Once I set my mind on something, there was little that could stop me. I began investing more heavily—I needed money to buy back Kaiba Corporations. I slowly increased my earnings; I couldn't go from obscure to high profile in a short period of time, after all. That might draw too much attention to me at a time when I was still quite vulnerable.
My activities were did not go unnoticed, however. While treading with caution, I needed attention back to me—to the true heir of Kaiba Corporations—before I made my move. My personal power and authority needed to precede my role as CEO; I needed to demonstrate my power as I was now without the influence of the company in order to secure my position as the head of the company.
After some light research, I discovered that the current owners of the company were five goons that had worked in the upper echelons when Gozaburo was in charge. They called themselves the Big Five, and had split the shares of the company evenly between them. Impressive, I thought, that they were getting any work done at all with that system. I scanned through their profiles—Gansley, the VP of Business Strategy, Crump, the VP of Accounting, Johnson, legal advisor, Nesbitt, the VP of technological advancement and research and Lector, my stepfather's personal assistant.
None of them seemed like a real threat, but I knew better than to underestimate my enemies. They were the type to do anything for power—their greed had always come before their pride. I scanned through their resumes, trying to think of the best way to throw them out of power, permanently. I needed to crush them, so that they would pose no threat in the future.
"Seto!" Mokuba cried, coming into my room. I shut my laptop and looked up at him. He knew that I had something in the works since we had come back from Cairo, but as usual, he knew better than to probe into my business affairs. He had also kept from asking me anything about the attack of the robed men. Perhaps he was trying to forget the whole incident—or maybe he was helping me forget.
"What is it, Mokuba?" I asked.
"Well, Max just called and asked if you were free this coming Saturday. He said he and Yami were planning on hanging out together…" Mokuba explained. I groaned. Ever since we had come back from Cairo, Pegasus and Muto had treated me like we were best buddies or something. They had easily won Mokuba over—and now he was even calling them by their first names!
"I'll let them know tomorrow at school," I replied. I never failed to meet up with them, thinking each time that it had something to do with the Millennium Items, but was always proved wrong. They seemed to think it was perfectly acceptable to just waste time on things like movies and dinner as if the attack at Cairo had never happened. It might have been three months since our trip, but I had not forgotten. Nor had Muto changed his attitude about my 'readiness' to receive the Millennium Item. It didn't matter. If I could secure Kaiba Corporations, the resources in my hands would be more than enough to take down whoever it was who attacked us.
I just needed to win back my company from these brainless goons, and I needed to think up a strategy to do so. And I would do whatever it takes…
An alert message popped up at the bottom left screen of my window: you have new mail from Ishizu Ishtar. Running a hand through my hair, I clicked on my email. This had been another new addition to my routine as well. The constant back-and-forth of emails between her and me began, just because I had sent that blank email with only my name. At first she had asked about our health and condition—a normal gesture of politeness considering the condition we had left.
If she spoke truthfully about her necklace, it was unnecessary. I answered politely—which led to a series of emails about her daily life: how the new museum exhibit was going, the popularity of the shadow duels concept among all ages, and one email was only about the weather. I didn't have time to waste on this—but for some reason, I didn't stop responding. It was as if she knew that I would reply, regardless of what she wrote. And that pissed me off.
How are you, Seto?—I twitched at her use of my first name, but it was too late to ask her to use Kaiba instead—Things are going well here as usual. The museum exhibit has attracted quite a bit of attention among scholars and amateurs alike.
You would be interested in knowing that some of the visitors included the Rare Hunters. I do not believe that they have anything planned for the present, but their presence at the exhibit does worry me. Please be on your guard and take care. –Ishizu
Rare Hunters. Where had I heard that name before? I frowned. That's right. Pegasus had used the term on the flight back from Cairo. I had forgotten to research the term before. Now was a good time as any.
Knowing that typing 'rare hunters' in the search engine would give me mostly useless sites, I decided to probe Ishizu about the matter further. Finally, I thought, my patience with her useless emails will be rewarded.
Ishizu—if she was going to use her first name, then it was only right that I use hers—glad to hear that the exhibit is going well. I am curious about the Rare Hunters. Who are they and how are they related to my brother and me? Are they the ones who attacked us in Cairo? Thanks for your help as usual. –Kaiba
Satisfied that my email did not seem too cold nor too familiar, I hit send, and returned to the window detailing Kaiba Corporations' activities. Apparently, with the split management, the company wasn't doing as well. I surveyed the company's quarterly gains. Since my stepfather's death, the company was taking a nosedive in profits—probably a combination of poor management and a decrease in interest in weaponry. Recently, the company had to layoff about a third of their workers as well.
Hmm, the situation was already ready for me. I smiled. My mind was racing with ideas. I needed shares from the company. And a way to influence the workers at Kaiba Corporations. And I needed to do more research about the Big Five. Now, if I could use Industrial Illusions to my advantage…
