Jessica's father was overjoyed when he learned of the situation. He dotingly ruffled his daughter's hair a few times; he never imagined his daughter would bring him such a grand gift.
The Flame Demon Project...
This was the top-secret project currently being jointly conducted by Rhine Lab and the military forces behind it. Even for a giant like Raythean Industries, sending a spy to glean any related information was completely impossible. After all, although Rhine Lab was smaller than Raythean Industries, it was still one of Columbia's major corporate giants.
It was essentially number one in all of Columbia and among the top in the world in the fields of biological sciences, medical innovation, and chemical manufacturing. These sectors were precisely Raythean Industries' weaknesses. Although Raythean Industries had tried to expand its business after establishing a foothold in weapons manufacturing and engineering equipment, aiming to become a comprehensive company covering various fields, it had struggled. Other areas were manageable, but in the field of biological sciences, it could never compare to the well-established Rhine Lab.
And just like that, without any effort at all.
The product of the Flame Demon Project had fallen into his hands...
Such luck.
Jessica's father felt he would be smiling in his sleep tonight.
As expected of my darling daughter, always bringing me good fortune!
However, the look in Jessica's father's eyes frightened Ifrit. It reminded her of the look in the eyes of those white coats back at Rhine Lab.
Ifrit shrank back behind Ceobe in fear, while Ceobe just scratched her head, completely clueless about what was happening.
This uncle? Wasn't he the uncle who made her go hungry before?
"Dad!!"
Jessica pulled away from her mother's embrace and stood in front of Ifrit, her brow furrowed slightly.
In this world, the more noble a family, the stricter its hierarchy and rules. Such families often lack the warmth and harmony of ordinary ones. Moreover, to ensure a higher probability of producing an outstanding heir among the children, they usually have many offspring. With more descendants, familial affection tends to become diluted.
In any other corporate giant, if a child spoke to their parent in such a tone.
They would likely be disciplined according to family rules.
But Jessica's family was a clear exception.
Jessica's parents simply doted on their daughter too much.
It was equivalent to.
No matter what mistake Jessica made, they would always think their daughter was right.
Furthermore.
Jessica's personality could previously be described as timid and cowardly. In a normal family of this stature, such a child would have long been deemed unworthy of nurturing, probably sent off to live on her own in some random city. But her parents' adoration allowed Jessica to have a very happy childhood despite these circumstances.
Faced with Jessica's somewhat 'forceful' tone.
Ceobe grew a little worried.
Although she wasn't very worldly, she knew that this uncle seemed to be a person of considerable status and had an intimidating presence.
Conversely, Jessica's parents and their secretary, Mr. Jones, all showed expressions of immense gratification on their faces, as if the sun had just broken through the clouds. They even seemed to be... enjoying it.
Secretary Jones: "Master, the young miss has grown up."
Jessica's Father: "Yes, she can even speak to me like this now. As a father, I am truly gratified. Our Jessica has finally grown up."
Jessica's Mother: "Yes, yes."
Lucas Reeve: "?"
Franka & Liskarm & Magallan: "?"
What a strange thing to say.
Jessica stated in a serious tone: "Dad, Mom, Ifrit is my friend!!"
Jessica said this entirely for her parents to hear.
The meaning was obvious.
Ifrit wasn't some experiment from the Flame Demon Project; she was her friend, and they were not to have any ideas about her friend.
And on the other side.
Secretary Jones: "Madam, Master, the young miss has grown up. She understands the value of friendship."
Jessica's Father: "Yes, yes, my dear daughter is making more and more friends. Not like before when she had so few. It seems that letting my darling daughter go out and experience the world was a good thing."
Lucas Reeve: "??"
Everyone else present was now wearing a look of confusion.
To be honest.
They found it difficult to connect the handsome, middle-aged man with a kind and gratified expression before them to the chairman of Raythean Industries. If Lucas Reeve, Franka, and the others hadn't seen it with their own eyes, they truly wouldn't have believed it.
"Don't worry, my dear daughter."
"I have no interest in the Flame Demon Project."
Jessica's father waved his hand, dispelling his daughter's concerns.
"I have always detested so-called human experimentation and modification. You don't need to worry about that, my dear."
"However..."
Suddenly.
The gentle smile on Jessica's father's face gradually vanished, replaced by a cold and sharp expression, giving Lucas Reeve the feeling of an unsheathed blade.
As expected...
As the chairman of Raythean Industries, how could Jessica's father not be powerful himself?
"Regardless of the outcome, for Rhine Lab to dare send people here knowing my daughter was present, this matter cannot simply be dropped!"
The reason for Jessica's father's earlier happiness was entirely because.
A 'precious treasure' from a rival company had fallen into his hands. Even if he wasn't interested in it, he just wouldn't return it. He wouldn't lose or gain anything, but the rival company would suffer a massive loss. It was like an opponent developing a nuclear bomb, and I steal it and take it home. Even if I don't know how to use it, I still won't give it back, just to spite you.
This was a 'business' tactic.
The conflict between corporate giants is never about openly 'brandishing swords and guns.' Everyone understands that such methods are useless and, if pushed too far, would result in mutual destruction. Most of the time, they resort to various ways to annoy each other.
For example, today I steal your data, tomorrow you poach my key personnel, and later I'll slander you online. These seemingly minor actions are actually incredibly frustrating. In an era where commerce and trade are prosperous, this is the only way two giants can vex each other. As for more over-the-line confrontations, even if they wanted to, the Columbian government would never allow it. An all-out fight between two corporate giants would be tantamount to a massive civil war for Columbia.
Therefore.
It was precisely because he knew how much was at stake.
That even when he was in a complete panic, Parvis rationally emphasized to his subordinates time and again not to harm a single hair on Jessica's head. If he were to break this balance, he wouldn't even have a coffin after he died.
And right now, Jessica's father was already thinking about how to use this opportunity to pressure Rhine Lab, to annoy them a bit, to rap them on the knuckles, and ideally, to get some compensation. Don't be fooled by how well Jessica's father and Rhine Lab's Director-General got along at the banquet; in the world of business warfare, they showed no mercy.
After seeing that his daughter was safe.
Jessica's parents prepared to leave, feeling relieved.
However, before parting.
Jessica's father once again greeted 'Ceobe' very cordially.
Ever since the last banquet, Jessica's father had felt that this young girl, 'Ceobe', was exceptionally cultured and would surely become Jessica's right-hand woman if Jessica were to inherit his position in the future.
However...
Faced with Jessica's father's proactive greeting.
The Ceobe without Lucas Reeve showed her dazed side.
Her large, limpid eyes were filled with question marks as she looked at Jessica's father in confusion.
And this somewhat...
Umm...
Dopey expression made Jessica's father a bit awkward.
For a moment, he suspected he had the wrong person.
He compared them again several times.
No, it's definitely this girl.
What...
How did this girl become a bit... dazed and slow-witted, not looking very bright at all? She was completely different from the profound person at the banquet. It was as if... she was a different person entirely. Even the ancient aura about her had completely vanished.
What was going on?
Jessica covered her mouth in embarrassment and quickly urged her father that it was time to leave.
At their daughter's urging, Jessica's parents left reluctantly. In the end, Jessica's father, still worried, assigned another of his elite bodyguards to stay by his daughter's side.
The Raythean Industries forces withdrew.
Many of the wealthy residents in the complex, and even the security guards, all breathed a sigh of relief.
Even if... some reporters knew about this, they would absolutely not dare to publish it.
After all.
If they dared to publish it.
The news would be out in the morning, and they'd be arrested by noon.
Having received her father's permission.
Jessica also breathed a huge sigh of relief.
This way, Ifrit could live here every day without worrying about anything else.
——————
The next day.
Parvis's face was ashen.
Last night, he received a report from the team he had dispatched.
Failure...
A complete and utter failure.
There was more than one powerful individual at the Raythean Industries heiress's residence, and even one super-strong individual. After learning this, Parvis couldn't sleep a wink all night.
He knew he was probably finished...
However...
Fortunately, he still had a hidden trump card. He hoped this trump card could save him this one time.
And today.
As expected, Raythean Industries, Columbia's number one corporate giant, began to make its move.
The 'furious' head of Raythean Industries' public relations department arrived at Rhine Lab and expressed his strong dissatisfaction and condemnation, demanding an explanation from Rhine Lab. Rhine Lab forces had dared to infiltrate the young mistress's residence, a severe violation of the 'rules' between the corporate giants.
If Rhine Lab didn't provide an explanation.
Raythean Industries wouldn't mind publicizing Rhine Lab's actions in the news and then, on the grounds of being provoked, formally declare war on Rhine Lab.
But the Director-General was clearly an old fox; she knew the so-called declaration of war was pure bluff.
She immediately passed the buck to Parvis without the slightest hesitation, claiming she knew nothing and that any specific negotiations should be taken up with Parvis directly.
How could Parvis not know?
The Director-General was doing it on purpose.
In recent years, due to the rapid progress of some experimental results in his department, the Structural Section's status within the military had gradually risen. As the central department, the Control Section naturally had to find a way to knock this director down a peg.
Faced with the aggressive posture of the Raythean Industries PR executive, Parvis could only choose to back down, accept his misfortune, and hand over a relatively important piece of research data to Raythean Industries as compensation. This data was enough to elevate Raythean Industries' strength in the field of biotechnology.
And when the Structural Section director asked about Ifrit.
The veteran PR executive from Raythean Industries played dumb.
He might as well have been drooling and babbling like an idiot.
What little girl? He had no idea what they were talking about. It was clear the test subject could not be recovered. She had fallen into the hands of Raythean Industries. Even if Raythean Industries didn't need such an important test subject, they would never return her.
This move made Parvis so angry he nearly shattered his own teeth.
It was a total loss, like losing the bride and forfeiting the army...
A bloody loss!
However.
As the saying goes, when it rains, it pours.
At an internal meeting at Rhine Lab, on the grounds that Parvis had lost an important test subject, and at Saria's proposal, he was likely to be given a permanent suspension. Parvis was forced to offer up another of his external experiments. He was willing to publicly provide the entire company with the specific data from this project to make up for his mistake.
This was an experiment to replace a person's own organs with infected organs, thereby creating a batch of special Infected who, while being Infected, would not contract Oripathy. These Infected possessed extremely powerful Originium Arts, and if the experiment succeeded, their strength would not necessarily be weaker than the product of the Flame Demon Project.
Parvis had initiated this project in collaboration with Loken Water Tank. Compared to the Flame Demon Project, this one was significantly more brutal; no one knew how many people had died in total.
Originally, this project was supposed to be Parvis's most confidential project, bar none.
Unexpectedly, this project had become his lifeline at a critical moment.
His series of actions...
Seemed to have played right into the Director-General's hands.
Especially with that faint, knowing smile of hers, Parvis suspected that the Director-General had long been aware of his little schemes. She had just been waiting for this opportunity.
In the end.
After a series of maneuvers by the Director-General, no matter how tough Saria was, the punishment for Parvis was changed from a permanent suspension to a two-month suspension. Clearly, Parvis himself knew that he was still useful to the Director-General. If he were transferred, the Structural Section would basically cease to exist, as there was no one qualified enough to take his place yet. Even the most outstanding Silence was still too young; it was too soon for her.
As for the military personnel.
Upon learning that Parvis had lost the Flame Demon Project's test subject to Raythean Industries, they were so angry they nearly killed him. Fortunately, Parvis promptly provided the progress of the artificial infected organ project, and with the guarantee from Rhine Lab's headquarters, he barely managed to save his own life.
Over these few days.
Parvis seemed to have truly accepted his defeat. He simply stopped paying attention to the lost Infected, Ifrit. Since the data was still there, he could just use it to create a second Ifrit.
Everything seemed to be quietly returning to its former calm.
Of course.
No one knew if this was just a facade.
No one knew whether it was true peace and quiet, or the calm before the storm.
However...
Ifrit, on the other hand, could finally hold it in no longer.
After staying at Jessica's house for several days, the longer she stayed, the more she missed Silence and Saria. Her spirits had completely deflated in her daily life, and she cried and clamored to see Saria and Silence, wanting to go back to Rhine Lab.