LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 278.2
Chapter 278.2. Interests
After 30 minutes, a man in a lab coat finally arrived to escort us. Astonishingly, he didn’t bother to introduce himself, and his apology for keeping us waiting was half-hearted. His expression suggested he held us in contempt.
I couldn’t help but smile faintly, wondering if he was testing our patience. The guide noticed my reaction and scowled unpleasantly.
What an ill-mannered fellow, I thought as I shrugged, which only made him quicken his pace, looking even more annoyed. Although it bothered me a little, my curiosity about the research facility outweighed my irritation, and I kept glancing around as we walked.
A vending machine caught my attention, sitting unobtrusively along the hallway. It was functional, which intrigued me. One bottle cost 1,000 yen… Definitely not something our area would need.
I chuckled at the price as we continued to a meeting room. After a polite knock, the guide waited for permission from inside before opening the door. He shot me a disdainful glance and tilted his chin arrogantly, confirming his hostility—or perhaps just animosity toward our corporation. Maybe both.
The room held a long folding table and metal chairs. Six men in lab coats were seated. The man at the center, a corpulent figure, spoke up as we entered.
“You’re late. We’ve been waiting here for you for an hour. Do you even know what business etiquette is? Well, I suppose one couldn’t expect better from those from the abandoned town.”
He snorted derisively, and I tilted my head, bemused. There seemed to be no need for introductions, so I dropped into a chair opposite him. The lab-coated men smirked cruelly, their lips curling in mockery.
“What utterly ill-mannered men.”
“My apologies,” I replied dryly. “We’re not well-versed in business etiquette.”
Crossing my arms, I glared back. It was time to put an end to their petty show of dominance. I let my gaze harden, exuding an intimidating air. The sycophants fell silent, clearly intimidated. If this was all it took to unsettle them, they weren’t worth negotiating with.
“Hmm. Fortunately, I’m magnanimous enough to overlook it,” the fat man said smugly. “Now, we’ve already prepared a draft for the terms of the deal.”
He glanced at a subordinate, who handed over a document. Another copy was passed to Ares. As we reviewed it, I recognized the man as Director Nerima, the head of this research facility, as per our prior intel.
“Allow me to take a look.”
I flipped through the materials and let out an audible sigh, making sure they noticed.
“Are you serious? You’re proposing to proceed with these terms?”
“Yes, I am. Is there a problem?”
The director leaned back, his tone smug. I stared at him. The deal involved purchasing “Rigid Magical Hemp Fiber,” a material imbued with level-one defense enhancement.
When integrated into combat uniforms, the material was not as hard as bulletproof vests but much lighter and more flexible. It could absorb goblin archers’ arrows, leaving only bruises, and even resisted swords from goblin knights without tearing easily. It also had minor resistance to magic—though only marginally.
We planned to sell these uniforms for 50,000 yen each, fully tailored with both tops and bottoms. A modern equivalent to adventurers’ leather armor.
“With these prices, we’d have to sell each uniform at 100,000 yen just to turn a profit. This is absurd.”
“Then don’t bother,” he sneered. “In that case, we’ll handle the production of combat uniforms ourselves.”
So that’s their game from the start, I thought with a mental click of my tongue. Still, something felt off. We were the Amatsukahara Corporation—why were they so confident in taking this stance?
“These uniforms could sell by the millions,” the director continued smugly. “Even civilians might start wearing them in this era of monster attacks. A necessity in every household. And why not? They’re made with cutting-edge technology from our research facility.”
“That’s hard to believe. For such advanced technology, you don’t seem to have the capacity for mass production. We’re only seeking a licensing agreement, and your demand for a 50% profit share is utterly unreasonable. If Amano hears about these terms, I’ll certainly get scolded.”
Although I disliked leaning on our president’s authority, I dropped his name to gauge their reaction.
The pig-like director flushed red with anger and slammed his fist on the table.
“Amano Sakimori! The husband of Kamishiro Serika, isn’t he? That freeloading man conned her into leaving this research facility! Ever since, our reputation has been in decline!”
Ah, so that’s it. I sighed inwardly, now understanding the situation. This was the facility where Serika had worked before founding the Kamishiro Corporation. I’d heard rumors but hadn’t connected them.
This was all misplaced resentment toward our president, vented as petty spite.
“Feel free to walk away from the deal. So, what’s your decision?”
The director was a fool, bloated with arrogance and self-importance. Yet, this impasse posed genuine challenges. I began contemplating ways to address the situation.