The Martial Unity

Miss Neera tried for a perfunctory smile, doing her best to hide her tingling nerves. ”It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Mearsheim. Your reputation precedes you.”

”Mmm, well, come in,” the old woman gestured her in with a smile that didn’t reach her aged eyes. The mild translucence of her body betrayed that she was part evolutionary. Though that was entirely irrelevant to the domineering presence she exuded.

Knowing who she was dealing with made her larger than life to Neera, causing her to break out into a cold sweat as she remembered everything about the woman.

She had come to power during the Era of Darkness during the Beast Incursion; her company had achieved the most success with extracting esoteric resources from fallen beasts and monsters. She seized the revolutionary opportunities produced by the Unfolding and the True World, and was also the first to race to space during the Era of Expansion.

She was one of the most prominent business leaders in all of human civilization. And someone like Neera, who was extremely sensitive to that, couldn’t help but feel pressured even before the meeting began

”Now then,” Miss Mearsheim wove her fingers in a steeple, leaning forward on her table. ”The looming interstellar war has plagued me with work, so I shall cut right to the chase, if you don’t mind.”

The elderly woman’s eyes sharpened.

”I don’t trust your company. I know you’re just a hired manager. But I know you know who is truly behind this company and who its major shareholders are. I don’t like doing business with people hiding behind a curtain.”

Miss Neera wasn’t even sure what to say to such a direct declaration of her displeasure. But she knew that she couldn’t afford to be rude to someone of the woman’s status.

”…I’m sorry you feel that way, Miss Mearsheim,” Neera replied with a perfunctory tone. ”Unfortunately, I cannot disclose what you seek to know. There is a reason they have gone as far out of their way to prevent their identities from being disclosed. They do not wish to be known by anybody.”

”I can understand their desire for anonymity, but this is a matter of trust,” Miss Mearsheim replied with a calm but firm voice. ”I believe that we can come to a compromise.”

She pulled out a sheet of paper from a stack on her table, pushing it towards Miss Neera, who promptly furrowed her eyebrows upon reading it. ”An NDA.”

Miss Mearsheim nodded. ”I will sign this regarding the information that you provide, and I will ensure nobody learns of it, but I must know who is truly behind this company.”

Miss Neera heaved a sigh internally. If not for Ria’s stubbornness, she would have gladly taken this offer up. But alas, Ria was all bottom line. She simply didn’t care. And what was Neera to do besides follow her employer’s will?

”I’m afraid I cannot accept this offer, Miss Mearsheim,” Neera replied. ”My employer’s identity remains hidden. That’s the end of that conversation. I can assure you that my rejection of any offer that entails this disclosure, no matter how attractive, will be absolute refusal.”

”Then your employer is a fool,” Miss Mearsheim snorted. ”A fool who understands nothing about the sector they have set foot in. The basis of business is trust and relationships. Trying to lone wolf it out is the blunder of a lifetime. Just based on this, I can deduce that your employer has no background in any enterprise. In fact, based on this, I can deduce that they’re most likely a pathwalker. Probably not an evosapien because evosapiens adapt to their environments. Probably not a tekvore or dwarf either since both groups are accustomed to playing by the rules of business. Definitely not an elf, because an elf wouldn’t be in this business in the first place. Which leaves…”

She paused, trying to gauge Neera’s reactions. ”A Martial Artist or a giant. Giants are too conspicuous physically for us not to have found them, not to mention unsophisticated, so almost certainly a Martial Artist.”

’She’s sharp. Too sharp. The more I talk with her, the more I’m at risk of revealing the truth inadvertently,’ Miss Neera realized, getting up.

”I cannot confirm or deny that. You are free to speculate as you wish, Miss Mearsheim, but my answer will not change. If that’s all, then I shall be taking my leave. If you wish to take up our offer, then you may simply sign the contract digitally and transfer the specified amount.”

She walked off, allowing the old woman to remain in silence.

Miss Mearsheim’s eyes wandered about in seriousness as she pondered her options. From just that brief interaction, she could tell that this was likely not a con. The woman was far too willing to disengage for it to be a con job.

’No, the way she’s acting… it’s like she has all the leverage.’

Normally, up and coming businesses desperately latched on to all opportunities they could get their hands on because their success was not guaranteed. But the way that EsoQuest Solutions conducted itself was like that of a company that was guaranteed in its success.

She returned her gaze back at the email she had received from them, going through the information as she realized the possibility that she had suspected was likelier.

’…They really might have a way to reliably find infected worlds,’ she realized.

If that was the case, then it would be a revolution in the mining industry. No, it would change human civilization. It would lead to a surplus of esoteric matter.

If that truly was the case, then she couldn’t afford to get on board with this train.

”Argh, if this is some scam, then I’m going to put a bounty on that woman’s head,” Miss Mearsheim grumbled, conducting the transaction quickly.

Her eyes widened as the page transferred a document to her detailing all the information regarding Planet Pinky, or the ruins of it, and everything else about it.

Miss Mearsheim immediately transferred the document to the Director of Operations before phoning him up.

”We have found a new infected world; get on it!”