Chapter 26: There’s Effort That Goes Unrewarded, and Effort That Is Rewarded
Ema immediately gave instructions to his secretary, Tsukimi-san, and she compiled materials on companies involved in Powered Suit development.
The Crimson Knight, an exceptional Gifted, was offering to cooperate in the development of Powered Suits.
There was no way he would let this golden opportunity slip by.
Ema looked through everything from major domestic corporations to small and medium-sized enterprises.
Wanting to contribute to domestic development if possible, he excluded the major corporations.
Considering facilities, funding, and personnel, major corporations had an overwhelming advantage, but they also had deep ties overseas, and this was to prevent technology from leaking to other countries.
If Kazuma found out about this, he would likely be displeased.
With a common enemy like the Ibinom, what was the point of humans hindering each other?
However, Ema’s reasoning wasn’t entirely incomprehensible.
If the Ibinom were to disappear, what awaited next was conflict among humans.
Thanks to the Ibinom’s presence, there were no conspicuous conflicts now, but even so, in places unknown to Kazuma, struggles over resources and land were occurring.
“If we can use this opportunity to increase our national strength…!”
Japan had also lost much of its nearby seas to other countries.
Vast resources like rare metals were being taken by China and America.
Nominally, it was called reclamation from the Ibinom, but in reality, it was a monopolization of resources.
Therefore, Japan had no choice but to rely on imports and was being exploited.
But now, the greatest fighting force, the Crimson Knight, had appeared in Japan.
With this, Japan’s position would change significantly.
Kazuma would likely be able to reclaim not only Japan’s nearby seas but even land from other countries.
If that happened, they could indebt the landowners, meaning other countries, to a great extent.
Japan, which had been in a difficult position until now, could gain an advantage.
Understanding this, Ema probably couldn’t afford to hold back.
“…Things are going to get busy.”
Ema, who was already busy, became even busier due to Kazuma’s request.
Pushing his body to the brink of collapse from overwork, he somehow managed to finish selecting companies that could likely meet Kazuma’s demands.
◇◇◇◇
“Sorry, everyone. We’re done for. The bank loans have been cut off. We’ll be closing down the company next year…”
With a somber expression, the president, Kurashige Shozo, bowed his head to his only four employees.
Kurashige Industries was a long-established metalworking company dating back to the Showa era, but unable to resist the tides of change, it was quietly about to disappear.
They had poured all their efforts into developing Powered Suits, hoping for a turnaround, but the results didn’t follow, bank loans were cut off, and only debt remained.
There were no means left to recover, and they had no choice but to close the company.
“I-Is that so…”
Hearing the president’s declaration of bankruptcy, the employees lamented the collapse of the company that had taken care of them for so long.
However, they had understood for some time that this day would eventually come.
The company had been operating at a loss, and overtime pay hadn’t been paid, so it was only natural.
Yet, the employees had stayed because of the president’s character and the good atmosphere of the company.
Even with low salaries, the employees had worked hard together as one.
Therefore, it was both sad and frustrating.
What was saddest of all was that the president’s efforts, who had worked harder and persevered more than anyone, were not being rewarded.
“But, it’s alright. I’ve asked an acquaintance of mine to look after you all. I’m sorry I couldn’t pay your overtime until now. It’s truly been nothing but hardship…”
“D-Don’t say that! I was happy working with you, President! When I was rotting away without any decent Gift, you hired me, saying everyone has their strengths, didn’t you…?! Just that alone saved me so much…”
“M-Me too, President! You not only hired me when I couldn’t speak well with people, but you also made arrangements so I wouldn’t have to talk much, and I was so happy about that! Because you’re that kind of president, I… I want to be with you until the very end…!”
“Boss. Me too. I’ll never forget the kindness you showed by hiring a good-for-nothing yakuza like me, who had never even worked, without saying a word. I’ve decided to follow you to the depths of hell.”
“Y-You guys… sob… sob…”
As everyone was shedding tears at the heartwarming scene, Shozo’s daughter and the last remaining employee, Asami-san, came running.
Out of breath, her shoulders heaving, Asami-san approached Shozo and told him a visitor had arrived.
“D-Dad! This is serious!”
“Asami! We’re in the middle of an important discussion right now!”
“I can see that! But this is even more serious! Anyway, come here! An incredible visitor is here!”
“An incredible visitor? It’s not some con artist, is it? Are they trying to prey on a tiny company like ours?”
“No, it’s not! Mom is serving them tea right now, so hurry up!”
Perhaps unable to tolerate Shozo’s words and actions any longer, Asami-san raised her voice and shouted.
“O-Oh. Alright. I’ll go right away…”
Scolded by Asami-san, Shozo couldn’t say anything more and simply obeyed silently.
“Sorry, you guys. Wait here a moment.”
“””Understood.”””
“Hurry, hurry,” Asami-san urged, pulling Shozo by his clothes from the workshop towards the office.
Returning to the small, prefabricated-hut-like office, Asami-san pushed Shozo inside.
Inside the office, Kazuma, also known as the Crimson Knight, and his secretary, Momoko-san, were chatting amicably with Shozo’s wife, Mayumi-san, over tea.
Mayumi-san, who had been chatting, saw Shozo, stood up from her chair, and began to introduce him as the president.
“Sorry to keep you waiting. This is my husband, Shozo-desu~. He is the president of Kurashige Industries.”
“H-Hello, nice to meet you.”
Shozo was overwhelmed by seeing the Crimson Knight up close and was being rather humble.
Bowing his head to the Crimson Knight, Shozo sat down on the chair Mayumi-san had been sitting on.
“You must be Kurashige Shozo-sama. My name is Shinonome Momoko, from the National Defense Force’s Special Operations Unit.”
Saying so, Momoko-san took a business card from her pocket and handed it to Shozo.
“Th-Thank you for your courtesy. So, what brings you to our company today?”
Shozo replied while looking at the characters written on the business card he received, but he was still too preoccupied with the Crimson Knight sitting next to him, glancing his way repeatedly.
“We visited today because we were thinking of entrusting a certain request to Kurashige Industries-sama.”
“W-Whaaat?! W-Wait a moment, please. This is… extremely rude of me to ask, but… are you the real one?”
The fact that the Crimson Knight had joined the National Defense Force was already news.
Of course, Shozo knew about it too.
However, the Crimson Knight was so famous that it wouldn’t be strange if there were impostors.
If someone wore similar armor, they could probably commit fraud.
Because of that possibility, Shozo was doubting whether he was real.
“Idiot! You! These people are real!”
“Ouch!”
Instantly, Mayumi-san smacked Shozo on the back of the head.
She had confirmed whether they were real before Shozo arrived.
That said, since Shozo didn’t know this, it was understandable that he would be suspicious.
“Well, there’s always a chance, right?”
“Are you saying I was deceived?!”
As it seemed about to escalate into a fight, Momoko-san intervened.
“Both of you, please stop there. I understand President Kurashige’s concerns. Therefore, let us prove once more that we are genuine.”
Momoko-san looked at Kazuma, who was sitting next to her.
Receiving the signal, Kazuma activated magic in his palm, making an exaggerated display so Shozo would understand.
“Do you believe us now?”
“…Ah, yes. S-Sorry for doubting you.”
“No, please don’t worry about it. Now, to return to our discussion, we came today regarding a certain request.”
“Y-Yes. A request for a tiny company like ours…?”
“Kurashige Industries-sama has been dedicated to the development of Powered Suits, correct?”
“…You seem to know a lot.”
Shozo clenched his back teeth at the past failure he would rather not recall.
But, thinking about it carefully, it was a strange conversation.
Why were they talking about such a thing?
It was something he could understand with a little thought.
That what Momoko-san wanted to request was the development of Powered Suits.
“Could it be, you want us to develop Powered Suits?”
“Yes. Just as you imagine. We came to request Kurashige Industries-sama to develop Powered Suits.”
“Eeeehhhh~~~?!”
Absolutely astounded, Shozo leaned back so far in surprise he almost fell over.
Finding the story unbelievable, Shozo pinched his own cheek, felt the pain clearly, and confirmed it wasn’t a dream.
“U-Um, why us? I know it’s strange for me to say this, but I think a major corporation like the Tennoji Group would be better than us, don’t you?”
“That’s right. Certainly, there are several companies in the country known as major players that produce Powered Suits. However, what we are looking for this time is a completely custom-made product and the establishment of new technology. We simply judged that Kurashige Industries-sama, who have taken on new challenges rather than being bound by the existing concepts of major companies, are the most suitable.”
Hearing those words, Shouzo shed tears.
The development of the Powered Suit that had once failed.
To be precise, the Powered Suit itself had been completed, but they had created a product that could be described as entirely different from existing ones.
They had tried to attract attention by being unconventional, but that plan had failed. Unable to recoup the enormous development costs, they had been forced to decide to close the company.
However, that result had led to this moment.
Those days had not been in vain.
That effort had not been meaningless.
It hadn’t turned out as he had envisioned.
A day had come when it would be realized in an even better form, exceeding all expectations.
“Ugh, uuh… uuh…”
“Eh, um… eh?”
Momoko, flustered by Shouzo who had started to weep like a man before her eyes, looked to Kazuma as if seeking help.
“(Try reading his mind.)”
“(Eh, ah, you’re right. I didn’t think there was a need to, so I wasn’t reading it.)”
Kazuma conversed with Momoko in his mind quite naturally.
Momoko, who was no longer fazed by this, did as Kazuma told her, read Shouzo’s mind, and understood why he was crying.
“(So there was quite a story behind this, huh.)”
“(People not bound by preconceived notions are valuable, you know! Let’s win them over now and make them craftsmen for the government and exclusively for me!)”
“(Just be quiet for now!!! You’re ruining this touching moment!)”
“(But that was your ulterior motive, wasn’t it?)”
“(Guh…!)”
Since what Kazuma was saying was true, Momoko couldn’t retort either.
Unaware that the two were having a comedic exchange in their minds, the Kurashige family were hugging each other and crying, their past efforts having finally borne fruit.