In Alice's office, Masquerade scoffed after he finished listening to the entire audio on the recording device. "This is just all talk and no action. Who does Zenoheld think he is?"
"Hydron may not be capable of making big decisions, but Uncle Zenoheld will do anything to convince the shareholders and board of directors to think otherwise."
"Relying on his father, as usual. By the way, aren't you hosting an anniversary banquet soon? This is your chance to be firm and show Zenoheld and Hydron who's in charge here. You earned the respect of everyone else in the company, so put that to good use. Anyway, I need to attend a company meeting from my temporary office. We'll talk later."
After her brother left, the redhead closed the door and dialed the front desk's landline extension. "Shun, are you busy?"
"Not really. You can keep talking."
"Perfect! I listened to the entire recording yesterday, and Masquerade just finished listening to it before leaving."
"What was it about? I wasn't able to listen to it because I had no downtime before giving you the device."
"You don't know?! I'm glad you recorded, though. Zenoheld proposed naming Hydron as the new CEO, but the shareholders wanted to keep things unchanged for now."
The raven-haired receptionist lowered his voice. "So he wants to kick you out..."
"That isn't anything new, but what he did is still a bold move. What made you think of recording the meeting in the first place? Wouldn't you be afraid that someone found this?"
"How would you react when you see a group of strangers claiming to be shareholders arrive extremely early for a meeting? What will you do now?"
"Keep a closer eye on Hydron and Uncle Zenoheld, I guess."
"Since you're on the phone... I was wondering if you could approve my latest time off request."
"I saw that. The only person who can cover for you is Soon, but I haven't heard back from her manager yet. Anything else you need?"
"I'm good for now. About what I mentioned last time about Hydron—"
"Don't worry about it. Case is already closed."
After hanging up, Shun took the secret file from room 144 out of his desk drawer. Someone hid this file on purpose. If Alice hadn't asked me to clean the room, then no one would've found this. His eyes widened as flipped through the pages. This is about the plagiarism leak incident. More like a follow up report. Surprisingly, Zenoheld barely made any effort to defend his own son.
Under that report was a tab divider with other files underneath. Now this is a whole other case about someone named Joe Brown who was suspected of insider trading. It looked like Testarossa's stocks were skyrocketing until this happened. He flipped through a few more pages and found some with columns of debits and credits. What kind of bank statement is this? The headers and footers are all cut off. Even the descriptions of each transaction use shorthand that I don't understand. But who exactly is Joe?
The landline phone rang, interrupting his train of thought. Why does this even matter to me? I'm just a receptionist. "This is the front desk."
"I just approved your time off request," Alice replied. "Soon worked out her schedule with HR, and she'll cover you while you're away."
"Thanks again." After the raven-haired receptionist hung up, he kept his hand on the handset's microphone. But I can't let Zenoheld and Hydron keep on oppressing Alice either.
-x-x-x-x-x-
On Friday morning, Alice was working in her office when she received a call from the front desk. "Shun, how can I—"
"Alice, this is Soon," the HR employee interrupted with a trembling voice. "No one's seen Shun today yet. I can cover the front desk until noon, but do you know where he is?"
"Oh... I have no idea, either. He didn't tell me that he'd be late or calling sick—"
Masquerade barged into Alice's office without knocking. "This is an emergency. We need to talk about Hydron."
"Sorry, Soon. I'll need to get back to you." The redhead hung up and faced her brother. "What were you saying about Hydron?"
The sunglasses blond led his sister to her team meeting room, where the others had already gathered. He closed the door and explained. "Hydron plans to announce his new product line on the night of the anniversary banquet."
"What product line is he even talking about?"
Chris rolled her eyes and scoffed. "His solar-charging phone idea, of course."
"But I thought Mira already declined that idea due to safety concerns."
"So now he's taking a different approach. Hydron plans to make the announcement at an upcoming press conference and later at the banquet. The goal is to create hype in hopes of attracting sponsors."
"Has he lost his mind?! How can he do that without approval?! If this doesn't go well, then it will create more negative press for us." After taking a deep breath, Alice asked, "How did you all find out?"
"Word gets around..." her brother replied. "He's also hosting the press conference on the lawn near the back entrance."
"And no, the lawn doesn't require reservations," Dan clarified. "But expect a lot of reporters and foot traffic."
"Let's take a step back..." The redhead took another deep breath before calling the blond intern's office extension and then his mobile phone. "Hydron's not answering, but there's no way he would've done this without Uncle Zenoheld's help. He can't just throw his ideas into the air and hope that people will support him."
"I'll keep calling him for you," Runo offered.
"Let me know when he responds." On her way back to her office, Alice called Shun's phone. "Thank goodness you finally answered. Where are you? I have Soon—"
"Sorry, but I don't know where to even start. When I got off work yesterday, I noticed my motorcycle engine didn't turn on smoothly as usual. I still arrived home next to your house. But this morning, it wouldn't turn on at all. I also called my grandfather to check in, but he's not answering. You can write me up however, but I have no choice but to call late."
"Forget about perfect attendance, Shun. Where are you?"
"I'm literally seconds away from him."
"Send me your grandfather's address. I'll see what I can do once I get there."
"I hope you can drive on uneven roads." Seconds later, Shun arrived in front of his grandfather's dojo but was shocked to see the front gates wide open. That's not good. Grandpa would never leave the front gates unlocked. Then he stepped inside and saw his grandfather on the floor near the tea table. "What happened here?! Grandpa, who did this to you?!"
"They... went... garden..."
That suggests more than one perpetrator. The entire living room was also in shambles with everything swept off the walls and shelves onto the floor. The raven-haired receptionist walked through the indoor mess toward a broken storm shutter to see ripped foliage everywhere in the garden. These people didn't even spare the plants. What's going on?
That was when an entire cohort of black-clad ski-masked assailants stepped out from hiding behind plants and statues. "There's our target! Get him!"
"Time for payback!"
What did I ever do to them? Then Shun heard someone running towards him from behind, but he swiftly dodged to the right and he quickly swung his hand at the assailant's nape. Despite the attacker being incapacitated, another assailant jumped out from the other side of the storm shutter. Shun ducked and kicked the former's shin, sweeping the individual off the floor. Those two voices... Where have I heard them before?
Before the other assailants could ambush the receptionist, some flashing lights from inside the house distracted them. Alice suddenly arrived while holding her phone in front of her. "Would you still like to destroy this house? I already called the police and am also streaming live. The entire internet will know who you are and what you did." As the sound of sirens echoed louder, all the men in black left the premises via a garden shortcut to the front gates. "Shun, are you alright?"
"I'm fine." He then helped his grandfather up and rested the elderly man against the tea table. "Were you actually streaming live?"
"No, but I was recording." The redhead hit the pause button and looked outside. "I definitely hear first responder sirens outside. What happened here?"
"That's what I want to know too, but those assailants knocked out my grandfather. They're the same people from your first banquet."
"What?! How?!"
"During the entire ordeal, only two of those guys spoke, but I recognized their voices. What are you doing here instead of at work?"
"Don't get me started. Masquerade just learned that Hydron plans to announce his new exclusive product line—which is the solar-powered phone that Mira rejected—without a solid schedule."
"What's the point of that?"
"To create interest in hopes that people will sponsor his idea. It's nothing but a huge risk. Anyway, the police are here. Let's get your grandfather to the hospital."
After talking to law enforcement and watching the paramedics carry the elderly man into an ambulance, Shun asked the interim CEO, "Do you think this is a coincidence?"
"Malfunctioning vehicle? Surprise announcement? Home invasion? Same perpetrators? Absolutely not. Where's your motorcycle right now? I can ask Dan or Masquerade to examine it."
"I moved it to the backyard at the new house. We both already know Hydron and Zenoheld are behind this, but targeting my grandfather instead of me is just wrong. How did they even find him or this place? I never even gave you this address, and the permanent address on my ID is an old apartment in—"
"Since I presented the ultimatum expecting you to work as the building receptionist, do you blame me for what happened today?"
Shun stared back blankly. "What?"
"I know exactly what Hydron and Uncle Zenoheld are capable of. If I didn't bring you into Testarossa, then none of this would've happened. But it might happen to the next person I hire, simply because those two don't like anything that I do. I wouldn't be surprised if they hired someone to follow you—"
"If that were the case, then they must know by now that I live next to you during some days of the week." But do they know yet that I have the hidden file in my possession?
"You have a point..." Alice checked her wristwatch. "Take the rest of the day off. I won't penalize you over it. Then you can start your vacation early."
"I wouldn't call it vacation time anymore, after this mess."
"I know, and you deserve all the time off you need." While I investigate who's responsible for sabotage.
-x-x-x-x-x-
Masquerade and Chris accompanied Alice as they reviewed CCTV footage from the parking garage in the interim CEO's office. "Whoever sabotaged Shun's motorcycle planned this meticulously. Their getaway vehicle managed to avoid every security camera in the parking garage. What do you think about this scene? It looks like the perpetrator put something underneath the motorcycle seat."
"Why does Shun like parking in obscure corners in a huge garage?" the amethyst-eyed blonde asked.
The redhead's brother then paused the video and pointed at the screen. "It looks like the perpetrator put something in the gas tank. Maybe that's why Shun couldn't turn on the engine normally."
"Maskie's right. Any liquid besides gasoline will ruin everything."
"You two have a point, but why risk doing this inside the company parking garage?" And I still don't even know how to tell them that the same people who tried to kidnap me at the 'Mission and Vision' banquet are the same people that destroyed Shun's grandfather's house.
"Wherever Shun is now, he needs to take his motorcycle to a mechanic for inspection," the sunglasses blond noted. "Did this happen last Friday? Did he file a police report?"
"Yes, after discovering that his grandfather's house was ransacked, but none of us knew about his sabotaged motorcycle until now. Shun also requested the whole week off as well, so I don't know where he is right now."
"I bet Hydron did it!" Chris exclaimed. "Isn't it too much of a coincidence for Hydron to suddenly announce his new product plans on the same day that Shun has a family emergency?"
The male cousin sighed. "Chris, let's not jump to conclusions about—"
"What time is the press conference again?" Alice turned on the television and immediately saw Hydron with several other people on the company's back entrance lawn. "Oh wow, they actually started already."
"I am not watching this," was the last thing Chris said before leaving Alice's office.
Masquerade closed the door and then asked his sister, "What exactly is your relationship to Shun?"
"He's our receptionist and also rents my house next door. Shun's a bit new to the area. Think of this entry-level receptionist job as a career-building opportunity. Why do you ask?"
"You sure seem optimistic about him. I'm not suggesting anything, but if Hydron is indeed responsible, then he's a bigger threat than we thought. Are you sure Shun doesn't have any other enemies outside of work?"
"I really don't think so."
"I figured. As the saying goes—keep your friends close and your enemies closer. I'll see you later."
"Where are you going?"
"I'm going to crash a press conference."
After her brother left, Alice lowered the television volume and continued working on her computer while checking her phone in between. I understand that Shun wants to avoid anything related to work during his time off, but at least respond to my check-in messages.
Sometime later, a familiar voice from the live broadcast caught her attention. "How do you plan to meet tight production deadlines with limited resources?" Masquerade asked.
Hydron was more than displeased to hear who asked that question. "My plan is to implement a flexible deadline, where each goal is spaced apart appropriately so it doesn't seem like I'm rushing."
"Don't you think you're already rushing by holding this surprise press conference?"
One of the reporters suddenly aimed his microphone at the sunglasses blond. "Aren't you Masquerade Gehabich from MGL Semiconductors? You're collaborating with your sister Alice Gehabich of Testarossa Electronics for a project. You should be on the same side as your second cousin Hydron Gehabich—"
"Excuse me, but I don't need you informing the whole world about my family tree. I'm only here to work with Alice's team for new smart devices. Hydron is not on that team, nor does that team know what Hydron's new plans are. I'm asking him legitimate questions about what he's doing from a consumer's point of view."
So that's what Masquerade meant by crashing a press conference... Because of those unwarranted questions, Hydron decided to end the press conference early. That was anticlimactic, but at least I can turn the television off now.
Shortly after, she received a phone call from Shun. "Sorry for not answering. I set my phone to silent while at the hospital with my grandfather. How's work?"
"I just finished watching Hydron's press conference. It didn't end well, so everyone disbanded early. How are things with you?"
"It's complicated. Originally, I requested the week off so I can attend his routine doctor appointments with him, but then last Friday's incident happened. He's conscious, but the doctors say he'll need physical therapy."
"Oh my god... Any other debilitating injuries? How much do PT sessions cost?"
"No other injuries, and insurance will cover PT, but I'm worried about who will take him between his house and the PT clinic. Also, I watched Hydron's press conference from one of the waiting rooms. Your brother was savage and left no mercy."
"Speaking of savage..." The redhead explained everything she saw from the parking garage camera footage. "You filed a police report last Friday, right? Did the police follow up with that?"
"Not yet, but I've also been busy watching taking care of my grandfather. You and I already know that Hydron and Zenoheld are behind this. It's only a matter of time that your family and design team learn about it too. But you still didn't tell Chris or Masquerade about what happened at the first banquet?"
"I thought it would just be a one-time thing... until last Friday. Anyway, I need to put out this fire that Hydron inadvertently started. Don't be afraid to ask for help, Shun."
"Thanks for the advice." The raven-haired receptionist hung up and stared outside the hospital hallway windows. You need more help than I do right now, Alice.
-x-x-x-x-x-
BREAKING NEWS: Testarossa Electronics postpones side project following an unsuccessful press conference.
After watching a couple more minutes of the news report, Hydron turned the television off and left his office to go to the roof, where his father was pacing around impatiently. "Father, when you did you arrive?"
"I told you to hurry up and meet me here after you finished eating lunch. What were you doing?"
"Watching the news... I can't believe that the mass media thinks my failed press conference is newsworthy material. Anyway, why are we here again?"
"An acquaintance told me that the ambush attempt on a fellow employee's house didn't go exactly as planned..."
The blond intern stared in confusion before screaming, "You actually sent people to raid Shun's house?!"
"Those are your words, not mine. The police already figured out that the assailants I sent to raid the receptionist's house are the same people I sent to kidnap Alice at the banquet, but they haven't connected any of these people to me yet. Anyway, who invited Masquerade to the press conference?! You should know that he's nothing like his sister or her team members at all."
"How was I supposed to know that he would show up? Also, it was your idea to send those assailants to do your dirty work. I had nothing to do with either event."
"I'll take care of the police investigation. If you don't want to lose face again, then you'd better make your comeback at the anniversary banquet."
"Father, I don't see the point of attending any event this company hosts because everyone treats me like an outsider. I know Alice reserved a seat for Masquerade, even though he doesn't work here."
"Then you can argue with her that you have every right to attend if he can attend."
Hydron placed a hand on his aching forehead and muttered, "I should never have listened to you in the first place..."
"What did you just say?!"
After more fruitless arguing, the father and son eventually left the rooftop one after the other, but neither were aware that Shun recorded video of their conversation. You'll regret ever messing with me and my family. After receiving a text from Alice, he left the roof and made his way to the interim CEO's meeting room. "Did you need something urgent from me?"
Runo approached the front of the room and spoke. "Since I'm the team lead on the banquet-planning committee, I'd like to share my ideas and get some feedback." With that said, she spent the next fifteen minutes explaining the run-through.
While the Q&A continued, the redhead approached her receptionist and asked, "Is everything alright at home? Do you need extra security or help of any kind?"
"Aside from my grandfather himself, there's nothing valuable in his dojo. I do need to show you something." Shun played the video he recorded on his phone. "How do you want to handle this?"
"Send me a copy for now. I need to think about how I want to proceed."
"Sure, but it's a large file. I know I have no say in this, but you really need to do something about Hydron. Treating him firmly will only make him keep resenting you, but treating him kindly is basically asking to be taken advantage of."
"Unfortunately, my family and work relationship with him and Uncle Zenoheld are already out of my control. Since the upcoming company banquet is open to employees and shareholders, you're eligible to attend too."
"But I'm technically still a new employee."
"At least come for free food, but no unauthorized stealing."
"Don't remind me... Wait, there's a dress code for this event, right? I don't have the right attire at home."
"What about the outfit from last time?"
"It was stolen along with other things during the home invasion."
"That's awful... How about I lend you a suit and dress shirt? They're in my basement somewhere."
"Why do you have such clothes at home? I don't need you cleaning your entire basement just to find suitable clothes for me."
"Are you sure you don't want a lavish dinner that's fully paid for by the company?"
"I'm starting to think that you're inviting me to the company banquet for reasons other than free food..."
"I'll be much more relieved knowing that you'll be at banquet in addition to Hydron and Uncle Zenoheld. If you have any urgent questions about the banquet, then ask Runo now before I send you back to the front desk."
"I'm good... But I guess I have no excuse not to attend."
"Thank you for agreeing! You won't regret it!" With that said, Alice and her team continued working as Shun returned to the first floor.