Chapter 94
"Of course. They own the core groups of the Consortium corporate Alliance, and they're a true traditional Noble Family deeply involved in the history of the Dusk Founding.
In addition to the scale of Assets of Schneider Electrics, they have a wide reach in the automotive industry, and the recently listed Schneider Eisen Inc. is also..."
I was answering like that to the remark, ‘Does it seem that Family is still doing well? I haven't heard news about them for a while,’ when I suddenly froze.
“Wait a minute. Otto? Otto Wolfgang Schneider, the Founding Family Head of Schneider?”
Unless I misheard, the Dragon President had just casually called that historical figure by his first name, as if talking about a neighborhood friend he knew.
I was about to ask about that, but suddenly realized the surroundings had quieted. The Dragon President, Tony, and Sey were all staring at me.
[...Did I make some sort of slip of the tongue like with the cola earlier? Do you have some special connection with the Schneider Family or something?]
Oops.
I should have just said, “Schneider is still a successful Family.”
It was the aftermath of the Cyberdive.
Because the Net Data of the Schneider Family remained in my head, I unwittingly flared up and answered in detail as if I were a Family member.
"No. Just... I remembered something I heard somewhere. Don't mind it. Haha."
"For that to be the case, you were suspiciously sincere about the Schneider Family. Just where did you hear such detailed information—Aargh!"
"...Uh-oh."
I had nudged the teasing Tony in the side with my elbow to tell him to be quiet, but it went in much deeper than I intended.
Seeing Tony clutching his side and gasping that he couldn't breathe, I finally realized that I had forgotten to turn off the suit's Combat Mode and it was still active.
It had been left on Ever since I threw an Uppercut at the Dragon President.
Good lord. No wonder my movements felt so heavy.
The Force loaded into my arm just now was substantial.
I had swung lightly without much thought, but it must have felt, from Tony's perspective as he took the hit, like getting struck by an amateur martial artist's Elbow Attack.
[Combat Mode Deactivation.]
To think there was such an unimaginable drawback to the Nanosuit's combat functions and Kinetic Drive.
I shouldn't Activate it carelessly from now on. Even if I do, I need to shut it down immediately once the situation is over.
As I stood restlessly next to the hyperventilating Tony, the Dragon President clicked his tongue and shouted.
[Don't mind him. How much could it possibly hurt anyway? Koitsu (This guy) is making such a fuss.]
"I'm not making a fuss... I really can't breathe... I'm really dying... Nakamuraaa... I curse you..."
Tony cried out like that and collapsed face-down on the table.
Oh dear.
I feel really sorry... but well, he'll be Fine.
The Dragon President keeps saying he's Fine and not to worry about it, too.
If something goes wrong, I know nothing about it. It's all the President's fault.
Trying hard to ignore the injured and knocked-down Tony, I opened my mouth again.
"So the DCPD and Schneider Private Soldiers swarmed in, and what happened next?"
[The Private Soldiers asked me and the other customers this and that, then hurriedly went back taking one girl with them, but the DCPD was the problem. Those bastards drained all my energy asking so many inquisitive questions.]
"But the City police didn't come to me."
It's a bit much to say with my own mouth, but there's probably no one who holds as large a stake in this incident as I do.
I clashed with Ned Ludd until the very end, and I'm the person in question who made him burn and disappear in the Explosion.
I naturally thought the police would launch an Investigation targeting me, but no one came looking for me over the past three days.
Contact came neither from the DCPD nor from Schneider.
Far from Patrols coming to knock on my door, there wasn't even any contact through my Cyberwatch.
The only contact I received was a summons from Isiho Headquarters and a message from the Dragon President, so thanks to that, I was able to spend a pleasant rest period.
Of course, I did end up running into the City police eventually,
but that was an Encounter in an Unexpected, completely random place for an entirely different reason.
This is all because of the damn Dead Cell, while I was enjoying classic games at the game center.
Anyway, those Psycho gang bastards are of no help in life.
[Ah, that. I said I did it. The Luddite minions and their boss, Ned Ludd, set off an EMP and caused a ruckus in the shop, so I, the President, stepped up personally and cleaned those bastards up.]
While I was in the middle of cursing those terrorist gang bastards in my head, my brain stopped momentarily at the Dragon President's words.
This means... well.
It means the Otaku Dragon in front of me took all the Attention and aggro from the DCPD and Schneider in my place.
In my situation where drawing Attention is unwelcome, it's something to be truly thankful for, but... why?
"Why did you do that?"
[Naniga (What)?]
"It's something I did, so why are you taking it instead?"
When I asked with a frown, the Dragon President scratched the elongated, protruding Titanium Snout and said.
[Uh, well. Did I do it for nothing? They said you were unconscious, so I did it on purpose to let you rest. It seemed like you wouldn't like drawing Attention with an incident like this, and also...]
"Also?"
[Also, if I said you did it, it seemed like both the DCPD and the Schneider Family would subject you to a very Thorough Investigation.]
"..."
[I thought that would put you in a difficult spot, so Ore-sama ga (I, the Great Me) stepped up. Thinking about it now, maybe I shouldn't have. I suffered a lot, you know.
I was dragged to the DCPD Branch, interrogated, examined, and only released at dawn. If I hadn't been a Dusk Founding Contributor, I would have been held even longer.]
The way he spoke while shrugging his shoulders was quite comical.
But there was a hidden point in those words.
“I thought that would put you in a difficult spot.”
The Dragon President knows. Whether it's the DCPD or the Schneider Family.
He knows that if I get dragged away and undergo a Detailed Examination, it will become dangerous for me, whichever side it is.
Is it just a simple hunch, or did I subtly show signs of it?
Or perhaps his cybernetics Possess the Performance level of a Precision Prosthetic Eye worn by Enforcer-Rank Special police, commonly called a “hacker eye,” allowing him to see right through my fake Identity.
It's nothing new.
If I had been observing Dragon's Lair, and the Demeanor of the Dragon President and the Bartenders, trying to uncover their hidden secrets, the reverse could also be true.
They had also been watching me closely. They had also somewhat noticed the things I was trying to hide.
How should I react?
At this point... pretending not to know is meaningless.
I thought today's team Dinner would be a place for me to judge my Workplace, Dragon's Lair... but at the same time, Dragon's Lair and its members were also judging me.
Especially its Leader, the Dragon President.
The Dragon President I had experienced so far was a highly contradictory person.
Magnanimous yet strangely girlish. Seeming to treat the World with unconditional goodwill, yet possessing the sharpness to doubt and filter out others.
Usually acting like a foolish idiot, but at times showing surprising ideas and wisdom.
And from what I could see, that wasn't his true self.
What I could confirm was strictly limited to what he showed on the Outside.
That Powered Armor, the Dragon Helmet, and that bizarre Otaku Speech Pattern are a kind of mask.
I have never once witnessed the true intention behind the mask, the genuine Inner Self of the human named Sasha Dragon.
Therefore, even if I know the Clone known as the Dragon President, I do not know the main body, Sasha Dragon.
Whether they are a woman or a man, how old they are, what they look like on the Outside, what their original, unaltered voice sounds like...
“Can I trust the human named Sasha Dragon?”
I don't know. And it's probably the same for Sasha Dragon as well.
I am also wearing a mask.
Unlike the Dragon President, I revealed my outward appearance as it is, but I also have a Formidable number of things I'm hiding.
I have always operated by putting forward my double, Aaron Nakamura, rather than my complete self.
Not even once have I confessed my true background or life history in front of others.
...But even so, just because I wore a mask and dealt with others didn't mean I wasn't sincere. I always did my best.
I just couldn't reveal everything due to complicated circumstances.
Is the Dragon President the same?
All I know is the fact that, at the very least, the Dragon President treated me with goodwill.
He volunteered to be a Shield to take the reach of the DCPD and Schneider in my stead, helping me rest comfortably.
Even before that, he showed me favors like giving me free Bartender training and helping me get home every time.
If I want the goodwill to continue, I must also show my sincerity.
If I truly want to enter Dragon's Lair and to be inside its fences, I must open my heart first...
Haa, that's easier said than done.
With a sigh, I gathered my thoughts and opened my mouth.
I confidently acknowledged and revealed my own weakness.
"Yes. It would have been difficult. Thank you for caring."
[Right? I did well, didn't I? Kya... My suffering was worth it! Keep being thankful from now on, too.]
Seeing him act so frivolously, unbefitting his size, makes me wonder if it was just my imagination, or if I was overthinking things pointlessly.
I had definitely answered while running fierce calculations in my head, but seeing that innocent appearance makes me think that fierce calculations weren't needed in the first place.
Suddenly feeling a bit spiteful, I blurted out.
"But I don't think it'll have much meaning. You'll probably get caught soon."
[Ueong? What are you talking about? Why would I get caught?]
"Well, first of all, there are witnesses."
Naturally, it wasn't just me and the Bartenders at the bar that day.
There were a lot of customers, and a significant number of them witnessed me fighting the Luddite gang.
The number of Raver customers I personally saved, like the Mercenary Agent Ravin Haywood, was also substantial,
and above all, the final decisive battle with Ned Ludd was so flashy and desperate that it couldn't help but draw eyes.
As long as those witnesses are around, you're bound to get caught.
In the first place, the DCPD would have conducted an Inquiry Investigation targeting the witnesses at the scene, so how did the lie work?
[Ah, that's Fine. I silenced zenbu (all) of them. We reached an agreement to say that I did it.]
"With all the customers who were in the shop?"
[Yeah. Most of them were Ronin, right. I have Connections with that side, so it wasn't too difficult.]
No matter if the Dragon President is a Legend in that industry, I didn't think those rough humans, overflowing with personality and living for their own egos, would listen so easily.
When I narrowed my brow as if Suspicious, the Dragon President chugged his beer and shouted, Kuhaha.
[Ah—of course, there were some bastards who pushed back, whether they had a Journalist Spirit wanting to expose the truth, or just because of a Rebellious Spirit... but if they refused, I beat them soundly until they accepted! With fear carved into their very bones, they'll have no choice but to Watch their mouths.]
I knew it. You ended up using Force after all. I rubbed my forehead and said.
"Is it okay for the President to do that to the customers?"
[Who cares! I beat them weakly, so it wouldn't show on the Outside. I handled it quickly and cleanly before the City police arrived.
Man, I've really gone soft. In the past, I would have turned those bastards into half-corpses. How dare they defy the orders of Lord Red Dragon? Since there was a good excuse with the Luddite gang, I would have just buried them in the Ground and made the excuse that the terrorist bastards did it.]
"No, that's not... Never mind."
I was about to say something but just shut my mouth.
There was no way a Moral Convention like ‘A Bar Owner shouldn't hit customers’ would work on the former outlaw, Sasha Dragon.
It's not like those fierce-looking Ronin would band together and start a Boycott just because they got hit a few times by the Bar Owner, so I guess it doesn't really matter.
Come to think of it, it would actually be better if a Boycott happened.
Weren't we in a difficult spot lately because customers were pouring in like Crazy? If the customers decreased, it wouldn't be a bad thing for me.
Nodding my head in understanding at the Dragon President's words, I suddenly had a thought, and I spoke with an 'Ah.' of realization.
"But there's one more Witness."
[What? Who? I definitely took care of all the bastards who were there... There's still a Customer left to silence?]
The helmet's LED Face distorted fiercely, and the muscles wrapped in armor struck a highly dangerous pose.
I hesitantly spoke toward the Dragon President, who looked like he was about to dash out at any moment.
"Uh... there is one left. But I don't think you can silence that Customer with physical Force like the others."
[What's that? There's nothing impossible in the World, Nakamura-kun! Don't arbitrarily judge your own limits. I Decide whether it can be done or not! Who are you to say that?]
To the Dragon President, who was overly excited and spouting a bunch of cringeworthy lines, I kindly explained.
[Ah...]
"Right?"
[Sōne (That's right). I can't silence her.]
And as soon as he heard the Answer, he became as docile as a mild sheep.
That was only natural.
Because there was no way he could mess with a Family member of a High-ranking Noble House, a Dusk Founding Family that operated a quasi-Megacorp-level Corporate Group, no matter if it was the Dragon President.
The last Witness was the blonde Young Lady who had been escorted out of the scene by Schneider's Private Soldiers.
It was Alexandra Amadeus Schneider.
She had even watched everything I did from beginning to end.
She had clearly witnessed me Activating the Family Treasure, the Kokuyōtō, and using it to slice through Ned Ludd's katana in a single breath with her own two eyes.
And she had returned to her Family like that.
"...So, well, I think I'm in big trouble now?"
I don't know why there hasn't been any news yet, but Schneider's Private Soldiers will probably come looking for me sooner or later.
It wouldn't be strange even if they opened the door to Tommy Jones' Restaurant and appeared right this second.
[No way───!]
Seeing me scratching my head and talking about a bleak future, the Dragon President let out a screeching yell.
[I can't just stand by and Watch our precious Employee Nakamura-kun get Taken away by an evil Noble Family! Where is that Schneider girl? I'll barge in and silence her myself!]
As he kicked off the sofa and raised his body as if to dash out again, Sey and I had to cling to him from both sides to calm him down.
Why is this Yangban so hot-tempered today of all days? Is he drunk?!
"No, she's obviously at her Family Estate. There are all sorts of cyborgs, Private Soldiers, samurai... Anyway, the security is so damn strict that if an outsider sets foot in there, they'll be swept away by firepower immediately, so what are you talking about!"
[Don't stop me! I may look like this, but I've navigated battlefields. A mere Noble Family like that, I've messed with them plenty of times!]
Coming from the Dragon President and not anyone else, it sounds real, which is scary.
I even activated the suit's Combat Mode, grabbing and pulling the Powered Suit with my entire body as I shouted.
"She's probably already told her dad everything anyway! Barging in to silence her now is useless!!!"
It's a given.
The Family Head of Schneider would have tried To Grasp the truth, and his daughter, Alexandra, would have confessed everything she knew under her father's Interrogation.
Unlike the Dragon President, she would have no reason to hide my information from her father.
This means news about me has already been delivered and then some.
I'm not just saying this; trying to stop it now really wouldn't have any meaning whatsoever.
So please, just stop.
Because I'm already fucked anyway!
* * *
The Uppermost Section of Dusk City, the Private Estate owned by the Schneider Family.
In the center of it is the Iron Castle, Eisern Schloss.
There is a massive Mansion built upon steel.
, a place created solely for those who bear the name of Schneider.
It's called a Mansion, but in reality, it should be seen as a 22nd-century citadel larger and wider than most buildings, with an area of ten thousand pyeong and a height of hundreds of meters.
It isn't called the “Iron Castle” for nothing.
The center of the Fortress.
There is a man looking out out of a window made of Amorphous Reinforced Glass, which is harder than diamond.
Behind his back, numerous Iron samurai are lined up, kneeling.
His name is Eugene Schneider.
He is the Master of the Citadel, known among the Dusk Upper Class as the Iron-faced Family Head.
He opened his mouth while gazing through his Citadel at the sunset burning and fading.
"So, how is Alex?"
The eyes speaking those words shone blue with an artificial hue.
He was using Optic cyberware and a Drone Camera to look around another location as if he were there in person.
The voice of a loyal subordinate reached his ears.
[The Young Lady has now completely regained her stability. The Personal Physician also said there are no issues.]
"I hope she matures a bit using this incident as an opportunity."
No Answer came from the other side.
It was likely because he couldn't speak carelessly about the temperament of the Young Lady he served.
Eugene Schneider continued speaking with an Expressionless Face and a numb voice, as always.
"Have you tried talking with the child?"
[Yes.]
"Have you heard anything new about the incident?"
[It is the same as what I reported previously. She claims she doesn't remember well, and that only up to the point of being attacked by the terrorist Leader and fainting remains in her head.]
Eugene Schneider silently pulled out a thick cigar from his pocket.
When he held it out to the side, an Iron Attendant followed like a shadow, cut the tip of the cigar with Cutting Scissors, and lit it with a specially made match.
Then, Shaking the lit flame lightly, he placed it in his mouth and drew in the smoke.
Huu—.
The Iron-faced Family Head exhaled the smoke and murmured.
"My daughter, she's still terrible at lying."
His gaze remained fixed on a distant place, still gleaming a deep blue.