Surviving Among the Letters

“Ahem… Shall we get going?”

“Going where?”

“Don’t you want to visit your friend?”

“Oh, yes. Can we go right now?”

“Sure. Thirty minutes should be enough.”

The director stood up from his seat, and I followed.

He took a coat off the wall, put it on, and looked at me.

“Hmm… I don’t have a coat that would fit you.”

“Is it cold outside?”

“It’s February. The weather is still chilly.”

It seemed there wasn’t an appropriately sized coat for my body here.

Well, the only clothes in this lab that fit me were the lab uniforms.

Even now, my white lab coat is too large, dragging on the floor as I walk.

“Let’s just go. The car will have a heater, right?”

After all, we’d be sitting in the car with the heater running for thirty minutes.

Did I really need a coat?

“A car? Oh, I didn’t tell you, did I?”

“Tell me what?”

“We’re taking a helicopter.”

“A helicopter?”

◆◇◆◇◆

“Ahhh…”

Stretching, I stepped outside the lab.

Finally, I could breathe fresh air again.

Director Messier was already ahead of me, walking briskly.

“Why is there nothing around here?”

When I heard “lab,” I pictured a research complex or something similar.

But aside from the enormous lab we just exited, the area was nothing but empty land.

Empty land?

Wait, no… This is a runway!

“Do labs normally have runways?”

“Of course not.”

Now that I thought about it, I arrived at this lab via transport plane.

Naturally, a runway was necessary for that.

At the time, I hadn’t noticed anything strange, but now odd details were beginning to stand out.

“Do labs normally have fighter jets?”

I could understand having a helicopter—maybe one for personal use.

But those over there were unmistakably fighter jets.

The director responded to my question with a laugh.

Soon, a helicopter came into view.

“Boss! The helicopter is ready as you ordered!”

Do labs normally have soldiers?

Why were these soldiers gathered here, seeing us off?

And… did they just call him “Boss”?

“Alright. I’ll call when we’re coming back.”

“Yes, sir! By the way, this kid…”

“My daughter.”

“…Wait, could she be… a love child…?”

“She’s adopted.”

“Ah, I see. Well, considering how much you like kids, we’ve joked about you adopting one before. Turns out it’s true.”

As we approached the helicopter, the propeller’s wind blew fiercely against us.

“Get in first.”

Following his instruction, I climbed aboard.

This wasn’t the kind of helicopter you’d typically imagine.

Its sleek black exterior and luxurious interior seats made it feel more like a limousine that could fly.

Whirrr!

The director followed me into the helicopter and shut the door.

While we buckled our seatbelts, the pilot addressed the director.

“Boss! To the rooftop of Avio Genesis, right?”

“Yes.”

“And the kid is…?”

“My adopted daughter.”

“Ah.”

It seemed like this conversation would keep coming up.

“Miss… What’s your name?”

“Blanco.”

“Ah, Blanco. Have you ever ridden in a helicopter before?”

“No…”

Not even in my previous life.

“Well, just make sure your seatbelt is on tight. Other than that, there’s nothing to worry about. This isn’t just any ordinary helicopter.”

It certainly didn’t seem like one.

Even with the propellers spinning, the interior was surprisingly quiet.

What kind of technology was this?

“Alright, boss. Taking off now.”

With that, the helicopter slowly ascended into the sky.

◆◇◆◇◆

“Could you explain something to me?”

“What?”

The helicopter had stabilized, and I decided to ask the director for clarification.

“The soldiers… who are they?”

“My subordinates.”

“So you hired a PMC?”

“No. My subordinates. I pay their salaries.”

Normally, a lab director wouldn’t have their own military organization.

Or is this normal in this world?

“Don’t look at me like you’ve accepted it as normal. I’m an exception, obviously.”

“Ah.”

“Where do you think the funding for ability creation research comes from?”

“Well… investments from companies impressed by your research results?”

“Do you think my research has produced results?”

“Since you’re asking, I’m guessing it hasn’t.”

“Exactly. So I needed a way to make money. That’s how they ended up here.”

Who would’ve thought the solution was running a private military company?

“At first, they came to me because of my research. They were nothing but third-rate soldiers—lacking superpowers, martial arts, or magic. Just desperate men drawn to my goal of creating abilities.”

“Wouldn’t they have left after failing?”

“They should have. But where would they go? No battlefield would take them back.”

“So you took them in?”

“From the Star Cluster?”

“Yeah. They said they wanted their own private military force or something.”

But… aren’t they already affiliated with the Swordmaster?

The Night Sky Order’s top combatant, S-rank knight Cielo Candellario, is part of their group. What more could they possibly need?

“That’s how we became a well-known PMC in the underground world. The fact that we don’t rely on abilities makes us surprisingly versatile. And…”

“And…?”

“We can handle illegal activities easily, like capturing test subjects like yourself.”

“You told me my experiments were legal.”

“And they are. They just get a little… tweaking to appear that way.”

So that was their real objective.

I should’ve known.

They wouldn’t have created a private military organization without a specific goal in mind.

“Anyway, we’ve got about 20 minutes left. I’m going to take a nap. Didn’t sleep well last night.”

The director leaned his head against the window and closed his eyes.

Not feeling sleepy, I turned to gaze out of the window, watching the scenery pass by.

◆◇◆◇◆

“We’re almost there!”

At those words, I looked out and saw a massive city sprawling before us.

Pyongyang.

In reality, it’s the capital of North Korea, invoking images of its leader. But in this novel, it’s the central city of Paradise.

It’s also the starting point of the original story, home to Paradise Academy.

This is where the protagonist, Arwin, first meets the heroines and begins forming his relationships.

“Yawn… That’s Avio Genesis’s headquarters.”

The skyline was filled with countless buildings, each over 40 stories tall.

But one stood out—a towering structure at least 60 stories high, standing alone in its grandeur.

We headed toward the helipad on its rooftop.

Thwack!

The helicopter landed, and the propeller gradually came to a halt.

The director opened the door and jumped to the ground.

He turned back and extended a hand to me.

I took his hand and followed suit, hopping down to the ground.

“Brother!”

As if she had been waiting, a woman emerged from the building as soon as the helicopter landed and approached us.

She had long black hair with green tips and wore round glasses with a thin frame. Even her hairpin was green.

The novel setting struck me again.

Who in the real world would walk around like that? Gradient hair? This was my first time seeing such a thing.

“Oh~ You brought the little one along. Remember me?”

“Have we met?”

“We spoke on the phone once. Messier passed the call to me.”

So, she was the one I spoke to back then.

The one who asked if I felt any guilt.

I thought she might be important, but she’s more than that.

“Let me formally introduce myself. My name is Luca Cortez. I’m not some bright-eyed 22-year-old college student. I’m the next president of Avio Genesis. Nice to meet you.”

This was the Luca Cortez.

In the story, she eventually becomes the president of Avio Genesis and is the final boss of Chapter 2, manipulating the protagonists until she is ultimately outsmarted.

For now, it seems she hasn’t officially taken over the presidency.

“Anyway, it’s cold, isn’t it? Let’s head inside.”

Luca grabbed my hand and led me toward the building.

As the glass doors opened, several attendants greeted her.

“Brother, you can’t just bring a 12-year-old dressed like this. She must be freezing.”

“I didn’t have anything in her size.”

“Sigh…”

Clap, clap!

At her signal, an attendant approached.

“Bring some clothes that’ll fit her. Make sure they’re pretty. Take pictures, too. Now, Blanco, stand still.”

I stood still as instructed while the attendant took photos of me.

“Leave them in my room once you’re done shopping. Got it?”

“Yes, Miss Cortez!”

Unlike Messier, Luca exuded a commanding aura, a natural authority.

The way she effortlessly directed the attendants and the undeniable air of elegance surrounding her made it clear why she was set to inherit a major corporation.

Her confident stride and respectful demeanor toward others only enhanced her presence.

It was easy to see why she was both a member of the Star Cluster and the future president of Avio Genesis.

Messier Atreia, my current guardian.

Luca Cortez, the next president of Avio Genesis.

Cielo Candellario, the Swordmaster of the Night Sky Order.

I was beginning to wonder who the other members of the Star Cluster might be.

“So, little one, you’re here to visit a friend, right?”

“Yes.”

That’s right.

I came here to see Remy.

I wondered if she had been safely frozen without any issues.

“We’ll need to head to FutureIce for that. It’s in another building. Let’s start by going to the first floor.”

We took the elevator down to the first floor, where a vast hall greeted us.

“You brought your access card, right, brother?”

“Of course.”

“Then we just need to issue one for the little one.”

Since we had come down from inside the building, we hadn’t gone through any access control points.

Messier already had his access card, so it seemed they were planning to issue one for me.

Luca walked over to the security desk.

“Oh, Miss Cortez. What brings you here…?”

“Blanco! Come here.”

I stepped up next to Luca.

“This girl is my guest. Issue her an access card under my authority.”

“Of course. What’s the young lady’s name?”

“Blanco Atreia.”

“Atreia? You mean…”

“Yes, she’s Dr. Messier’s daughter.”

“Wow… Oh! I’ll take care of it right away.”

The mention of my surname seemed to leave the staff in awe.

It was a stark reminder of Messier’s influence.

“Come here, Blanco. Let’s take a quick picture.”

After taking the photo for the card, I held the finished product in my hands.

[Name: Blanco Atreia]
[Access Level: Maximum]
[Notes: Guest of Miss Luca Cortez. Handle with care.]

For the first time, it felt like I had fully stepped into the world of this novel.

As if I’d become nothing more than a character in a book.

Even after receiving the card, that strange sense of rejection lingered.