Stelle sized up the silver-haired girl in front of her. She had to admit, the director's figure was both striking and generous—clearly a child of wealth, with top-tier development. Even Cocolia paled slightly in comparison. But the name "Numby" was still a bit...
Seeing Stelle remain silent, Numby thought she might have stunned her with the coin. With an apologetic expression, she said, "Sorry about that. The coins I toss are made of pure gold, so they might be a bit heavy." "Oh, right, I haven't introduced myself... I'm Numby. You must be the ones who found my wallet, right? Otherwise, you wouldn't know my name on our first meeting." Numby smiled.
At this, Stelle pulled out the wallet. "This one?"
Numby's eyes lit up. "Yes, that's it! Thank you."
Stelle handed over the wallet and asked, "Do you know where your company's leadership is? We're Nameless from the Astral Express, and we'd like to negotiate with your leader."
Although, according to the original setting, Topaz was a P45-level department director, those in the know understood that this world didn't follow much logic. Even if someone told Stelle that the head of the Strategic Investment Department was Skott, she wouldn't be surprised... probably.
"What a coincidence!" Numby extended her hand. "Let me introduce myself again. I'm Numby, one of the directors of the Interastral Peace Corporation's Strategic Investment Department and the overall leader of the team that came to Belobog this time."
"I've heard of the Astral Express's reputation before, and now that I see you, you're indeed extraordinary."
"That's great!" Stelle's eyes sparkled as she gripped Numby's hand with both of hers. "Can we find a place to talk in detail?"
...
Ten minutes later, in a roadside restaurant.
Stelle explained the situation to Numby in a very tactful tone. The gist was: the company's ability to recover this debt was partly due to the Astral Express's efforts, so could they, for our sake, just write off the debt?
Numby tilted her head, thinking. "Wouldn't that be the same as not recovering it at all?"
"Of course not!" Stelle said. "Think about it—if you don't collect this debt, the company's reputation across the galaxy would get a huge boost, right?"
Numby scratched her head sheepishly. "Um... I'm not great with business matters. Hold on a sec, let me ask an expert."
With that, Numby pulled out an exquisite stone. As a seasoned plot player, Stelle instantly recognized it as the "Cornerstone," which had only appeared in a few scenes in the story.
What did pulling out a Cornerstone mean? Was she about to flip the table? Why?
Stelle was utterly baffled until she saw Numby raise the Topaz stone high and shout, "It's decided—you're the one! Hear my summons, come forth, Topaz!"
—"Pa!"
A dazzling light flashed, and a... uh, a humanoid muscular Dimensional Piggy dressed in a black suit and sunglasses emerged from the Cornerstone, its massive frame casting a shadow over the four of them.
Stelle: !!!
She felt like this Piggy could knock her out with one punch!
What was this thing? Why did it appear like this? Was their Cornerstone being used to play Ether Front?
"Let me introduce you—this is my partner, Topaz. She usually gives me advice, and I make the final decisions," Numby said cheerfully.
Topaz lowered her head, letting out the characteristic, adorable sound of a Dimensional Piggy: "Hmph hmph~ hmph~"
"...The universe is truly wondrous," even Cocolia was stunned, muttering under her breath.
Topaz extended a hand toward Stelle: "Hmph~"
Numby translated, "Miss Stelle, Topaz is greeting you."
?
Stelle, bewildered, extended her hand and shook Topaz's. "Uh... hello."
Topaz then looked at Numby: "Hmph hmph hmph~ hmph! Hmph~"
Numby: "Got it, go ahead and speak. I'll handle the translation!"
Topaz: "Hmph hmph hmph~ hmph hmph~ hmph hmph hmph! Hmph hmph, hmph~~~"
Numby (translating simultaneously): "Nameless of the Astral Express, greetings. I overheard your conversation with my lady. As one of the heads of the Strategic Investment Department, we're happy to offer the Nameless a favor as a gesture of goodwill."
"However, the amount of this debt is indeed significant, even for me. So, I can make a promise: we'll settle it with a coin toss. If it lands on heads, we'll write off the debt entirely as a gift to seal our friendship with Belobog and the Astral Express."
"But if it lands on tails, I'm sorry, but we'll proceed with recovering the debt, though we'll offer proactive and reasonable repayment options."
Hearing this, Stelle, March 7th, and Cocolia exchanged glances: a coin toss?
This was a decision that would determine Belobog's entire future, and it was being decided so casually?
"This... isn't that a bit too hasty?"
"If you think it's too hasty, we can do best of three, best of five, or best of seven."
"..."
The three exchanged glances again, and finally, Stelle nodded slowly. "Alright."
Topaz took out a gold coin from her pocket, flicked it with a snap, and the coin spun into the air before being caught on the back of her hand.
"Hmph hmph~ (The coin has landed. Are you ready to reveal it?)"
Stelle hesitated. "I guess tails."
Numby grinned. "Then I'll guess heads."
"Hmph? (Are you sure?)"
Stelle felt immense psychological pressure but nodded. "Sure."
Topaz lifted her hand. Unfortunately, Stelle guessed wrong.
"Wait, wait! Best of three!" Stelle said.
"Hmph hmph. (No problem)"
The coin was tossed again and landed on Topaz's hand.
"This time, I'll still guess tails."
"Then I'll guess heads again!"
(Reveal: heads).
"Wait, wait, best of five!"
Whoosh—
"This time, I'll guess heads."
"Then I'll guess tails."
(Reveal: tails).
"??? Wait, best of seven!"
...
Meanwhile, on the other side.
"Boss, didn't you promise to give these locals three days to think it over? Why are we already out here inspecting economic assets?"
In the Lower District, a company employee yawned and asked Skott.
"Hmph, take a look. This icy rock of a planet—what could they possibly use to repay us? Three days from now, they're likely still not going to pay up. Inspecting now is just preparation for the tough measures we'll take later."
Another company employee asked, "Then why are we in this dump? I've heard these past few days that Belobog is split into Upper and Lower Districts, and the Lower District's economy is far worse than the Upper District's."
"You know nothing!"
Skott snapped irritably, "We're here for money! The Upper District may be economically developed, but is there anything we can just take away? No! The most valuable thing on this icy rock is its energy resources."
"And the Lower District is exactly where we need to focus."
Skott pointed at a random employee nearby. "You, go grab a passerby to guide us."
"Yes, sir!"
A few seconds later, the employee returned with a white-haired little girl. "Boss, I found someone!"