BCST 14

chapter 14

“Ugh….”

Damn it.

I’d completely forgotten that when you invest points, you have to suffer proportionally without being able to move.

This time, I invested 6 points.

Which meant that I had been writhing in agony on the Pixel Dream Motel bed for an even longer period than last time, which was three days.

And during that period when I couldn’t even move a hand, one thing tormented me relentlessly.

Beep beep beep—!

It was the phone right next to the bed, ringing mercilessly.

Damn…

How many days did I tell Mia I’d be resting?

Three? Four?

My body was just starting to move, so I painfully reached for the communication device on the bedside table.

Missed calls: 13.

Quite a lot in the meantime.

I scowled.

[…Finally answering? You didn’t pick up any calls or messages until now. What on earth have you been doing?]

Judging by the voice, she seemed really angry.

Better tell the truth.

“I was sleeping.”

[Sleeping? For five days?]

Five days had passed, huh.

“Yeah. For five days.”

[…]

Through the receiver, I could feel her disbelief.

She didn’t seem to believe me.

But what could I do? It was the truth.

Still, Mia didn’t seem intent on probing further and ended the topic.

[…Alright. Then next time, if you’re going to sleep that long, at least let me know in advance. I thought you had met some gruesome end somewhere.]

“Sure. I’ll be careful.”

Once the restriction was lifted, my body began to recover quickly.

I was incredibly hungry and thirsty, but this was manageable.

Not something I couldn’t endure.

I could eat later.

[Got a pretty decent job request a couple of days ago. Will you take it?]

A decent job?

“What’s the request?”

[It’s a bodyguard mission for the daughter of a mid-sized corporation. Some black magician is targeting her. They requested security personnel who know a lot about black magicians.]

Even after hearing this, I couldn’t guess who it might be from what I knew.

Well, I didn’t know everything, and it was a year earlier than the time I originally knew…

Anyway, I was the person fitting those criteria.

Of course.

After all, who knows black magic better than a black magician?

“What’s their level?”

[Level 3, a skilled upper-tier black magician. But they said they’ll handle the black magician themselves; we only need to focus on guarding the daughter. Think of it as a kind of insurance.]

They’d handle it themselves but were requesting extra personnel familiar with black magicians, just in case.

If I didn’t have to face it directly, it would be pretty easy.

[…Though I have to admit, it’s a bit of a shame.]

“What’s a shame?”

Her voice carried a playful tone over the receiver.

[If we’d let our very own Eddie, who even took down Yabok, handle it immediately, it would have been faster and easier. Don’t you think?]

I twitched.

Hearing that, my eyebrows moved unconsciously.

It touched on some thoughts from the previous night.

One of the realizations I had while distributing points this time.

No matter who I defeated, objectively, I was still a pure first-level black magician without a second-level spell.

Accordingly, in standard solver rankings, I was only a level-1 rookie.

A level-1 rookie who could die at any moment against a strong opponent.

Yet somehow, people’s perception of me had become far higher than my actual self.

And that perception had unconsciously pressured me…

So Mia’s joke felt a little awkward.

But I answered casually.

“Mia, don’t state the obvious. It gets boring.”

[As expected.]

Mia’s voice said as much.

Pressure?

Ever since I suddenly fell into this world and had to fight…

And bullets flew in front of me nonstop…

I must have had no confidence in my abilities at all at that time.

Every moment, I acted as if I could die at any second.

How dense was the stress I lived under back then?

And now this level of pressure?

Pathetic.

Besides, it was the fastest period of growth.

Then I only had to grow faster than the expectations around me.

And I was confident I could do that.

“Fine, I’ll take the request. When and where?”

[3 PM today, ‘Aires Building’ lobby.]

Wait. What time is it now?

As if reading my mind, Mia told me the current time over the receiver.

[By the way, it’s 1:10 PM now. You’ll need to prepare and get there quickly if you don’t want to be late.]

“Isn’t that too sudden?”

I hadn’t even eaten yet.

But Mia replied curtly.

[Then you should have answered the phone earlier.]

I had no response for that.

[3 PM, Aires Building. Don’t be late, absolutely!]

That ended the call.

I set my phone down and turned to look out the window.

“Hm.”

The sunlight was dazzling past noon.

I got out of bed and began stretching slowly.

Creak.

Even so, a person has to eat, right?

First, I should wash up before heading out.

Surely I wouldn’t be late, right?

I wasn’t late.

Standing in front of the Aires Building, I looked up.

By this city’s standards, it was quite tall.

Even in a city filled with skyscrapers, it didn’t look out of place.

Entering the lobby, I immediately noticed the energetic, bustling scene.

“Wait a second. I’ve just arrived. What? You suddenly changed the terms?”

Someone hurried past me while on a call.

Behind them, the cyberware-equipped businesspeople of this era moved about.

Most wore suits and busily walked around.

Some lowered their voices in the cafe to talk, others wore badges while carrying coffee, walking in groups.

Then, among the suited people, one person walked directly toward me through the crowd.

Tap. Tap.

“Are you Eddie, the solver?”

A neatly dressed woman smiled at me.

I nodded, and she asked in a pleasant voice.

“Have you ever heard of Aires Corporation?”

“Hmm…”

“If not, would you like me to guide you while explaining?”

“Sure.”

Since she wanted to.

She began leading me, explaining the company.

“Aires is a leading technology solutions company designing the future. We develop cutting-edge cyberware, design systems, and build urban network infrastructure, bridging the gap between humans and technology…”

Her rehearsed speech continued as we reached a golden-doored, high-speed elevator in the center of the lobby.

She asked permission before pressing the button.

“Excuse me for a moment.”

Ding—.

The doors opened, revealing the lavishly decorated interior.

Like when you visit a wealthy house and notice the difference even in the bathroom, the contrast compared to Yabok’s shabby Moore Plaza hideout was like night and day.

“Our Aires Building is a 120-story building owned by Aires Corporation. Floors 1–10 are service spaces, up to 30 are commercial areas, up to 70 are labs and offices, and…”

“Stop. Enough with the company introduction. Where are we going now?”

I interrupted her mid-explanation.

Perhaps rude, but she smiled and replied.

“Understood. Mr. Eddie, you’ll be visiting the 120th-floor VIP reception room today.”

The high-speed elevator shot up, and the cityscape quickly receded through the glass walls.

I looked out, pondering.

So far, they’d shown a respectable corporate front.

But what I saw through [Magic Detection] told a different story.

No way they’d left magical defenses this lax…

Now I understood why Mia had passed the request to me.

Outwardly normal, but no investment had gone into this area.

And the oddly familiar feeling when I first heard the company name…

Something teased at my memory, but I couldn’t recall.

Ding—.

The elevator arrived at the top floor.

If it were important, I’d already have remembered it.

Thinking that, I turned forward and finally saw the VIP reception room.

“Hm.”

The polished marble floor and elegantly curved ceiling lights were striking.

A large wall bore the ‘Aires’ logo, with a luxurious ebony desk beneath it.

Behind the desk sat a well-built middle-aged man, looking at me.

“Ah, you’ve arrived?”

He must be the client.

I glanced at the woman who’d guided me; she indicated the inside, signaling her guidance ended.

“You may enter.”

I stepped inside.

“I’m Eddie, a solver from Edge Line. I hear you’ve requested bodyguard services.”

I heard someone swallow nervously behind me.

But so what?

I wasn’t an employee here.

The boss here was their boss, not mine.

And showing this kind of attitude is actually part of a solver’s job.

The client has to trust the solver to feel comfortable delegating tasks.

Sure enough, the client seemed pleased, chuckling.

“You’re a spirited young one. Even I feel invigorated. Now, sit here.”

He pointed to a luxurious sofa in the center of the room.

I suppose this was my first time meeting a wealthy person here.

Plop.

I sat in the middle of the sofa.

“Have you been briefed on the assignment?”

He sat opposite me.

“To protect your daughter from a level-3 black magician.”

“Hmm. Is that all?”

Wait.

I got a hunch.

If I panicked and babbled here, it’d turn into him testing me as a superior, and I’d be forced to comply.

This conversation is already spicy from the start.

The corporate experience, huh?

I didn’t intend to play along, so I squinted and replied.

“So you had more information you didn’t share?”

“Hahaha. No, not yet. We were going to tell you now.”

Of course, it wasn’t going to be sweet.

“Then give me proper information. I don’t want to lose your precious daughter because of your omissions.”

“Hmph!”

The woman behind me covered her mouth at my words.

Ah, not my boss.

The beauty of being a solver? I didn’t have to deal with snakes like this, and if I was kicked out, I could just find another job.

And every time a request like this came, handling it immediately would prevent Mia from sending more like this.

It was the rational choice, so I leaned back confidently, crossing my legs.

From that moment, silence fell.

The tense atmosphere thickened from the floor upward.

I could hear someone swallow behind me.

After staring at me for a long moment, the client finally spoke.

“Very… impressive. Indeed. You’re right. I must protect my daughter. Just as you said.”

With that, the tension broke.

Phew.

Maybe now I could work comfortably.

Then the client gestured toward the woman who had been holding her breath behind him.

“Manager, go and fetch my daughter, Aria.”

“Yes, Chairman of Aires.”

A jolt hit my head.

Wait—Aria?