Chapter 202: The IPC Marketing Development Department — Oswaldo Schneider

Jade fell silent.

Truth be told, even she hadn’t managed to gain anything from her encounter with Evan. If anything, she had been subtly put on the defensive by him.

"Miss Jade?"

"Hm? It’s nothing, Topaz."

She rested her chin lightly against her hand, her golden eyes thoughtful.

"I was merely considering how the IPC might extract value from a genius like him."

Her gaze shifted toward Aventurine.

"Aventurine... what do you think of him?"

Only then did Aventurine slowly remove his sunglasses.

For a brief moment, his usual sharp, calculating expression returned.

But it lasted only an instant.

Fragments of everything that had happened in Penacony flashed through his mind.

No matter how much he thought about it...

He still couldn’t figure it out.

Just what kind of person was Evan?

What was it about him that made people trust him so easily?

It was... strange.

"Honestly..."

"I don’t know either."

"I barely spent any time with him, yet somehow..."

"I still agreed to his request."

"When he unfolded Penacony’s entire Dreamscape..."

"I used the power of my Cornerstone."

"I borrowed Preservation’s power to buy him time."

He laughed bitterly.

"Sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it?"

"I don’t even understand why I agreed."

"I’m Aventurine."

"Why would I ever do something that offered me no value?"

He shook his head with a self-deprecating smile.

"It’s laughable, really."

"And..."

"The way he looked at me..."

"...was different from everyone else."

"Most people look at someone from the IPC with suspicion."

"But his gaze..."

"It felt as though it pierced straight through my soul."

Aventurine smiled helplessly.

The last person who had ever seen through him so completely...

It was Jade.

She had recognized his value and personally brought him into the Ten Stonehearts.

Through Diamond’s approval, he received one-tenth of the Emanator’s Cornerstone...

Crossing a social divide that had once seemed impossible.

Topaz narrowed her eyes thoughtfully as she absentmindedly stroked Numby.

The little Warp Trotter wiggled its plump body happily beside her.

"He expanded Penacony’s entire Dreamscape?"

"That sounds like the power of Remembrance."

She immediately jotted the observation into her notebook.

"An Emanator of both Remembrance and Elation..."

"That certainly sounds like something the Elation would do."

"Stealing an Emanator from the Aeon of Remembrance."

Jade continued.

"Anything else?"

Aventurine thought for a moment before nodding.

"Afterward..."

"I spoke with several people who had crossed paths with him during the Penacony incident."

"One of the Garden of Recollection’s Memokeepers said..."

"She couldn’t peer into his memories at all."

"Not even a little."

"Then there was a Galaxy Ranger who had once been wanted by the IPC."

"According to information he received from the Astral Express..."

"Evan always acts as though he already knows exactly what’s going to happen."

"He never seems concerned about the cost."

"Apparently..."

"That’s the kind of person the Galaxy Ranger appreciates."

"In the end..."

"Everyone who has met him says the same thing."

"Mysterious."

"Unfathomable."

"It feels..."

"As though he’s holding the script of fate itself."

"No one can predict what he’ll do next."

Jade nodded slowly.

Her original objective in coming to Penacony had been straightforward.

Resolve the Penacony affair.

Retrieve Dr. Chadwick’s memories.

Nothing more.

Yet Evan’s appearance had disrupted every one of her plans.

That alone made him worthy of an official report.

After all...

He wasn’t merely an Emanator.

He was also...

A Genius.

And that title carried extraordinary weight.

Rumor had it that every Genius was an extension of the gaze of the Aeon of Erudition.

Each new Genius represented a possibility capable of changing the universe itself.

The IPC’s continued growth had always relied upon minds like theirs.

The Interastral Peace Corporation, headquartered on Pier Point, consisted of seven major departments.

Marketing Development DepartmentBusiness Consolidation DepartmentBuilding Material Logistics DepartmentStrategic Investment DepartmentTechnology Development DepartmentTraditional Projects DepartmentTalent Motivation Department

Among them...

The Technology Development Department was one of the corporation’s most vital divisions.

Its director was Apoor, who also effectively controlled the Intelligentsia Guild.

Like the Genius Society, the Intelligentsia Guild followed the Path of Erudition.

Naturally...

Someone like Evan was exactly the kind of talent they coveted.

Despite only meeting him twice...

Jade had already concluded that the IPC needed to recruit him.

If possible...

At any cost.

But...

An Emanator of both Elation and Remembrance.

A Genius acknowledged by Nous.

Jade sighed softly.

Winning someone like that over...

It wouldn’t be easy.

"Very well."

She stood up.

"I’ll take your Cornerstone with me."

"You stay in Penacony and get some proper rest."

"Once the Ten Stonehearts finish their meeting..."

"You can submit your report."

"As for whatever trouble Penacony faces from here on..."

"That’s no longer your concern."

She paused briefly.

"Though..."

"Breaking your Cornerstone will certainly earn you disciplinary action."

Aventurine shrugged.

"Nothing I can’t handle."

Jade smiled faintly.

Aventurine wasn’t merely someone she had personally chosen.

Diamond himself valued him highly.

Compared to that...

A damaged Cornerstone wasn’t an irreparable loss.

"I understand."

Aventurine answered calmly.

Only to receive an eye-roll from Topaz.

"And here you were saying my mission would fail."

"Turns out you didn’t do much better."

Aventurine simply lowered his head.

"Everything..."

"...for the Amber Lord."

The Interastral Peace Corporation had been founded approximately 770 Amber Eras ago by Louis Fleming and Dongfang Qixing, two devoted followers of Qlipoth.

It was also they who established Credits, the universal currency now used throughout the cosmos.

Today...

Both remained lifetime members of the Board.

As for the Chairman?

Naturally...

The Amber Lord, Qlipoth.

Below the Board sat the Board of Directors and its reserve members.

Within the IPC, rank was measured using the P-Level system.

P13 — New employee.P16 — Full-time employee.P25 — Regional leadership.P35 — Department branch director.P40 — Eligible to subscribe to Faith Bonds.P44–P45 — Executive Director level.P47–P48 — Board Director.

Many outside observers believed...

Only those ranked P40 or above could truly enter the highest circles of the IPC.

As previously mentioned...

The IPC consisted of seven departments.

Topaz, Aventurine, and Jade all belonged to the Strategic Investment Department.

Its director...

Was Diamond.

One of the few confirmed Emanators of Preservation.

Under his authority operated the Special Debts Picket Team—

Better known as...

The Ten Stonehearts.

Each member possessed a fragment of Diamond’s Cornerstone.

Each wielded a portion of an Emanator’s Authority.

Yet...

Among all seven departments...

The most dangerous wasn’t Strategic Investment.

It was the...

Marketing Development Department.

Its director...

Oswaldo Schneider.

Within the IPC...

The department had another nickname.

The Fanatics.

Anyone hearing that title alone would immediately understand what kind of people worked there.

Oswaldo himself was an uncompromising zealot of Preservation.

An expansionist through and through.

Even the Xianzhou Alliance classified him as an individual of the highest threat level.

Of course...

The Building Material Logistics Department couldn’t be overlooked either.

Its director was Taravan Keane.

Among all known Emanator-level department heads...

He was the only one who also held an official seat on the Board.

The Penacony operation itself...

Had been jointly planned by Diamond and Taravan Keane.

A business opportunity...

Snatched directly away from Oswaldo’s department.

Pier Point

Interastral Peace Corporation Headquarters

Within the Strategic Investment Department...

A disciplinary hearing regarding Aventurine had begun.

"The current bad debt recovery cycle has concluded."

"Penacony has once again been incorporated into the IPC’s corporate holdings."

"But..."

"We paid a heavy price."

"One Cornerstone has suffered irreparable damage."

The voice paused.

"Therefore..." ℴ

"By Diamond’s authority..."

"And under my supervision..."

"I hereby propose the following disciplinary measure."

"Strip Aventurine..."

"...of his position as one of the Ten Stonehearts."

Pier Point

Top Floor — IPC Headquarters

Countless starships and spacecraft altered their flight paths as they passed above the towering headquarters.

Everyone knew...

This was the center of power and wealth for the entire universe.

The colossal fortress dominating the planet...

Was the stronghold of Preservation.

At least two confirmed Emanators of Preservation resided here.

Taravan Keane.

Diamond.

Whether more existed...

No one knew.

At that moment...

Several holographic projections descended into the conference chamber.

Their mere presence radiated overwhelming authority.

"Diamond."

"What an impressive move."

A voice echoed through the room.

"You’ve already secured Jarilo-VI for yourselves, haven’t you?"

The unmistakably provocative tone revealed the speaker immediately.

Oswaldo Schneider.

Director of the Marketing Development Department.

Diamond merely hummed.

"We originally believed the planet had already been completely consumed."

"And yet..."

"Protected beneath the Amber Lord’s gaze..."

"It produced a Genius."

"Heh..."

"One Genius alone isn’t enough reason for all seven of us to gather here."

"Diamond..."

"I assume you have something more important to say."

The figure seated at the head of the conference table finally spoke.

Everyone present...

Represented the highest echelon of the IPC.

Among them were at least two confirmed Emanators.

The rest...

Were no less extraordinary.

Besides Diamond and Oswaldo...

There was also Madame Scarred-Eye, director of the Business Consolidation Department.

The largest department within the IPC.

Responsible for maintaining the corporation’s interstellar transportation network...

Managing strategic resources...

Setting market prices...

And overseeing countless facilities and inventories across the galaxy.

If the Marketing Development Department expanded the market...

Then Business Consolidation ensured that market continued to grow.

The two departments...

Were inseparable.

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