Chapter 3: Mr. Jonas... Has Some Bad News
She had prepared herself for Jonas sending her on a suicide mission, but his words left her stunned for a long moment.
Wear… wear this?
The girl known as the Dark Valkyrie stared at the collar in Jonas’s hand, her mind struggling to process what was happening.
She turned her head stiffly, and upon realizing what Jonas was holding, her brain completely short-circuited.
A collar—this accessory carried implications of personal humiliation in most contexts.
Even though the girl was inexperienced, in this age of widespread internet access, she could vaguely guess Jonas’s intentions.
She gritted her teeth as a faint blush spread to the tips of her ears.
Objectively, this outcome was far better than being sent on a suicide mission, yet for some reason, she found herself unable to speak.
Without a doubt, the girl was now in an extremely awkward predicament.
Compared to carrying out some dirty mission, this request left her even more flustered.
Staring at the silver-glinting collar in Jonas’s hand, she clenched her jaw, her ears now completely red.
“I… accept these terms.”
The words came out with difficulty—after all, agreeing to this was, in a sense, equivalent to abandoning her dignity and self-respect.
Hearing this, Jonas didn’t seem particularly surprised.
He stepped closer to Esney, his slender fingers brushing past her hair before settling at the nape of her neck.
Esney kept her head lowered, her fingers digging into her palms as she tried to suppress the storm of emotions raging inside her.
—Click.
The sound of the collar fastening.
The way his fingers had grazed her hair left her slightly ticklish, and the moment the collar locked into place, feelings of resentment, anger, and nervousness fermented in this strange atmosphere.
In the end, Esney calmed down instead, an odd emotion quietly taking root in her heart.
“Is… this all?” she asked hoarsely.
“Of course not.”
The words made Esney instinctively lift her head, her eyes widening as she stared at the young man before her.
The corners of his lips curled into a somewhat malicious smile as he spoke:
“Ms. Esney, you seem to have forgotten my earlier words.”
He leaned back, resting against the wooden desk, his gaze lowering as if appraising prey that had been completely captured, utterly defenseless.
“How will you… prove your loyalty?”
How to prove her loyalty?
The question instantly threw Esney’s already unsettled emotions into disarray.
She looked at the young man before her, her lips parting slightly, but no words came out.
The collar around her neck pressed down with a sense of oppressive restraint. Connecting it with Jonas’s earlier words, she faintly realized he was forcing her to declare her stance.
The humiliation in her heart grew stronger. Almost as if possessed, she let out a whisper-soft syllable:
“Woof…”
………………………………
In the end, Esney left.
Jonas had acknowledged her loyalty and promised to save her sister afterward.
Of course, this promise was unreliable—Jonas knew it well, and so did Esney.
Current medical technology couldn’t support surgery for Ellison’s muscular atrophy. In other words, the possibility of Nora Celine’s full recovery was slim.
But Esney was willing to gamble on that slim chance because behind Jonas stood the Vetting Conglomerate, representing the most cutting-edge medical technology…
If even the Vetting Conglomerate couldn’t do it, perhaps no one in this world could save her sister… This was the last lifeline, the only lifeline.
All she could do was trust that Jonas would keep his word.
The elevator descended slowly as Jonas watched the numbers decrease. He shook his head helplessly.
Before leaving, the girl’s eyes had held a trace of unwillingness. Jonas knew very well—that wasn’t the look of someone pledging loyalty.
But it didn’t matter. True loyalty couldn’t be achieved overnight. All he could do was plant a seed in the girl’s heart.
Judging by the complex look in her eyes before she fled in panic, Jonas’s first step had undoubtedly succeeded.
Even he might not have expected the plan to proceed so smoothly.
As Jonas stared at the detailed physical data of Esney displayed on the virtual screen before him, a strange thought crossed his mind.
Naturally, this data had been collected by the collar Jonas had just fastened around Esney’s neck—monitoring her heartbeat, body temperature, mental state, and more.
As the saying goes, if you control a person’s body, controlling their heart isn’t far behind.
Though it sounded exaggerated, this data would indeed be very helpful in Jonas’s efforts to win Esney over.
He stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, the city’s buildings below appearing tiny.
The Vetting Conglomerate’s skyscrapers were renowned for their height, allowing Jonas to easily overlook most of the city.
He withdrew his gaze, moved his hand to the communication interface, and swiftly made a call. Without preamble, he ordered:
“Nora Celine… transfer her to a hospital under the Vetting Conglomerate’s name.”
“I’ll send her details to your inbox later. Keep this discreet—don’t use my name.”
With that, he ended the call.
So… what will you do next?
Esney Celine… Miss Dark Valkyrie…
Jonas chuckled as he glimpsed his faint reflection in the glass before him.
But soon, as if struck by a sudden thought, he froze.
He had prevented the Dark Valkyrie’s first encounter with the game’s original protagonist… So who had taken Esney’s place in the gang fight?
As if confirming his suspicion, the moment the thought arose, he received a call from the Vetting Conglomerate’s security department.
The first words from the other end were:
“Mr. Jonas, there’s a problem with the Vetting Conglomerate’s control over the gangs in the Arte District…”
“The Arte District… is out of control.”
………………………
【Corporate Confidential Files】:
This record occurred on 【DATA EXPUNGED】
Jonas: Put it on, Dark Valkyrie. This is the fate of a corporate employee.
Esney: But Jonas, at what cost?
Jonas: Everything you have…
What did you think of this chapter?
0 reactions
Discussion
0 comments
No comments yet.