Exposed lies are destined to belong only to the void of falsehood.
Oswaldo was no History Fictionologist himself; he had no way to delay the dissipation of that power.
Thus, the imposing sledgehammer, which had been all show and no substance, dissolved the very moment it struck, turning into nothing more than a harmless, shimmering phantom of special effects.
As the hammer vanished, a crisp, brittle cracking sound echoed from Oswaldo's body.
Immediately after, shards of amber crystal began to spill from him, scattering across the floor.
It was only at this moment—looking at the completely unscathed Sparkle and then at Oswaldo, who stood frozen in a daze—that the venue erupted into an uproar.
Diamond looked down at the red nose that had been plucked from his face, then cast a glance at the Aeon of Elation, Bai Ming, who had been spectating from above.
He finally understood why she had appeared here and why she had dropped those masks.
Oswaldo! This man had actually dared to use the power of Enigmata to engineer his own gain within the IPC.
In truth, Diamond had always harbored doubts about the source of Oswaldo's sudden strength.
Especially after Sparkle had swaggered into the company carrying that very same power; no one would believe there wasn't something fishy going on.
Yet, even Diamond hadn't imagined that the entire affair, from start to finish, was merely a grand deception orchestrated by a History Fictionologist.
Logically, Sparkle exposing Oswaldo's lie should have been a good thing.
The problem was that for the IPC, a lie mattered little so long as the power was real—and this "Emanator" level strength had been very real.
Now, however, that power had been utterly dismantled by Sparkle.
While Diamond was certainly happy to witness Oswaldo's downfall, others wouldn't necessarily see it that way.
Oswaldo had made such a fool of himself at this promotion ceremony that it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say the IPC's top brass had been thoroughly toyed with by a Masked Fool.
If he couldn't even handle Sparkle today, he would be completely barred from the company's inner circle forever. But did Oswaldo truly stand a chance against her?
Diamond glanced again at the Aeon Bai Ming, who was clearly just there to enjoy the show.
One couldn't forget that at this very moment, an Aeon stood behind Sparkle.
Naturally, many others shared Diamond's train of thought.
Aside from the members of the Marketing Development Department, the other departments remained motionless, each lost in their own silent calculations.
After all, the current Oswaldo was no longer an Emanator. He wasn't worth crossing an Aeon for in a situation like this.
Oswaldo realized this as well. If he could take Sparkle down right here and now, he might still have a sliver of a chance.
Even without the power of a Preservation Emanator in the past, he had climbed his way to the position of department head candidate step by step. But if Sparkle were allowed to simply walk away, he would never be able to claw his way back up for the rest of his life.
With eyes bloodshot and an expression twisted into a hideous snarl, Oswaldo raised his hand and tore away his formal suit jacket, which was only hindering his movement. He glared death at Sparkle.
"Fool, I'll see you dead today!!"
"Oh my~I'm sooooo scared~"
Sparkle let out a soft giggle. Her petite, soft frame moved like a lithe serpent, her waist swaying as she lightly stepped aside, gracefully dodging Oswaldo's sudden assault.
A beam of energy whistled past her shoulder, striking a wall and instantly melting the reinforced surface, leaving a gaping hole.
"Hee-hee~"
Sparkle seemed entirely unconcerned for her own safety.
Laughing, she didn't run away; instead, she actively lunged toward Oswaldo.
This was a promotion ceremony held at the IPC headquarters—no one was walking around fully armed.
Oswaldo didn't have many gadgets on him, and his standard clothes offered little more than auxiliary effects. His only high-lethality weapon was the compact beam pistol in his hand.
Sparkle had chosen this timing deliberately. She excelled at physical combat, and now, she was intent on kicking Oswaldo while he was down. Her strikes were sharp and ruthless, looking for all the world like she wouldn't stop until he was beaten to a pulp.
While the fight raged on Pier Point, 'Georios' was watching the live broadcast through the power of Elation, finding the whole thing quite savory.
To be honest, she hadn't expected Sparkle to just flip the table so directly.
"What was Sparkle's original plan anyway? Seriously, she's so reckless—isn't she afraid of getting beaten to death at Pier Point?"
'Georios' didn't have a deep grasp of the IPC's current internal state, but she knew the place was a hornet's nest of factions and infighting.
The Marketing Development Department certainly wouldn't let Sparkle go, but as for the other departments, it was hard to say.
At the very least, the Strategic Investment Department wouldn't have a burning desire to kill her on-site.
In fact, even within Marketing Development, it wasn't guaranteed that everyone wanted her caught.
Especially those rivals who had been suppressed by Oswaldo's various schemes; they likely couldn't wait to see him lose all his dignity and be kicked out of the company.
A man like Oswaldo wasn't exactly known for being popular.
When he was in power, everything was smooth sailing, but once that power slipped... well, if someone starts the fight, there will always be people ready to jump in.
'Georios' chuckled as she watched Sparkle and Oswaldo trade blows.
Although the spectators had crowded the exits, none of them dared to interfere lightly. After all, Sparkle was still a Vice Director, and Diamond was still right there.
"The rise and fall of power... isn't that just another form of Permanence~"
The farce at Pier Point didn't end in a bloodbath.
Ultimately, Oswaldo couldn't do anything to Sparkle, forced to watch helplessly as she swaggered away. Just then, the clown mask that had been tossed to the floor suddenly flew up on its own.
Taking advantage of Oswaldo's lapse in attention, it slapped itself onto his face once more.
"Damned thing!!!"
Oswaldo yanked the mask off, tearing it into shreds in a fit of rage as he spat out curses.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Diamond's gaze. The man who should have been his equal, his rival for a seat on the Board, was now staring at him with a half-smile of pure pity.
The sight caused Oswaldo's fury to shift instantly onto Diamond. "Diamond! Your Vice Director from Strategic Investment has openly sabotaged my inauguration! Why didn't you stop her?!"
In the face of this interrogation, Diamond merely let out a cold snort, turned on his heel, and walked away.
Oswaldo was going insane. Sparkle had left, and the Board of Directors hadn't even issued a statement to strip her of her Vice Director title.
He knew what they were doing: damage control.
If Sparkle remained a Vice President of Strategic Investment, the incident could be framed as internal corporate infighting rather than a Masked Fool wreaking havoc on Pier Point.
She couldn't be fired—at least not yet.
Oswaldo believed that if he had captured her, her title would have been stripped the next second, and Diamond would have been held accountable. But now?
As he watched Sparkle leave, even being escorted away by the Aeon of Elation right before his eyes, Oswaldo knew he had lost. Years of planning had gone up in smoke.
This department head position he had just grabbed likely wouldn't last until tomorrow. And his old rivals would never pass up the chance to throw stones while he was down in the well.
On the other side, though she didn't know what Sparkle's own arrangements were, 'Georios' had conveniently fished her back.
Seeing the complaining look in Sparkle's eyes only made 'Georios' grin wider.
"So, little Sparkle, was my rescue timely or what?"
"Hmph. Has it occurred to you that Lady Sparkle might have been perfectly fine?"
Sparkle stood with her hands on her hips, huffing as she glared over. To be whisked away so far without even a word—it would be a pain to fly all the way back.
"Listen to you. Don't tell me you wanted to stay a Vice Director? You literally shattered your own foundation back there."
Without the title of a Preservation Emanator, Sparkle was just a pure Masked Fool. There was no way the IPC would let her keep such a high-ranking seat.
"I'm not interested in that. It's just that I haven't seen Oswaldo's miserable end yet. What if he holds on? I won't be there to add fuel to the fire."
"Aren't you afraid of getting burned yourself?"
"Scared of what? Wouldn't that just mean a front-row seat to Oswaldo's frantic end? Oh, dear bestie, hurry up and send me back. If I can't see his pathetic face, little Sparkle is going to die of anxiety~"
Sparkle puffed out her cheeks, looking the picture of regret, completely indifferent to her own safety.
She was dead set on ruining Oswaldo.
Of course, her actions had nothing to do with kindness or justice; it was purely because he had tried to scheme against her several times, and now she wanted to return the favor.
"...You don't look all that anxious to me."
"I am! I'm so worried I'm about to start crying and throwing a tantrum."
Sparkle giggled and leaned in close, widening her eyes to look as adorable as possible while staring at 'Georios'.
However, 'Georios' eyes actually lit up.
"Are you really going to cry and throw a tantrum?"
"..."
The smile on Sparkle's face stiffened slightly.
What kind of reaction was that?
Was she really that excited to see her have a breakdown?
How did her pure, sweet sister get corrupted like this by the Aeon of Elation?
Soon, Sparkle's eyes darted around, and she grabbed 'Georios' arm with both hands, pressing close on her tiptoes.
With teary eyes, she looked up and whispered, "Little Sparkle is really going to throw a fit now~"
"..."
Sparkle's acting was top-tier, incredibly realistic. But perhaps because her "bratty girl" persona was so deeply ingrained, the combination of that face and voice gave 'Georios' a sudden case of the shivers.
This, however, did not please Sparkle.
She jumped up high on the spot, clinging to 'Georios' like a koala and shouting:
"What's with that reaction! Is that how a good sister should react?! Was my crying not soulful enough just now!?"
Anything else she could handle, but that reaction was a direct insult to Lady Sparkle's acting skills!
She couldn't take it; she was going to have it out with her!
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL