Chapter 495: NO.78: Aomo, the ability to find Bi Ze among a crowd and utilize him to that extent

NO. 78: Aomo, the ability to find Bi Ze among a crowd and utilize him to that extent.

"Director Tewei, long time no see, who is this?"

"You should have heard of him, he's the battle advisor personally invited to join by Commander Blake."

"Aomo Lindun, that's my name."

"Oh... oh!"

"An unnatural defensive distance, hands with nowhere to rest, and a hint of fear revealed in those eyes..."

"The Mitek shopkeeper showing his true face, with pink big eyes not much more lively than a costume, noticed something odd about the Metoron."

"Upon this, he also recalled some staff gossip, and upon looking at the youth, he instinctively stepped back half a step."

"He immediately gave a proper salute: 'So it's Lord Lindun, may I ask why you're here?'"

'"Just a cup of coffee, uh, a mocha will do…" the youth said, glancing at the picture advertisement at the distant counter, "By the way, I'll also have a Godra dessert, right, do you pay with federal currency here?"'

'"Ah, of course! Then Director Tewei, what about you?"'

'"Cola! Just get me a cola!"'

'"Just a cola? Director Tewei, you're really addicted to Earth drinks—our Mitek beverages are pretty good too, I recommend you try them."'

'"Go away, don't show off your charm here! Can't beat the Umamusume I'm pushing!"'

'"Tsk, I'm saying Director, your taste really is..."'

"Watching those two half-human aliens, the beautiful shopkeeper and idol-chef superior acting out a clash of worldviews, for Aomo it's truly a novel experience."

"It feels like stumbling upon a half-hour episode of Animal World in an old film or TV show."

"Because it's quite strange, I decided to watch a bit more."

"But unfortunately, that wasn't a tug-of-war, nor could it be called a lane clash; the brief interaction ended, and Aomo saw that appearance reminding him of the Monster King shopkeeper leaving, so he chose a nearby seat and sat down."

"He pretended not to hear her and her Godra coworker discussing this side."

"And Tewei also hesitated a moment, sitting in the seat directly opposite Aomo, but soon pulled out his phone, silent, in the typical dead‑otaku manner."

"So it was up to Aomo to start the conversation: 'I didn't expect you to be quite popular.'"

'"It\'s just the needs brought by the position," Tewei said coolly, "There are hundreds of thousands of aliens at this base, all came to invade the Federation, but only a few can actually go to the front lines—even someone like me, a technical staffer, numbers only a few thousand, while many more are logistics people like her."'

'"So they fawn over me, wanting to switch jobs."'

'"Is shoving weapons into your hand considered mere fawning? She looks worried about your situation." Aomo said offhandedly, making the other party stiffen slightly.'

'"Well..."'

'"Put it away, no need to prove anything to me, let alone in public," Aomo said blandly, "Now that lady is still backstage with her colleagues discussing how to help you escape my… uh… clutches, they really know how to phrase things—I've never… well, emmm"'

'"Thinking of the rumors on Umastagram, the fiend changed the subject without a trace: "But if you want to be an invader, how can your quality be so poor? Discussing such a dangerous process yet not even turning on a sound‑proof function."'

'"Advisor Lindun..."'

'"As long as the coffee and dessert aren't spiked, I'll pretend nothing happened, except..."'

'"Opening a shop in a place like this," Aomo slightly raised his head, gazing forward at the drink stand being built within the building, "does this count as logistics?"'

'"It\'s just a hobby; her real position is materials management—she opened the shop because she had too much free time," Tewei said, then suddenly lowered his head, "Your horse girl is already in the middle to latter half, oh!"'

!

'"The earlier embarrassment and tension were diverted by the horse‑girl chase beside Meipu; this Metoron seems to enter another state as soon as he watches horse racing."'

'"I know." The battle advisor glanced sideways slightly, then looked again at the employees passing through the hallway in front of the shop.'

'"He casually put up a sound‑proof barrier."'

'"Huh? Oh, you\'ve opened a terminal I can\'t see?"'

'"Noticing his unusual side‑glance, the Metoron realized, then lowered his head again."'

'"Meanwhile Aomo continued watching those aliens who would cast envious, jealous, hateful glances at the two."'

'"Each one is in their true form—strange, ferocious, even terrifying; even their pets are fully distinctive, giving earthlings no cognitive convenience, making Aomo consider whether he too should walk around as a fiend."'

'"All this is what Tewei calls the so‑called logistics, the so‑called support personnel."'

'"They have nothing to do with the battles and investigations happening across the city, feel no sense of crisis at all, and are busy with their own tasks."'

'"This gives Aomo a rather split feeling."'

'"Outside they\'re fighting to the death, here they\'re living workplace lives, even slacking off on the job—even the Tokyo residents most diligent in special‑effects works when monsters attack wouldn\'t necessarily have this composure."'

'"But no matter how strange, it\'s all unrelated to Aomo; he merely gave a slight nod and then asked: "Did the thing you were sent to investigate yield any results?"'

'"Aomo Lindun, already suspected because of his record of "playing with the Light Warrior," even after joining this invasion coalition, shouldn\'t be asking east and west."'

'"In order not to be rewarded with the "excellent treatment" of an extra personal guard assigned, Aomo entrusted the real investigative burden to this Metoron."'

'"This was also part of the cooperation agreed upon from the start, promising signed editions of many famous horse girls."'

'"Signed editions, while easy for Aomo to obtain, are precious items that many horse‑girl fans would be willing to pay dearly for."'

'"The sorrow of the idol‑chef is precisely this, but Aomo will not laugh at it."'

'"This is not mutual pity among horse‑girl DD fans; it\'s merely because……"'

'"People are born to strive for what they want to obtain."'

'"Just as most mercenaries fight desperately for money, office workers likewise sacrifice their health and lifespan long‑term for money."'

'"And Aomo, the type who stays in this place for cards, when faced with the idol‑chef who adventures for signed editions, truly cannot be said to be superior or inferior."'

'"Although monster cards and horse‑girl signed editions, if you tried to exchange them for money, would still be pricey, but what they value is clearly not this kind of value."'

'"If there were results, wouldn\'t I have sent them to you already? I\'m mocked every day by those guys for being bullied by you, none of them want to talk to me—how could this go smoothly?" he said, pulling out a slip of paper from his pocket.'

'"Compared to the doubtful Aomo Lindun, the threatened Tewei asking some trivial or sensitive questions comes much more naturally, especially since he\'s a technical staffer."'

'"But just as he said, although having been threatened by Aomo makes him seem less suspicious, being looked down upon also hinders the investigation."'

'"This is simple, just give him some merit," Aomo said blandly, taking the slip of paper, he glanced at the screen\'s race broadcast as he lifted his eyes.'

'"He merely gave a bland glance, while a certain technical higher‑up suddenly got excited during this serious talk: "Merit? Wow! The final round is here!"'

……

Aomo was somewhat speechless, unable to stop wondering whether this person, during organizational meetings, would also suddenly shout out due to shifts in the horse race, and then be beaten to death by the Boss with a staff.

The latter also noticed his strange gaze.

"Um, sorry, what did you just say?"

"Take a look at us first, then we'll talk," said Lin Dun, the trainer, raising his hand to indicate continuation. He sighed, dispelled the soundproof barrier, and said, "Anyway, it'll be over quickly, with no suspense at all."

After all, he had seen it—Bourbon, even with an absolute advantage, still activated that talent skill.