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ArabicArknights: Prime Minister of Kjerag — Chapter 43
Chapter 43: Kirsten: Ernst Called Your Name, Nasti
Columbia, Trimounts. The Rhine Lab Headquarters.
The deeds of Rhine Lab no longer required elaboration. Its brilliance and honor hung over the city like the bright moon and stars, dazzling and absolute. In just a few short years—a mere blink of an eye compared to the glacial rise of typical industry giants—it had evolved into a monolithic presence within the Trimounts scientific community. Even established conglomerates with decades of prestige and the backing of massive financial groups, like Beach Umbrella, now stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Rhine Lab during the city government’s annual commendations.
Rhine Lab had finally shed the humble “etc.” from the phrase “Beach Umbrella and other famous enterprises.”
To understand how Rhine Lab achieved this meteoric success, one had to look at its legendary founder.
Kirsten Wright. The only daughter of the genius scientists, the Wrights. That title alone was enough to prove the pedigree of the powerful woman known simply as the “Director.” But what truly gilded the name of this founder were her own terrifying achievements in the field of scientific research.
“You might not understand what it means to be a true all-rounder.”
“From high-energy physics to biochemical engineering materials, from polar engineering to archaeological excavation, Kirsten is proficient in everything that can be classified as science. Note my wording: proficient, not just familiar.”
“Without a doubt, she is a singular figure. For any ambitious, questioning scientist, she possesses an allure like a perfectly seared, medium-rare Higashi Kobe Sumpter Beast steak. She makes one inwardly drool over the sheer density of her brain.”
“Haha, you’re absolutely right. As the head of the Structural Section, my greatest wish in this life is to live long enough to personally cut open Kirsten’s skull. I want to see what difference, if any, exists between a so-called genius and us mediocre people at a purely physiological level.”
Holding a steaming coffee cup, the perpetually smiling old Caprini took a slow sip of his fragrant black bean tea. He muttered to himself, his eyes gleaming with a dark, thoughtful intensity. “There must be a difference.”
The visiting interns exchanged terrified glances. Their faces paled, showing varying degrees of confusion and outright panic. They were completely at a loss as to why the renowned biologist, Professor Parvis, was speaking like a deranged serial killer.
Parvis merely shook his head, indifferent to their trembling. “You will understand eventually.”
“Understand what?”
A cool, flat voice drifted from the entrance of the department, instantly snapping Parvis to attention. He nearly leaped from his swivel chair with an agility completely unbefitting an old man’s clumsy legs. He stared at the blonde woman standing in the doorway—whose fashion sense could only be described as a tragic afterthought—and exclaimed in surprise, “Director! What brings you here?”
“Just happened to be passing by,” Kirsten replied smoothly.
She swept her gaze over the small cluster of interns. These were supposed to be the cream of the crop of this generation, carefully handpicked by Director Yara of the Human Resources Section.
None of them caught Kirsten’s eye.
She quickly withdrew her gaze, her tone clipped and authoritative. “There will be a Section Director meeting at three o’clock. Remember to arrive on time.”
Parvis pushed up his glasses, a hint of disbelief reflecting off the lenses. “An emergency meeting?”
Kirsten nodded, her voice entirely devoid of the urgency her words implied. “Very important.”
…
“Everyone is here. I now declare the meeting open.”
Kirsten scanned the heavy hitters gathered in the sleek, dimly lit conference room. Saria from the Defense Section, Muelsyse from the Ecological Section, Ferdinand from the Energy Section, Yara from the Human Resources Section, and Parvis from the Structural Section. All five founders of Rhine Lab were present. Nasti, the newly appointed head of the Engineering Section, and Justin Jr., the head of the Business Section, had also taken their seats.
The only empty chair belonged to Mariam, the head of the Scientific Investigation Section. The man, who resembled a rugged adventurer far more than a scholar, was currently out in the distant, freezing expanses of the Sami Icefield. Given that Kirsten’s parents’ aircraft research had tragically failed and exploded on the spot, he clearly couldn’t fly back in time for this gathering.
Fortunately, no one questioned his absence; it was par for the course.
The moment Kirsten finished her opening remark, Muelsyse was the first to voice the question burning in everyone’s mind.
“Kirsten, why did you gather everyone so urgently?”
The elf was genuinely curious. Kirsten was an unconventional entity. Though she was the Director of Rhine Lab, there was a popular saying among the staff: ‘If you can actually find Kirsten in the Director’s office, then something massive is definitely going to happen at Rhine Lab today.’ Her mere presence in the administrative wing carried a causality-level influence.
Calling an emergency Section Director meeting like this had only happened three times in Rhine Lab’s entire history.
The first time was to formally establish the departmental system itself. The other two times were to introduce Justin Jr. and establish the Business Section, and to introduce Nasti and establish the Engineering Section.
Clearly, this level of protocol was reserved for monumental shifts in the company’s structure.
Muelsyse leaned forward, her eyes sparkling with immense expectation. “Are we getting new friends again? Who’s the genius this time? Let me guess, is it the recently renowned Mr. Levi? Or maybe…”
“The purpose of this meeting is not to add new departments,” Kirsten interrupted decisively, her tone flat and unyielding.
The water elf pouted, her shoulders slumping as she turned her head away in grievance. “Kirsten is still the same! Zero emotional intelligence! What a total mood killer!”
Unexpectedly, Saria chimed in, her deep voice stern and commanding. “Director Muelsyse, please stop for a moment. Be serious, and listen to Kirsten before speaking.”
“You too! Mood killer number two!” Muelsyse waved a delicate fist in the air, looking as if she were about to deliver a patented Mu-style water punch right across the table.
Unfortunately for her, neither Kirsten nor Saria paid her the slightest bit of attention.
Realizing her attempts to liven the stifling atmosphere were futile, Muelsyse gave up, melting over the polished table like a puddle of deflated jelly.
“We are here to discuss a collaboration,” Kirsten continued, entirely unfazed by the interruption. “A collaboration proposed by the Kjerag government, brokered by Mr. Cliff, the CEO of Blacksteel Worldwide.”
She paused, letting the weight of the names settle in the room. “They are willing to open up Kjerag’s highest peak—Mount Matterhorn—to us for limited scientific research. Of course, this is a trade.”
“What do they want?” Justin Jr. was the first to speak up. As the head of the Business Section, his instincts flared the moment the word ‘trade’ was uttered. “Kjerag… our neighboring yet incredibly isolated and unfamiliar country. What could they possibly want to gain from us by proposing such a massive concession?”
His mind raced through the possibilities. “Advanced weaponry? The latest scientific breakthroughs? Or…”
Justin Jr.’s expression darkened, his forced, polite smile twisting into something a bit more terrifying. “Do they want intelligence regarding the Columbian military from us?”
Kirsten shook her head.
Justin Jr. might have been a bit too sharp for his own good, instinctively treating Kjerag as a geopolitical player on par with Columbia. But in reality, it was still highly debatable whether Kjerag’s entire annual GDP could even match Rhine Lab’s quarterly revenue. What possible use would a snowy, religious backwater have for classified Columbian military intelligence?
Even if this mysterious Mr. Ernst knew he was going to be taken advantage of tomorrow, could he even muster the strength to resist? He would probably just act startled, then go right back to living his miserable, frozen life.
“Then what do they want?” Justin Jr. frowned, his paranoia momentarily replaced by genuine confusion.
Kirsten recalled Cliff’s words from her phone call with Blacksteel just a few hours prior. She looked at the executives and replied flatly, “They want money.”
“Ah?” Justin Jr. blinked, stunned. He clearly hadn’t expected Ernst’s objective to be so incredibly mundane and pure.
“And also…” Kirsten took a deep breath.
Justin Jr. finally breathed a sigh of relief, his cynical smile returning. “Sure enough. I knew it wouldn’t be that simple.”
Kirsten raised a hand and pointed directly at the indifferent Nasti, who was leaning back in her chair. The Engineering Director hadn’t spoken a single word or shown a flicker of emotion since the meeting began.
“They want Nasti.”
Nasti, hearing her name suddenly dropped into the geopolitical trade, snapped to attention. Her stoic expression shattered into pure bewilderment as she stared at Kirsten.
That bewilderment wasn’t directed at the fact that they actually specified me. It was directed entirely at Kirsten for the unspoken implication: They explicitly said they wanted to abduct me into the frozen mountains, and you didn’t refuse on the spot? You even specifically called a board meeting to ask me?!
She eyed Kirsten with deep suspicion, her glare practically screaming, You’re not actually thinking of selling me, are you?
But Kirsten seemed completely oblivious to Nasti’s piercing glare. With her usual deadpan delivery, she executed an epic, dramatic pause.
“…Along with the employees from the Engineering Section, to help them build infrastructure.”
To get rich, build roads first!
A heavy, suffocating silence descended upon the conference room. It stretched on for a long time. Only after the directors thoroughly confirmed that Kirsten had absolutely nothing more to add did the collective tension break.
They all breathed a massive sigh of relief, exchanging knowing glances across the table.
“Approved,” they echoed in unison. “Specific terms can be negotiated.”