1
"That is the sixth lawsuit we have on our hands just this week alone, sir. I'm sorry, but the concert at the Chronodome is an unprecedented disaster for the Ishida Conglomerate."
Giving an apologetic look, the messenger carefully put the papers on the table in front of the CEO of the conglomerate.
Without needing to guess, Yoshihiro Ishida already knew what it was about.
What else could it be but the aftermath of the company's big event? The one he approved after much convincing from his sons. The very same one which involved a big rollout of a new technological product line.
To have it end in a disaster like that was unacceptable for an Ishida.
With his expression unreadable behind his shades, thee imposing man grabbed hold of the papers that were placed. He stared at the documents briefly before giving a displeased grunt. He took off his shades, and he saw that his eyes sowed fear in the other person.
Without another word, he signaled the messenger to leave. The charms decorating his body clanged, and he enjoyed the quickness at which the other person left.
When the person in a suit finally left, having delivered the news, Yoshihiro Ishida turned to the other two people seated beside the table with him.
"What a disaster indeed," he started calmly. "We can easily get through this with the money we have. But let me tell you as early as now that there will be consequences for this."
"I'm sorry, Father." The first one to respond was the gray-haired adolescent with rectangular glasses and a fade cut.
Yuichiro, eldest among the Ishida siblings, gave a very solemn bow of reverence to his father.
"I swear, the equipment was not defective. Sure, it was not the smoothest test run for the satellite drones, but I swear everything was prepared perfectly. I just did not expect a gas leak or a security compromise to happen in the Chronodome of all places."
"You have to think that if the disaster did not happen, the event would have been big for the image of the company. It was a surefire hit, and what are the odds of something like that happening and ruining everything, anyway?
Those last words came from the third person. Wearing his signature jacket, Reijy Ishida spoke up with frustration.
"Oversights are inexcusable for the Ishida," calmly said Yuichiro.
Despite the calm voice, Reijy knew that he and his brother felt those words shake them from within. Their father's expression told it all, and it was the joint effort of the two siblings that got the company in hot water.
"We are to be the prime example of the pinnacle of humanity in Shiroki City. Whether it be technology, business, education, sports... An Ishida should never settle for anything less. That also goes to sponsored representatives."
For Reijy, it was as if the entire room's attention focused on him. It did not take a genius to know why.
It was his idea to hitch on Yuki-tan's growing popularity with the company at stake. Before that, he had also helped sponsor the careers of numerous people in different fields, with one of them being a certain childhood friend of his.
He managed to hold off the mounting pressures of the two pairs of eyes before exhaling. With a confident smirk, he faced his father.
"Kimura was a mere outlier. It will not happen again. What is one setback to everything I've delivered to the family?"
His father scoffed. Reijy then felt sweat slide down his forehead as he scrambled for a follow-up.
"I am on pace to graduate near the top of my class. Our other sponsored representatives, which I scouted, by the way, seem to be doing well for themselves. I have also helped acquire some business ventures."
He intentionally made sure that his older brother heard those last parts clearly. Reijy felt a surge of glee upon seeing the disdained look on his brother's face.
However, he turned to see a different expression on his father's face.
"And what does that have to do... with blowing a nationwide event, you two!" he roared. "And you expect me to hand over the reins to one of you two?!"
The two siblings looked at each other with wide eyes, visibly shaken to the core. Reijy opened his mouth to answer, but no more words came out of it.
"An Ishida accepts no less than perfection. Remember that. Drill it into your heads. We are the backbone of the city's research and development, military, and economy. You think anything less than perfection will suffice? Will let the city prosper the way it does now?"
He slammed his hand on the table, causing a ripple of clangs from the items on top and his jewelry.
"Do I make myself clear? The two of you better start reflecting on yourselves before I make the big announcement of the conglomerate's official successor next month."
"Yes, father," quietly answered Reijy.
Holding his breath, he averted his gaze from his father and looked at his older brother.
"Of course," replied Yuichiro.
2
"How has the research been going? Have you analyzed the data we got from the Chronodome event?"
Surprised by voice from his back, Dr. Shin Kagami paused his hasty typing and spun his office chair around. Framed against the white background filled with computers and data tables, Guren Izaya, in his long coat, looked more like a colleague back in his college days.
"Really smoothly. The Ishidas' equipment and research complex is amazing. Thank you so much, Izaya."
"Interesting," said the silver-haired man with a grin. Leaning beside Kagami, he continued nodding as he looked at the data.
"Will you be able to proceed to the next part of Euphoria's plan with this?"
"I say this would do. Keep it up," Izaya replied, standing back up. "Eventually, we can talk about how to apply such phenomenon to the real world. That girl proved extremely useful to our research."
"That I agree with. What I tried to do at Imperial Tracks was not even close to what we have right now. Thanks to you."
"You don't have to thank me. Thank that woman that you nursed back to health. None of these would have been possible without her effort for the past 3 years."
"Reiya Utara, right? I'll keep that in mind."
He returned his focus to his computer screen, but before the silver-haired man left, he called out to him one more time.
"What are you up to now?"
"The invasion and subsequent demise of the Render of Bounds has set off a chain of events. Three of them, in fact. One. It gave us the framework for our ongoing research," he said, pointing at the computers.
"Two. Its ability and the way it perished created what can be best described as a transitional hole between the two dimensions. Such is an unprecedented development that has not happened for many years."
"So, you mean..."
Izaya smiled. "They'll be here soon. The other Great Nullities that keep each other in check. With the loss of a major faction in the stalemate and the breaking open of a door to a new world that the big ones can cross, we can only be ready for what would happen next. I will be taking Satoru and preparing for battle."
"But if the boundary to Mu has been thinned enough for the strongest Nullities to come to this world, what else are we doing this for?"
"In order to achieve my goal, I need to be the one to cross to a specific sector of Mu. By tracing the remnants of the Render of Bounds' power, perhaps I could access that specific sector of Mu."
"Is this all according to your prediction?"
"Yes. However, there is another unexpected development that I should also take into account, Dr. Kagami. That is the third result of the Render of Bounds' invasion."
"And that is?"
"I visited the Chronodome to confirm that one of the attendees had responded to the powers of Mu. There was someone else besides the three young ones and the idol. Depending on what happens, that new Awakener can prove instrumental to the fate of the world in the coming months."
Having finished his explanation, Izaya proceeded to leave the research room.
"A new Awakener, huh?"
Dr. Kagami set any thoughts related to that aside before returning to his research. Rubbing his hand over his purple hair, he sighed at the sight of the data that had yet to be analyzed.
