Chapter 39: Corporate War (2)

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Chapter 39: Corporate War (2)

10 minutes before sitting at the negotiation table.

In the headquarters lobby.

"Hmm… How did you manage to get here?"

An elderly man, who seemed to be the manager, checked my credentials and blocked my way.

[Manager (Grade 3)]

- Insufficient access to view.

‘As expected from the headquarters. Even the lobby manager is a Grade 3.’

The old man fiddled with and cleaned his monocle before speaking again.

"It seems like you randomly pressed some coordinates and ended up here... This is an area you should not enter carelessly, especially if you haven't been granted permission."

Half of what he said was correct, but the other half was wrong.

‘Could anyone just randomly press coordinates and end up at the headquarters?’

The answer was "no."

Each company has its own unique identification number.

While the entry approval is handled by the headquarters, it’s the staff's job to verify it.

That's why this old man was standing in my way.

[Request ID 001 - Joseon Government (Challenger)]

[Affiliation: Administrator Zone (Gold)]

[Shin Seongjin (Grade 6)]

The company requesting the coordinates and the company that actually came here were different.

‘It’s not like I’m impersonating anyone…’

There’s no issue with me using my own account’s unique ID.

Of course, proving that would be my job…

But I didn’t really need to prove it.

‘They owe me anyway.’

I shrugged and stated my business.

"I'm here to meet with the Executor."

"...?"

The old man started to hum, clearly confused.

Gold... And a new company is here to meet an Executor?

Why?

His expression was full of questions.

Then, as if a possibility crossed his mind, he asked with a face full of suspicion.

“...Did you make an appointment?”

His question carried a lot of implications, but I didn’t really care.

‘I didn’t make an appointment, but…’

There were two people here who owed me, so it didn’t really matter.

‘They’ll take care of it.’

I simply nodded to his question.

The old man’s expression turned serious, and he called over an employee to ask something.

“Hey, do we have any scheduled visits from a guild under the Joseon Government today?”

“Yes, sir. If you check the documents, you'll see that there's a visit scheduled for today.”

The old man glanced at the document handed to him by the employee, then his attitude changed.

“Ahem, my apologies. But can you tell me which Executor you're referring to?”

There were two Executors who owed me. One was Nice, and the other was Yoo.

‘Which Executor…’

The truth is, the choice had already been made.

‘There’s this guy who goes nuts anytime the headquarters is involved. Though he’s not exactly sane...’

When dealing with those who dare to defy the headquarters like this, he was the most reliable.

With a slight smirk, I spoke his name.

“Yoo.”

The old man flinched upon hearing the name, scribbled something, and asked again,

"So you made an appointment with Mr. Yoo. Understood. I’ll…"

As the old man was about to turn and walk away, his footsteps halted.

“No need to tell me. I’m already here.”

A white-haired man snatched the document from the old man’s hands, briefly scanned it, and handed it back.

“Well, I get the gist of the situation. So, why are you looking for me?”

Despite treating the Grade 3 manager dismissively, no one dared to say anything to the man.

It was natural.

After all, he was the very person I had come to see.

The Executor, Yoo.

I felt a strange pressure but kept a smirk on my face.

“I’ve got a good lead for you. There’s a company that thinks little of the headquarters.”

Yoo's lips curled in interest at the mention of the headquarters.

“Oh? Tell me more.”

* * *

‘Bringing him along was easy... but this is more chaotic than I expected.’

Crack.

Just now, the neck of an employee, who seemed to be from Magleus, twisted in a strange way.

Yoo had snapped it with one hand.

“There’s too much trash to deal with. That one’s from Madari... And the one next to him is with the Former Warrio’s Union, huh?”

Yoo pointed at Makarov and Mitsu.

Then Mitsu screamed.

“...You already know all our affiliations, damn it!”

Makarov, realizing the seriousness of the situation, urgently began summoning their staff.

“Damn it, damn it. Damn it! At the most, it’s just one Executor. Push through! If he's human, he’ll tire out eventually, won’t he?”

If he's human, he’ll tire.

That much is true.

But only if their opponent wasn’t an Executor.

‘Well, how could anyone below a Master possibly know…’

Yoo faintly smiled as he looked at the surrounding staff.

Then, he slowly opened his eyes.

His light blue eyes glared at Mitsu and Makarov.

“Hmph, right. It’s just one. So what?”

Click.

As Yoo snapped his fingers, the staff around him collapsed without a sound.

“What could trash possibly do?”

There was no warning.

They just dropped, like puppets with their strings cut.

An incomprehensible strength, an incomprehensible situation.

Fear spread like wildfire.

“He’s insane! This is madness!”

“Run! Get out of here!”

The surviving staff fell into a collective panic and started fleeing. Sёarᴄh the nôᴠel Fire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

However, it was already too late.

‘They’re already within Yoo’s domain.’

The Executor’s domain.

Until the situation ends, there is no escaping that space.

“W-What the hell is this?!”

“Why, why are we returning to this monster?!”

The panicked staff, who had tried to flee, found themselves returning to the space where Yoo stood, as if trapped in an infinite loop.

“Who said you were allowed to breathe in my presence?”

Yoo drew a line in the air with his index finger.

“Aaagh!”

“P-Please spare me!”

Then, dozens of blades flew through the air, delivering a peaceful end to the staff.

‘Each Executor has their own unique ability…’

Even Challenger-level 1st-class employees or Grand Masters bowed down before the headquarters because of this.

‘Even among 1st-class employees, the difference in strength is enormous.’

Does this mean that Executors are invincible?

Not exactly.

‘…If the number one party from the Joseon government were involved, they could win.’

I knew this from his past experience of having once had a 1st-class employee of Executor-level strength.

“U-Uaahhhh!”

Mitsu, having faced unknown terror, charged in like a madman.

He didn’t carry his 4th-class rank for nothing.

Mitsu’s movements were swift, like the wind.

[Warning!]

Of course, Mitsu didn’t aim for the monstrous Yoo.

His target was Seongjin, who was still only a 6th-class employee.

‘Fast!’

Seongjin couldn’t react to Mitsu’s speed… but then again, he didn’t really need to.

“Guh, gah!”

Yoo grabbed Mitsu’s head as he charged in.

And then.

Crash!

He slammed Mitsu’s head straight into the table.

“Hah? What’s a slowpoke like you even trying to do?”

I could see the veins bulging on Yoo’s forehead.

That meant he was very, very angry.

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

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Splurt.

The end for Mitsu, the so-called 4th-class employee, was pathetically anticlimactic.

The last one standing, Makarov, had lost his mind and started laughing.

“Yaho, yahohoho… I never thought things would get this twisted. I admit it. I never imagined you’d bring an Executor here.”

Mumbling to himself, Makarov twisted his body in a bizarre manner as he continued to laugh, but then abruptly stopped and hardened his expression.

“Damn it, damn it! I was planning to hand over those useless Magleus bastards to HQ and let it pass quietly! This is all your fault!”

Consumed by madness, Makarov roared as he pulled something out and pressed it.

Click!

“Yahohohoho. It’s the Buster Call!”

Upon hearing that, both my and Yoo’s faces stiffened.

Buster Call.

One of the forbidden functions designated by HQ, allowing the release of the company’s creatures at any desired location.

Knowing that the company’s purpose was to contain the creatures and restore order to the world, one couldn’t possibly misunderstand what this action meant.

‘…This lunatic. He’s committing treason just because he received one penalty?’

Magleus would take the fall for this entire incident.

Even if an Executor came and gathered all the evidence, this fact wouldn’t change.

‘The root of the problem was always the unreported corporate war between Magleus and the Yeondan Society.’

The sly bastard Madari and the Warrior’s Union, who had attempted to trap me in an unfair contract, wouldn’t get away with this, but they’d likely only face HQ’s monitoring and a penalty.

"No matter how big the impact of the penalty is... Did he really have to resort to ‘elf-destruction?’

I couldn't understand Makarov's actions.

By doing this, he had openly violated the regulations of the headquarters, and this wasn't something that would just end with penalties or the slaughter of a few employees.

‘He's trying to take down the entire country just because his business got flagged.’

I was dumbfounded and asked Makarov.

"...Do you even know what you've done?"

"Yohohoho! Of course, I do! Of course, I do!"

I asked just in case, but it was as expected.

Makarov had definitely lost his grip on sanity.

Despite my and Yoo's reactions, he proudly boasted about what he had done.

"I unleashed the most dangerous creature from our company in the Administrator's Zone! Right in front of it! You... Krrgh!"

Of course, he couldn't finish his sentence.

Yoo, having heard enough, split Makarov's head and mouth apart.

[Would you like to use Recall?]

In a hurry, I used Recovery.

[Using Administrator Authority.]

From the Gold rank onward, coordinates in the world are fixed.

This means that the company, once revealed, can be attacked from outside.

"What exactly did he unleash?"

If it was a creature released by a Diamond-rank company, it was definitely no ordinary monster.

At this point, I had to worry not just about the damage to the employees but about the company's survival.

[Beep! Error. Insufficient authority to access this area.]

An error here?

Really?

* * *

Outside the Administrator's Zone.

A massive containment cell fell from the sky.

Thud!

The surrounding 6th-grade creatures, which had settled there, turned their attention to it.

They began gathering around the suddenly fallen containment cell, as if to protect their territory, but...

Rip.

A giant claw tore through the containment cell and sprang out.

And...

From the gap in the torn space, the terrifying roar of a monster echoed out.

Roaaar!

The creatures that had gathered to defend their territory immediately turned and fled.

Whatever was tearing through the containment cell was not something a mere 6th-grade creature could contend with.

Rip.

A giant claw finally burst through the wall of the containment cell.

Through the widening gap, the creature began to slowly reveal itself.

A massive body, measuring 15 meters.

Ash-gray scales covering its entire form.

Roaaar.

From its enormous maw, fire spewed forth, melting the ground.

The creature was a dragon, the kind only found in myths or legends.

However, there were those who had been watching the dragon emerge from the beginning.

"Wow. What's going on here for a Buster Call to be dropped?"

"Tsk tsk. Are you really impressed by a mere salamander? Get rid of that ash-gray salamander quickly, it's blocking our way into the company."

It was a mischievous-looking man with yellow hair and a dignified woman with long, green hair.

"Yes, yes. The Queen has ordered it, so I'll get rid of it."

The yellow-haired man drew a sword from his waist.

And then...

Swoosh!

From an airship so tall that even the 15-meter dragon seemed small, the man leaped down.

Thud!

With a single swing of his sword, he cleaved the dragon’s head in two.

The dragon, which seemed unbeatable, was effortlessly subdued.

As the dragon fell, a cloud of dust rose, but not a speck touched the area around the yellow-haired man.

"Dealing with a 4th-grade creature is a bit tiring."

The yellow-haired man seemed dissatisfied as he inspected his sword several times.

"The reptiles this company raises have quite the bad temper. Well, it’s not so bad to teach them some manners as a guest."

The woman, who had followed the man down from the airship, headed towards the company gate labeled "Administrator Zone."

"What are you waiting for? Open the door."

"Haha. Of course, I should open it."

The yellow-haired man placed his hand on the gate.

[You do not have access privileges!]

[You do not have access privileges!]

[You do not have access privileges!]

Ignoring the warnings, the man forced the door open.

"Now, let's see the faces of those who dared impersonate this company."

Behind them, a white trophy gleamed.

[Joseon Government (Challenger)]

[Vampir (Grade 2)]

[Johan (Grade 3)]

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

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