For a moment, Royn wondered if he'd misheard.
Just a second ago, he'd been speaking loftily — a visionary philosopher, master of every variable, confiding his grand design to the woman beside him, as though the world itself was already in his grasp.
And then, the next instant, came a reversal fit for a stage play — a single piece of bad news that shattered the illusion.
It was like a king, in the glow of a moonlit night, boasting to his concubine — only for a servant to burst in mid-sentence and report that a rebellion had begun.
Naturally, Royn's mood plummeted. His expression turned dark as he fixed Launa with a glacial stare.
"Be specific," he ordered.
Launa glanced at him nervously, then lowered her head, voice trembling slightly, as though afraid his anger might fall on her.
"Our people stationed in the Seafront district report that an armed group attacked the area. They were heavily armed — Arasaka's forces suffered substantial property damage."
"Isn't that what we planned?" Royn frowned deeply. "Don't tell me they accidentally blew up the research facility we built with Arasaka?"
That was his first assumption — and a horrifying one.
Such clandestine dealings — two corporations being played at once — were best kept known to as few people as possible.
From the start, Royn had only given Militech the coordinates of the chip. The mercenaries were supposed to breach Arasaka's defenses and retrieve it, nothing more.
By the plan, the lab was never part of their target zone.
But Launa's next words snuffed that hope out.
"No… it was a Behemoth heavy truck — painted with Militech insignia. There was another group, separate from the Animals, who infiltrated the research facility during the chaos. We don't know what they did inside, but afterward they drove the Behemoth straight out through the compound…"
"During which… the research lab was destroyed."
"Wait."
Royn lifted a hand to cut her off, staring incredulously. "You're saying they went in first… and then drove out in a Behemoth?"
As one of the world's elite, his neural processor was among the most advanced cybernetic systems on Earth. Within seconds, he accessed everything publicly known about that vehicle.
A Militech-manufactured, heavily armored military truck — not for civilian sale, one of the finest armored transports in existence.
How the hell had one ended up inside the facility?
"Yes," Launa said quickly. "That's what our people reported. They wouldn't lie. The information's highly credible."
She knew how absurd it sounded.
Someone sneaks into the research facility — then somehow drives out in a Behemoth?
It defied logic.
"Go on," Royn said, drawing a deep breath to steady himself.
"Since the lab's been destroyed, we can't confirm what they did inside," Launa continued. "Arasaka sent security teams after the truck, but… no reports have come back. It's likely the pursuers were wiped out."
"And the Animals?" Royn asked.
"They successfully retrieved the chip we planted for them," Launa said. "They've already pulled out of the Seafront district safely. Everything else went according to plan."
"Excellent. Truly excellent." Royn's laugh was sharp and mirthless — the sound of someone past anger and into bitter irony.
His mind whirred, hunting for a rational explanation for this absurdity.
First, whoever managed to infiltrate the facility must have had detailed knowledge of its interior layout.
Second, to hide a Behemoth inside without being detected…
"There are only two possibilities," Royn said coldly. "Either Arasaka did it… or Militech did."
Launa blinked, startled. "Mr. Royn, how can you be so sure?"
"To smuggle a Behemoth into a research lab and keep it unnoticed — only those two corporations could pull that off. And both have motives."
He rose, pacing to the floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the dazzling city lights below.
That research facility had been a key step in his strategy — the linchpin for further collaborations with Arasaka and a foothold inside their precious Seafront domain.
And now, fate had decided to mock him.
Without warning, the lab — his future leverage — had gone up in flames.
"If either company caught wind of our intentions, they'd have reason to act," Royn murmured. "Still, I'm inclined to believe this was Militech's handiwork. Arasaka would never plant explosives on their own turf — that makes no sense."
"If it was Militech, then it's simple. They wanted more than what we gave them. Maybe they realized the tech we sold was incomplete, so they sent their own black ops team to infiltrate the lab behind our backs — to grab what we withheld, and humiliate us in the process."
He paused, then sighed with genuine regret.
"I underestimated them. Militech, Arasaka — both truly deserve their places as global powers. My little cleverness was never going to fool them."
Hearing that self-deprecating tone, Launa felt a pang of sympathy. She softly lifted the thin fabric of her robe and stepped behind him, wrapping her arms gently around his torso.
"But… why would Militech use a truck with their own insignia for something like this?" she asked quietly.
Royn gave a short, cold laugh. "That's not hard to guess. After tonight's assault, Arasaka will inevitably trace it back to Militech. Even without that truck, they'd still pin it on them. The attack happened on their soil — Arasaka controls the narrative."
"Militech knows that. So they turned it to their advantage. By using a clearly branded vehicle, they make the whole thing look like a setup — a frame job. They can claim someone else used their name to discredit them."
Launa nodded, seeing the logic. "Right. Even if Arasaka blames them, Militech can spin it — say it's all a conspiracy to tarnish their reputation."
The world was full of fools. Between manipulated media and manufactured truths, the line between fact and fiction was all but meaningless.
Stories like this would dissolve into confusion before anyone could dig deep enough to care.
Militech would come out clean, shielded by excuses and convenient ambiguity.
After all, lies never lack for justification.
"We'll let it rest," Royn concluded. "Some things can't be handled in the open. Even if we know Militech was behind it, there's nothing to gain from exposing them. The chip's been delivered, and we've already secured our reward."
And with that, Royn closed the matter — the verdict of a man used to burying truth under profit.
…
"Oh, right," he added casually. "What's the status on the KienTee Corporation vice president situation?"
"I've already submitted the request to HQ," Launa replied. "A professional hit squad's been assembled. They'll move when the timing's right."
"Good," Royn said, his voice calm again — as if the destruction of a research facility, or the loss of dozens of lives, had never happened at all.
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