The top floor of the Twin Towers.
Rows of incandescent lights illuminated the entire hall, making it completely transparent.
At the head of the hall, around the massive C-shaped round table, figures in solemn suits and formal attire sat at the equalising table, commencing this meeting.
As the Chairwoman, Lacus Clyne occupied the central position. To her left sat Kirika Tachibana, Director of the Operations Department.
To her right was Hugh Carlisle, a senior executive from the Commerce Department.
He was an elderly man with greying hair, a hooked nose, and eyes that were both cloudy and piercingly sharp. His hair was meticulously groomed, and his suit was immaculately pressed, resembling that of a business mogul frequently seen on American television programmes.
To Hugh Carlisle's right was the seat for the Director of the Intelligence Department, currently vacant.
None of the attendees found this unusual, as very few SDS members—let alone department heads—knew the Intelligence Director's identity.
Everyone knew the position existed, yet no one knew who held it.
Among those present, perhaps only Luo Shu had the leisure to observe his surroundings.
He had spotted Meer early on, sitting in the back rows of the audience seating. She sported a dangerously mature hairstyle, wore office attire, and had dyed her hair black.
Her name tag, as Luo Shu could see, now bore the label of the Logistics Department.
The Intelligence Director hid their identity in the shadows, while those openly holding director positions were also scarce.
The Finance Department had always been directly under Lacus's control, and the Research Department currently lacked a unified voice.
Meanwhile, Andrew Waltfeld, Director of the Logistics Department, sat to Luo Shu's right.
On the surface, he was a veteran who had risen purely through merit, with no ties to Lacus.
But Luo Shu knew better—Andrew Waltfeld, nicknamed the Desert Tiger, came from the same world as Lacus and had long been one of Siegel's right-hand men, practically watching Lacus grow up.
Seeing him pretend to be unfamiliar with Lacus now almost made Luo Shu laugh.
As the last seat on the left, Luo Shu's Hidden Management Department seemed rather inconspicuous.
But no matter how unremarkable it appeared, being seated at the C-shaped round table was still a far cry from the treatment given to those in the audience seating below.
"Then, regarding the resolution on divestment from the Republic of Barron in South America, we begin the third vote."
"Commerce Department approves!"
"Operations Department approves."
"Hidden Management Department abstains."
As a newcomer, Luo Shu routinely cast abstention votes in areas he wasn't familiar with.
He was well aware that his current mission was to make an appearance before the senior leadership here in America. Everything else was essentially none of his concern.
What he actually wanted to accomplish had already been prepared by Lacus and Kirika Tachibana.
Therefore, he didn't need to perform at all - his mere presence was sufficient.
Truth be told, this feeling of being the puppet master behind the scenes was rather amusing.
Especially when he already knew all the proposals and understood the next one would be critical.
"Three approvals, one abstention. The resolution passes."
The staff quickly announced the vote count.
Since Lacus concurrently headed the Finance Department, the Research Department had no director, and the Intelligence Department was absent...
The actual voting participants were only the Operations Department, Logistics Department, Commerce Department, Hidden Management Department, and Lacus as Chairwoman.
But Lacus, as the proposal reviewer, generally didn't vote.
Only four departments actually voted.
According to the rules, departments that were absent automatically received invalid votes. Among present members, two or more approvals meant passage.
Lacus, as Chairwoman, retained veto power.
This voting mechanism seemed quite novel to Luo Shu during his first experience.
Even abstaining from votes felt oddly enjoyable to him.
Soon, the staff announced the following agenda item:
"The next proposal: Application for human experimentation regarding virtual reality technology."
As the staff spoke, all attendees' wrist devices emitted light.
With their specialised receiving glasses, they easily accessed the proposal details.
Instantly, exclamations erupted throughout the venue.
"No way?"
"You must be joking!!"
"How is this possible? How did such an experiment pass proposal review?"
The commotion below didn't affect the senior leadership at the round table.
Lacus looked at the documents with regret, her sigh suggesting she'd already done her best.
Kirika Tachibana sat expressionless, stern as an iron-faced judge.
Andrew yawned, appearing entirely indifferent to such trivial matters.
In contrast, Hugh Carlisle from the Commerce Department looked grave, as if studying the report's contents seriously.
Equally serious was Luo Shu, though his focus wasn't on the documents, but instead on the audience's reactions.
Though termed "audience", these individuals were all B-level clearance holders within the SDS.
This rank generally comprised branch directors, regional operation commanders, committee members, or genuine experts with resource allocation authority.
During this biannual departmental meeting, Luo Shu needed to familiarise himself thoroughly with these people. Otherwise, future coordination would prove troublesome if he needed something but didn't know who to approach.
"How could the Research Department make such a request? Human experimentation? Virtual reality isn't pharmaceuticals... how could this possibly comply with Union legislation?
"And they're actually demanding one million participants for the experiment? Has the Research Department gone mad?"
"Perhaps not, but the required number must be substantial; otherwise, they wouldn't propose such an exaggerated figure."
"Then what's the estimated minimum?"
"At least fifty thousand, I'd say."
"Fifty thousand? That shouldn't be too difficult. Clearing out some of the homeless from America's streets should suffice."
"But the question is, will homeless people work? The experiment requires normally functioning brains, not ones ruined by substance abuse."
"Beyond that, I'm more curious about who in the Research Department proposed this."
"Demanding participants with extremely high IQs, adventurous spirits, and excellent social skills—aren't they practically naming the Commerce Department?"
As the lower ranks buzzed with arguments, those higher up naturally grew restless.
As a competent actor and newly promoted Director—Kirika Tachibana's direct subordinate—Luo Shu knew it was time to make his move.
With a faint smile, he addressed Hugh Carlisle, who sat diagonally across with a stern expression:
"Mr Carlisle, what are your thoughts on this proposal?"
Facing Luo Shu's inquiry, Hugh Carlisle opened his cloudy eyes, shooting him a sharp glance before quickly softening his gaze. He replied languidly:
"My thoughts?"
"I'm rather inclined to agree with the Chairwoman's proposal."
'Cunning old fox...'
Luo Shu smiled wordlessly in response.
Could he reveal this was actually Lacus's proposal? Of course not. That wasn't a burden her persona should bear.
At that moment, Andrew interjected:
"Mr Carlisle, please look more carefully. Tabane Shinonono, not the Chairwoman, submitted the proposal."
"Oh, is that so? I thought it was the Chairwoman." Hugh Carlisle responded indifferently, sitting composedly like a fisherman waiting for a bite.
Watching this display, Kirika Tachibana raised an eyebrow and contacted Luo Shu through the Divine Pantheon Reconstruction System:
[This old man's unflappable demeanour irritates me every time.]
[Luo Shu, can't you teach him a lesson?]
[Wouldn't that be inappropriate?]
Luo Shu hesitated.
[Aren't we too old for such childish behaviour?]
[A mad dog publicly attacking the Commerce Department Director—even if Lacus protects him, there'd be consequences, right?]
[Your ability should work well for subtle tricks, right? Just give him something embarrassing but non-lethal.]
[Don't worry about fallout. Remember, not just me—Lacus definitely dislikes this old man too. She just can't target him openly.]
Hearing this, Luo Shu gave Lacus a peculiar glance.
The young girl wore a grave expression, seemingly distressed by the inhumane proposal, although her eyes occasionally flickered briefly toward Luo Shu.
Understanding instantly, Luo Shu turned his gaze to Hugh Carlisle. As the old man's reflection appeared in his pupils, he secretly activated Calamity Bestowal.
While bestowing misfortune, Luo Shu mentally crossed himself for the elderly gentleman.
Hope he's okay.jpg