A Raythean Industries assessment?
That, of course, wasn't necessary. Lucas Reeve had only said that to Sona to pull her leg. Although she was usually carefree, Lucas Reeve knew clearly in his heart that the little squirrel would actually feel very uncomfortable about selfless gifts. That's why he had casually made up a reason, to make her feel like she had at least put in some effort.
If he had just said, "I'll arrange for you to sign with Raythean Industries," Sona would probably have felt terrible.
But, it was true.
Raythean Industries' branch in Kazimierz had never actively interfered in Kazimierz's internal affairs. It had always just acted as a supplier of advanced industrial equipment and other things.
As for weapons, Raythean Industries didn't even sell them in Kazimierz. After all, in this rare era of peace, there weren't many places at war anymore, so Raythean Industries' internal weapons business had already begun to shrink. They weren't producing many conventional war weapons anymore, shifting instead to personal-use customizations.
After all, in this day and age, no country wanted to rely on importing weapons from other countries' companies. Many countries had gone down the path of self-research and development. Although they might not be as advanced as Raythean Industries, the important thing was that it was self-developed.
But large-scale machinery for industrial projects was becoming more and more sought after, and Raythean Industries' technology for large-scale industrial machinery was in a league of its own.
Almost 90% of the relevant companies worldwide would place orders with Raythean Industries. Although the price was steep, it was truly effective. It was precisely because of this timely industrial transition that Raythean Industries remained unshakable on its stage as the world's number one company.
In many countries, a market value in the hundreds of billions was already considered a super-corporation. But no one could calculate Raythean Industries' market value, because it was simply incalculable.
Because this was a major matter—after all, Raythean Industries had always stayed out of things in Kazimierz, and doing this might cause some trouble, more or less—Lucas Reeve didn't privately seek out the general manager of the Kazimierz branch. Instead, he asked Jessica about it. And Jessica didn't make the decision privately either. After all, she didn't have any real power in Raythean Industries. If it was just moving money, she could use it as she pleased. But for major matters concerning national politics, she still had to ask the company's senior executives.
It couldn't be helped; Lucas Reeve needed Prayer Power.
And for Sona to gather a large group of Infected, she would definitely need a sanctuary. In all of Kazimierz, it seemed only Raythean Industries would do.
If Raythean Industries was really willing to help, Lucas Reeve naturally wouldn't freeload this time. He gave Jessica a small box and asked her to pass it on to her father, saying it was a thank-you gift.
In the small box was nothing other than a brand-new metal that Lucas Reeve had forged himself. Of course, it couldn't compare to Nirvana Metal or D35 Alloy, but it was an advanced metal derived from D32 Steel. It had greater hardness, lighter weight, and more superior Originium energy conductivity than D32 Steel. Lucas Reeve simply named it D33 Steel. For the Terra of today, the development of materials limited technological development to a certain extent. The appearance of D33 Steel would absolutely bring a massive technological innovation to Raythean Industries.
A technological innovation that far surpassed any other company in the world. The implications of this were self-evident.
If, in the past, Raythean Industries was 30 years ahead of other companies in technology, now they would be 60 years ahead. This meant that Raythean Industries had saved several decades of development time in one go. Who knew how much funding was saved in the process. As for why Lucas Reeve was so generous, it was purely because...
Jessica's father only had one daughter, Jessica. After her father retired, Jessica would basically take over as the new chairman. In other words, Raythean Industries would be Jessica's in the future. Helping Raythean Industries now was equivalent to helping Jessica. So, it was no loss at all.
When Jessica relayed the original message to her father, he was actually a bit conflicted. After all, on a personal level, he could agree. But the matter was of great importance. Even the chairman couldn't handle it directly; he needed to discuss it with the major shareholders. These shareholders would 100% disagree. But when Jessica handed the D33 Steel to her father, Jessica would never forget the shocked expression on her normally unflappable father's face for the first time. Afterwards, he rushed into the conference room like a madman and immediately called a shareholders' meeting.
Only half an hour passed.
The meeting of all shareholders unanimously voted to approve.
Compared to this era-defining metal, pissing off the Kazimierz Chamber of Commerce was nothing! The combined market value of all the companies in the Kazimierz Chamber of Commerce wasn't even as high as Raythean Industries'. Only a fool would choose to give up an opportunity to skip decades of development just for the sake of some paltry Chamber of Commerce.
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"Ladies! And gentlemen!! Welcome to! The Kazimierz Knight Major Spring Season Playoffs!! A total of sixteen competitors, the top four from each of the A, B, C, and D districts, make up our playoff roster! Today! We will be holding the round of sixteen! Without further ado, let's get our big screen spinning! Let's have our first competitor take the stage!!"
Through the television in the preparation room, the sixteen people in the room could clearly see the photos scrolling on the screen outside.
"No need to watch, you're definitely up first."
Lucas Reeve didn't even need to guess. He knew that this so-called random scrolling was actually pre-determined internally. They could directly control which competitor went on stage from backstage.
Indeed.
Just as Lucas Reeve had guessed, the scrolling photo on the top screen finally stopped on Sona.
"Ohhh!! Let's welcome our first competitor!! From our D-District, the number one on the leaderboard, our hottest superstar of the year so far!! Let's all shout her name, shall we!!"
"One! Two! Three!!"
"Let's welcome!!"
The spectators, who had already filled the stands, stood up excitedly, shouting at the top of their lungs: "Flametail Knight!!"
The host hyped Sona up to the heavens. With this kind of welcome, anyone who didn't know better would think she was some kind of champion.
Sona, in a suit of silver-white armor, a knight's longsword at her waist, walked out of the tunnel. She gave the surrounding audience the most standard knight's salute. This kind of salute was rarely performed anymore. It seemed Sona was trying to use this method to announce to all the spectators, and even to the people of the Chamber of Commerce, that she was not a commodity, but a true... knight.
"Hmph? Does she really think she's the Radiant Knight?"
In the Chamber of Commerce building, the bigwigs who were watching the live broadcast snorted in disdain. This ancient knight's salute was already extremely rare in this day and age. The last person to perform this etiquette was the Radiant Knight, who came from an orthodox knightly family.
"It's normal."
Another director beside him sneered.
"After all, the Radiant Knight was indeed extremely popular back then. She had become the idol of almost everyone in Kazimierz. A destitute, humble Infected has a knightly dream; it's perfectly normal to worship the Radiant Knight. In the past, the Infected weren't allowed to participate in the Knight Major, so it could only remain a dream."
"Something she could only dream of. Now the opportunity has come. And now that she's luckily defeated some not-so-strong opponents and gained so much attention, it's normal for it to go to her head. Since she dreams of becoming the next Radiant Knight... but even the real Radiant Knight was forced to leave Kazimierz, let alone a little squirrel."
"Tell that person, he's not to kill the little squirrel. Just cripple her. Killing her directly is too easy. Cut off her four limbs. Let her see how these spectators, who once lifted her up to the heavens, will ruthlessly smash her back to the ground. After she loses, notify the people on the other side to find a way to repossess the little squirrel's house. Since she dares to refuse our Chamber of Commerce, we must make her feel what it's like to fall from heaven straight back to hell."
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"Let's get the big screen rolling again! Let's see who the Flametail Knight's opponent is this time!!"
The screen started scrolling again. This time, it didn't roll for long. The photo finally stopped on a strange man's picture.
Lucas Reeve looked at this man's photo, and realization dawned on him.
As expected. After Sona refused, they started targeting her in the arena. The person they sent this time should be very strong. The Chamber of Commerce probably wants to directly shatter Sona's fragile myth of invincibility and kick her right back down to earth.
"Oh! Let's welcome the Flametail Knight's opponent for this round of sixteen!! The Swift-Sword Knight!!"
After the host finished speaking, from the tunnel directly opposite, a tall and slender figure walked out. His appearance was hard to see clearly because he wore a half-mask covering the left side of his face. However, the gaze this Swift-Sword Knight directed at Sona was one of pure contempt and mockery.
"Oh~ They're actually sending *him* out?"
One of the Chamber of Commerce directors said: "Isn't this a bit of an overkill? Wasn't he supposed to be used to intercept the top-eight contenders in the Championship?"
Another director beside him replied: "Even a lion uses its full strength to catch a rabbit. What if we send someone weaker and they lose? Wouldn't that be a slap in our own faces? It's better to just send a strong one. Then we can rest easy."
The prestige of the Spring Season wasn't high, especially in a year when the Championship was also being held. It was always a question whether the Spring Season champion from such times could even make it into the top thirty-two of the Championship. By directly sending out a knight who was paid to defeat top-eight contenders, there was absolutely nothing to worry about.
Of course.
The Chamber of Commerce's use of a sledgehammer to crack a nut also made the Swift-Sword Knight extremely dissatisfied. He was being wasted, actually being sent to deal with an Infected knight who was famous but had mediocre strength. This feeling of being underestimated made the Swift-Sword Knight want to vent his dissatisfaction on Sona.
"I now declare!! The first match of the playoffs, the match between the Flametail Knight and the Swift-Sword Knight!! Begin!!"
When the host announced the start.
Neither Sona nor the Swift-Sword Knight, who were standing on opposite sides of the coliseum, moved immediately.
"Sona, let me take over this time. This opponent is far beyond what you can currently handle."
"But...."
Sona hesitated. Although she really wanted to persevere, Sona had to admit that just based on aura alone, she had already lost to her opponent. He was strong!
That sharp aura that enveloped his entire body... even just looking at him made Sona feel as if there was a blade at her back.
"Fighting an evenly matched opponent, or one who is only slightly stronger, is called training. Fighting someone who is much stronger is called suicide."
Lucas Reeve said: "Let me take this one. Since the Chamber of Commerce decided not to play by the rules first, they can't blame me for not playing by the rules either."
If they hadn't played such dirty tricks, Lucas Reeve wouldn't have appeared, as long as Sona's life wasn't in danger. Even if Sona lost, he wouldn't have appeared. But now... since the people at the Chamber of Commerce liked to play 'forcefully substitute a player before the match,' then Lucas Reeve would play the 'substitute player mid-match' game.
"I'm counting on you, Mr. Reeve."
In the end, under Lucas Reeve's insistence, Sona chose to compromise.
On the other hand, this knight really was strong. Even just by looking, her opponent completely crushed her in terms of aura and every other aspect. Was this the level of a top-tier knight?
Sona had originally thought that after comprehending perfect Total Concentration Breathing, her own strength wasn't that weak. But after meeting the Swift-Sword Knight in front of her, she truly realized the gap between herself and a top-tier knight.
Two minutes had passed since the match began.
But neither Sona nor the Swift-Sword Knight had moved.
This time, the audience didn't get rowdy. Instead, they subconsciously felt that this was a clash of experts, both sides searching for the other's weakness.
In reality.
The Swift-Sword Knight hadn't taken Sona seriously at all.
As a former semi-finalist in the Championship, the Swift-Sword Knight had also had his moment of glory. When he first debuted, he too was a genius. In his own city, he believed himself to be exceptionally talented. In the championship two years ago, he ran into the Black Knight and was forced to accept defeat in the semi-finals.
Later, he recognized reality and proactively bowed his head to the Chamber of Commerce, becoming one of their hired thugs for the Knight Major. And in his eyes, an opponent of Sona's level, in this kind of match, was as boring and ridiculous as having a judo match with a kindergartener.
And he himself actually had to deal with a kindergartener. How ironic.
"You're unlucky, little squirrel, running into me. Of course, I won't kill you. After all, someone has forbidden me from killing you. But you won't be keeping your four limbs. Don't worry, my sword is very fast. I'll sever your limbs quickly, it won't hurt much. Arrogance is not a good habit. It's just a little bit of fame. Remember to be more careful in your next life."
The Swift-Sword Knight drew the long, thin, sharp rapier from his waist. With a casual flick, it instantly let out bursts of sword cries. Like a fencer, he adopted his stance.
Suddenly.
Lucas Reeve said with a smile: "So many words. I'm waiting for you to make a move. What are you waiting for? To die?"
"You!!"
The Swift-Sword Knight was rendered speechless by Lucas Reeve's taunt. He immediately snorted coldly.
"Hmph. Arrogant."
In his anger, the rapier in the Swift-Sword Knight's hand seemed to turn into an afterimage. In almost an instant, he crossed more than half the arena, thrusting directly at Sona's chest.
"So fast!!"
In the preparation room, the Whislash Knight's eyes also widened.
This person... at first, she hadn't recognized him. After all, six years had passed, his appearance had changed, and he was wearing a mask. But now, with such a fast sword, she recognized him—it was the semi-finalist from the Knight Major two years ago, the 'Flash' Knight, a knight whose sword was fast to the extreme. Why was he here?!!
Could it be!!
Zofia thought of something very dark.
And on the field, the Swift-Sword Knight's sword was absurdly fast, so fast that the cameras couldn't even capture it.
However.
Just when he thought he could easily sever the opponent's arm, he suddenly heard a *CLANG*.
Hmm?
*Clang??*
What was that sound?
Does a sword cutting through-flesh and blood make that sound?
And when the Swift-Sword Knight focused his eyes, he was instantly stunned. Because... his sword, the fast-sword he took so much pride in, had been easily blocked by the little squirrel in front of him.