Chapter 10: Trust Escalation

How do you gain a person's trust?

In detail, there are many ways to do this.

And the drawbridge effect is undoubtedly one of them.

When a person is in danger, his heart rate increases and he is likely to trigger many delusions—although Alice is not going to be a master and wants to have something to do with Kluet.

But there is no doubt that when Klute cleanly and without hesitation resolved all the incidents and satisfied Alice's sense of security. This heroic lady still has a lot of affection for the big daddy.

To put it simply, this eldest lady who lacks fatherly love is a bit of a father.

Although it's really only a little bit.

But some things are just so magical—like love, respect, and other kinds of feelings, and the most important thing is never how much, but with or without.

Ever since the eldest lady had such and such thoughts about Kluet, her attitude has changed dramatically.

Although they were very cooperative before, in fact, Klut and her did not communicate much, even if they talked a lot before, in fact, Klut was mostly talking, and Alice was listening.

But when Fenrir was beaten away, Klut began to clean up the base. This time, Alice's words began to increase.

There is a feeling of 'successfully entering the Alice thread'.

"Are you here to get me?"

Maybe it's because I was kidnapped once, although this time there was a lot of movement. It really scared the eldest lady, but she deserved to be the daughter of everyone's nobles. The ability to accept such surprises is surprisingly strong.

"Hmmm......"

Kluett didn't want to say it.

While it was true that Fenrir had come for her, there was no need for her to know about it. Anyway, you have to fight, so why put pressure on the little girl.

But since she asked, Klut couldn't hide it.

"Yes, as you imagine. ”

"Is that so. ”

Alice was silent for a moment, a strange smile on her face.

It's hard to describe what that smile meant—in short, it looks a little sensible.

Did you think of something?

It should be.

Klut knew from the beginning that this girl was extraordinary. If this kind of thing happened to ordinary people (and of course they didn't have the opportunity), I'm afraid they would already be panicked, right? Even if you try to calm down, it is very difficult to suppress the fear in your heart.

But this girl is different, at the moment of crisis, she did not blindly fear - but grasped the two cores of this matter.

First, these people are coming for her.

Second, she is safe enough under Klut's protection.

Realizing these two things, she didn't ask stupid questions like 'what to do' - on the contrary, knowing that her abilities were limited and that she had to rely on Kluet's protection if she wanted to be safe. So, she's not going to talk nonsense about it at all.

Because it's useless to say it.

Of course, Klut will do his best for her, and there is no other way to say it than to comfort her.

So, instead of wasting time on this kind of thing, Alice wanted to talk about something else.

For example, who is the person who wants to arrest her.

"Can I call?"

And the quickest way to know this is, of course, to give Kaguya-san a call.

"Huh, didn't you fight before?"

Klut was really taken aback this time.

Is it okay to make a phone call - the information revealed by this question is very clear.

Because Griffin was previously electronically suppressed by the enemy, all means of external communication would be blocked.

If Alice tries to reach out, the question she will ask will be "Can you get through now?" - this is normal, after all, it is normal to seek security from her father or other family members in such a dangerous environment.

But what she asked was, 'Yes or no?'.

Well, she must have thought 'no' before, and because this was not okay, she didn't make any attempts.

Is it because of cowardice?

Klut doesn't think so. Although the contact time was very short, the girl was not weak at all.

Well, that's wisdom.

In the crisis, she calmly made a judgment, and this amount alone was enough for her to become a big man.

Although with her identity, she will become such a figure sooner or later.

"Of course, the electromagnetic suppression has been lifted - but given the quality of communication, let's use this anyway. ”

Klute pulled out his communicator and handed it to Alice. And the latter did not refuse, but after saying thank you, he dialed his father's phone number against his mobile phone book.

But no one answered.

The phone rang three times, but it didn't mean to be connected at all.

“……”

The expression on Alice's face froze, and then the next moment it turned iron.

She hung up the phone and pressed the number again. But ten seconds passed, and there was still no answer on the other side of the phone.

A terrible silence enveloped Klut's office.

Alice pinched the phone and thought for a while. Suddenly, I flipped through my phone and dialed another phone number.

Klut looked at her, noticing a chill in the girl's eyes.

"Is it Miss Fei Yingli?"

Her voice was no longer as soft as before, but with a hint of strength.

"I'm the daughter of the Kaguya family. My father must have told you something before. ”

At this moment, she is extremely powerful.

……

……

Don't put your eggs in one basket.

For most people, the word 'risk aversion' probably started with this proverb.

In the face of possible risks, divide resources. In this case, no matter which side suffers losses, the other side is likely to survive.

That's the case with eggs, that's with savings, it's like that, with real estate – the whole concept of the family business, of course, is the same.

With a noble family like Kaguya, it is simply impossible to deal with the crisis without a plan.

Although the name of the asset is naturally owned by the owner, in order to prevent some unexpected situations. Of course, the means and proof of the transfer of assets will also be prepared in advance.

And now, regardless of whether or not Mr. Kaguya has encountered an accident, in short, this contingency plan has finally come in handy.

"About two years ago, my father gave me this phone number. Let me call 'when I need to.' Although he didn't say it explicitly, I think there was only one 'necessary time' for him. ”

On the helicopter to New Tokyo, Alice's expression was still calm. Looking out the window, her eyes seemed to penetrate time.

“……”

"I'm the daughter of the Kaguya family, and although I didn't expect it to be like this, I still have the consciousness I should have...... The number I dialed was an emergency line left for me by my father, and I was the only one who knew the number. Whether he hung up or answered, as his father's heir, he would not ignore it - but he did not answer, this is the first time this kind of thing has happened. ”

"Won't it be because it's busy?"

"Of course not, the meaning of this call is not 'whether to answer or not to answer', but to 'receive or not to receive'. Answering is also received, and hanging up is also received. It is understandable outside the service area that the phone is acceptable to be turned off. But only a long wait is not allowed. ”

"Why?"

"Because it means 'can't answer.'" ”

“……”

"Looks like you've got it, so I'll move on. ”

Alice's gaze turned back to Kluet's face.

"A long time ago, my father asked me to sign some documents. Although I was just a kid at the time, I still remember those documents vividly - they were the asset transfer contract of the Kaguya family. If the conditions are met, I will inherit the inheritance of the Kaguya clan. ”

“……”

"Of course, if something happens to me, there are other ways to deal with these assets. But now, since I'm not dead, I don't want to die. Then I have to do something. ”

“……”

Klute didn't say a word, and looked at the girl quietly. Look at her with a smile on his face and say words that require great determination.

"You'll help me, won't you?"

There were no big promises or deception of sympathy. Alice just looked at Kluet, waiting for the old man's answer.

In the other seats, the humanoid girls were also looking at their daddy, waiting for his reply.

"You girl, didn't you know it from the beginning. ”

It's not in the interest.

Controlling Alice here and getting in touch with Griffin is the right thing to do.

Although it has been less than an hour since the last call, the value of the young girl has more than multiplied several times.

Rather than assisting the girl and helping her secure Kaguya's estate, selling her to Luger Industries is actually the most lucrative option.

It has nothing to do with Griffin's credibility – because they have done all of their commissioning. The rescue was completed at Mr. Kaguya's request.

But Kluett won't do that.

Even if Kruger had given the order, he wouldn't have done it.

The old man leaned over and stroked Alice's head. Looking at the girl's somewhat stunned expression, Klute smiled wildly.

"You're so smart, you can't think of it, right?"

“……”

Alice's expression stiffened for a moment, and for a second she seemed to want to defend something. But when she saw Kluet's eyes, those justifications quickly faded into a wry smile on her lips.

"Well, it's not even gambling. ”

Because he's also a father.

Because he has already promised.

Although there is no contract, although I have not received payment. But just yesterday, he personally promised another father that he would protect his daughter for the time being.

Is this an excuse?

This is, of course, an excuse.

But having such an excuse was enough for Kluet.

"Isn't it? The mission isn't over yet, and you're not safe yet. Mr. Kaguya's seems to be unable to do it, and I can't leave you alone in order to get a commission. ”

"Hmm"

"But okay, I'm going to add money. This is not something that ordinary people can do, and if I am not careful, I may have to take it in it. So after the mission is over, you can do it yourself, girl. ”

"Hmm. ”

"Well, then, be prepared for massive bleeding. Dad, I'm very dark-hearted, and the money I should collect will not be less. ”

"Hmm. ”

Alice's voice was muffled, and she turned her head to look out the window, her face twisted in a direction that Kluter couldn't see.

For an eldest lady, this is really a faux pas. But Klut just stared at her with a gentle gaze and continued to stroke her hair.

Kluett is fifty-five years old this year.

At this age, he is fearless.

Then, the contract is established. ”

Looking at him like this, the humanoid girls exchanged an unnecessary look and quietly smiled.