded.
"If the order isn't completed, they'll definitely be held responsible by the one who placed it. And they'll also have lost the 'talent' capable of producing the 'raw liquid'."
"Such a predicament would be hard to bear even for a major family. On top of that, the other families on Lashan Mountain definitely won't miss this opportunity."
Like pronouncing a verdict, Gelia said decisively:
"Very soon, the Bankro family will be replaced and vanish into smoke."
Kisho indicated that he understood.
After thinking for a moment, he spoke softly:
"I'd like to ask you for a favor. It might be a bit of an imposition. If you're unwilling, you can just pretend I didn't say anything."
He flipped his hand and flicked it, and a black card flew toward Gelia, who caught it with a swift motion.
Gelia glanced at the anonymous credit card in her hand, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly as she spoke slowly:
"You want me to look after Anida, right?"
"Yeah... A loyalty bought with drugs and money can't possibly be maintained once both are gone."
"The bodyguards and the butler here—none of them seem reliable to me. Expecting them to protect Anida is basically impossible."
As Kisho spoke, he saw Gelia looking at him with a meaningful, teasing gaze. His face reddened, and he hurriedly explained:
"It's not what you think, I didn't—"
"You don't need to explain to me."
Gelia waved her hand.
"I don't dislike that little girl. I haven't seen many normal people on Lashan Mountain, but Anida definitely counts as one."
She gave a mocking smile.
"Don't worry. If there's a need for me to step in, I'll help you with this and take her out of Lashan Mountain."
Kisho smiled.
"Then thank you very much."