Chapter 411: Rock the boat, sink the yacht? |
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After calming the kids down, John suggested that everyone head over to McRonalds to grab some food and unwind a bit.
Well, 'suggested,' but it was essentially nonnegotiable, even with the protests from the kids.
And so they arrived at the current situation. The adults were seated around a table in the main lobby of McRonalds while the kids were seated in the playpen area with a stack of burgers, fries, nuggets, and pop.
If John had to be honest, he was a bit jealous since he hadn't seen a proper McD- McRonalds play area since well before he got sent to the Three Realms, but so long as it kept the kids preoccupied.
...Mm. He should also take Little Xuan and Little Wu to play at one sometime. Maybe bring Aurora around too...
But anyway, focusing on the present.
Mars let out a deep sigh and bowed his head. "I apologize for my nephew. It seems I've been spoiling him too much recently." He raised his head and said, "I'm the only family he has left, so it seems that he picked up bad habits when I'm not around."
John munched on a fry from the BigRack combo he ordered. After that, he said, "Don't worry, Mars." He smiled and said, "Kids will be kids. If they don't learn when they're young, they'll just have to learn the hard way when they get older."
"Hey." John frowned. "Even if it's true, no one asked you."
Akira sighed and said, "I want to apologize for Rei as well. He comes from very far overseas, so he's still adjusting to the cultural norms."
"Oh, I get it." John nodded and said, "Took a bit for Alphy and Betty to get used to things here too." He grabbed another fry and then said, "Just keep an eye on him and video games. Internet usage too. That stuff literally rots your brain."
Mars frowned and said, "Should... you be saying that considering the sort of business you run, Boss?"
"It's because of the business I run that I can say it."
Although the fanbase for the Project MirAIs girls was mostly wholesome, save for the extremely cultured individuals who commissioned and created certain pieces of art, John had seen quite a few toxic chats since he started this whole schtick.
Being chronically online did no one any benefits... unless you were one of the Alfis who were simultaneously chronically online and chronically a gym rat working on the perfect physique to live just a day longer for their oshi.
Gray looked at Akira and Mars, and then he looked back at John and said, "By the way, just how connected ARE you?"
John chuckled and jokingly said, "Enough to have the whole world under my thumb."
Mars nodded. "As expected of the one who uprooted the entirety of Japan's criminal underworld..."
...John felt like he should contest that, but he didn't really have a good argument.
Akira nodded as well and said, "That would explain the gateways."
John blinked. "Gateways?"
"Yes, gateways." Akira glanced at Mars before looking back at John. Pausing a bit, as if to carefully choose his words, he said, "There are quite a few open ports for visitors to enter Japan. Of course, they can't bring any 'luggage' with them, but if you have a high enough 'visa' or enough 'money' you can enter with quite a few resources." He paused and then said, "I thought you were the one regulating them since you allowed me and my family to cross the last time, but it seems that you aren't?"
Translating Akira's words and reading the subtext...
It seemed like interdimensional gates were still open for visitors. They couldn't bring anything crazy over, but if they were a certain 'rank', like a god or something, then they could still use a bit of their powers. That, or if they were just obscenely powerful, they could use a bit of their powers to influence the world.
Akira was mistaken about John allowing them to stay here... but then again, John WAS the most powerful being in this universe other than the Overseer he met last time during the situation with Yue.
Speaking of which, did that guy just not care? Or was he a super delegator and just let things fly since John was capable of handling it?
Something to ask the guy if John ever had a spare moment again.
But anyway...
John rubbed his chin and said, "I'll have to look into it."
Mars looked between Akira and John. His eyes widened and then he nervously tugged on his shirt collar. "Should... Should I be listening in on this conversation?"
Another misunderstanding. From just a glance, John could tell Mars was thinking that John facilitated illegal transportation and human trafficking.
Now, John COULD clear that up. But that would involve a long and elaborate story about what was going on while dressing up certain things to keep Mars out of the supernatural stuff happening in the background.
Or John could just 'confirm' that he was a criminal mastermind who ruled all of Japan now that he had taken out the yakuza.
The latter option was simpler, so...
John smiled and said, "Don't worry, Mars. You're already a part of this, so it doesn't matter."
Mars froze and then let out a deep and suffering sigh. "I suppose you're right. And you DID help us retain our attorney licenses..."
"Anyway." John looked at Akira and said, "Thanks for the heads up. I think that's on Titor's side, so I'll check with him and sort it out."
Akira waved his hand and said, "It's no trouble." He smiled and said, "That aside, we still need to schedule that family lunch." He sighed and said, "I apologize for that. Ilgarde took off faster than expected, so I have had to personally mediate and direct that traffic."
Mars's eyes widened and he said, "Right! It's impressive just how innovative Ilgarde has been." He looked at Akira and then said, "Speaking of which, by any chance are you using MIRAIZ as a backend...?"
Akira chuckled. "I may not be a lawyer, but I know a great deal about corporate business. To answer your question, no. But even assuming we did, I know better than to infringe on IP."
Mark clicked his tongue.
John laughed. "Good try, Mars."
Mars smiled. But then he looked at Gray and said, "By the way Boss. If you don't mind me asking... who's this?"
John pointed his thumb at Gray and said, "This is my big brother, Gray. He just moved her from overseas with his family."
Akira's eyes lit up. "From 'overseas?'" He looked at Gray and said, "I'm assuming 'far overseas?'"
Gray looked surprised and said, "Yes." He stared at Akira and said, "...It seems that you've spent some time 'abroad' as well?"
"Indeed." Akira nodded. After that, his eyes shifted, as if reading something in the air. He frowned and said, "...It seems like you might have had a tougher time of it, however."
Gray glanced to the side, as if reading something as well. After that, he said, "More bloodshed, yes. But I think your 'trip' was considerably more complicated than mine. At least, I couldn't have done what you did."
Mars glanced between the two and started to sweat.
John let out a deep sigh and said, "Could we stop talking about this? It makes us seem like we're an eminence in the shadow or something. And also, people don't really care about your trips as much as they do about what we're doing now."
Akira nodded. "Apologies, John."
Gray coughed and said, "Right. Time and place."
Hearing that, Mars let out a relieved sigh.
To be honest, fair reaction. Mars was probably spinning from the mental gymnastics of the implications he was hearing.
They were all wrong, of course. But still stressful.
So, changing the subject...
"How've you been anyway, Mars?" John looked over at Mars and said, "It's been a while since we chatted, right?"
Mars smiled. "It has. We should grab a drink together to catch up. My treat... Ah, and congratulations on your new child!"
John shook his head. "You should congratulate my wife. She did the hard part... but thanks for the thought."
Akira looked surprised and then said, "That's right. That did come to pass... Congratulations to you and your wife. Aurora and I will need to send you gifts sometime..."
John nodded. "Tha- Wait. Aurora?"
"Yes...?" Akira tilted his head. "That's the name of my wife. Is something wrong?"
"Um... She's not blonde, is she?"
It was unlikely, but in the infinitesimal chance that there were time shenanigans afoot...
Akira shook his head. "No. She has light blue hair and golden eyes. She also hails from Elga- Ahem. I mean, from far overseas, so I doubt you know her. Was that why you asked?"
"Mm... I was just surprised. We ended up naming our daughter Aurora as well. We call her Rory though."
"Strange coincidence."
John nodded. "Life is Str*nge."
Akira blinked. "Hold on. What did you just-?"
"Anyway." John looked back at Mars and said, "You and Fae don't need anything, right? Things going well?"
Akira frowned, but decided to let it go.
Mars nodded and said, "Things are going well. The only thing on our radar is Variant Hue."
Akira looked towards Mars. "You're keeping watch on them as well?"
Seeing Akira's reaction, John frowned and rubbed his chin. "Is something wrong?"
He remembered that Jenny pointed them out, but for both Mars and Akira to point it out as well...
Hm. Well, let's hear what they had to say.
Mars shook his head. "There's nothing wrong per se... But Fae and I are concerned. The VTuber industry is a growing field, but it's also new." He frowned and said, "We're concerned that Variant Hue may be operating with unfair contracts and exploitative NDAs. Considering that the news about Japan's underside with the yakuza is recent, if that news breaks, the whole field could get painted with the same brush."
"Ah." John nodded. "That's a good point..."
Like the saying about one rotten apple being enough to spoil the batch, although Project MirAIs and Myth Incorporated were all squeaky clean, if a "competitor" was shown to be cutting corners and exploiting people, the public could think the same about them.
It was absolutely false, and the real fans would know. But public opinion once set was hard to change.
Akira frowned. "Yes. I was worried about that as well." He rubbed his chin and said, "Unlike John and I, the CEO of Variant Hue doesn't have an endless flow of assets to eat the costs of running such a company..."
Mars flinched at that and started to pale. Looking back at John, he said, "Is it REALLY okay for me to hear this, Boss?"
John waved his hand. "Don't worry. It's all clean money. Akira's comes from his patents, and mine come from investments in various fields."
Hearing that, Gray sighed and said, "I wish I'd been smarter with that when coming here. If I knew that 90% of my stuff would get stopped at 'immigration,' I would have just converted it to gold and gemstones."
John smiled. "Don't worry, Bro. We'll find a job for you soon."
Mars covered his face and muttered, "Nepotism, shady money... Is this what Fae meant by the dark side of the law...?"
John chuckled and said, "You'll get used to it, Mars. Besides, we're the good guys here who are helping girls fulfill their dreams."
"Right." Mars slowly nodded. "That's true. I haven't seen anything painting Boss or the company as bad people. So it should be fine..."
"So." John steered the conversation back and said, "What's this about Variant Hue again? It sounds like you have specifics."
Mars snapped out of his daze and then nodded. "Yes. Boss might have missed this, but a Diver from Variant Hue released a Valentine's Day video. It was made by the fans and funded by them, but it got taken down by Variant Hue management. Since then, the Diver's gone offline without any further updates. All public accounts *say* it's due to a sudden medical emergency, but..."
Akira hummed, tapping his fingers on the table. "That timing is awfully convenient. And considering corporate culture..."
Gray narrowed his eyes. At the same time, the floor started to shake.
Mars jumped, his eyes wide. "An earthquake?!"
John placed his hand on his older brother's shoulder.
Gray paused and then let out a sigh.
After that, John nodded. Looking at Mars, he said, "I'll handle it." He frowned and said, "If that CEO and company is really exploiting people, and if they pushed someone to the brink... Hm." He tapped his fingers on the table and said, "I've rocked the boat a few times, but it's the first time I've sunk a yacht. Should be fun."
