Chapter 247

Chapter 247

My heart felt like it was slipping out of control.  

I imagined squeezing my heart with my own hands. A ridiculous thought, but intense mental imagery like this actually helped with control.  

Maintaining my composure, I observed Gilda. Time was on my side.  

Gilda’s mask didn’t last long. She couldn’t control her physiological responses better than I could. Besides, she wasn’t even fully cybernetic—most of her body was still natural flesh.  

Sssssss.  

Her scent and the fragrance of the incense grew stronger. Beads of sweat formed on her skin like nighttime dew.  

Gilda’s body temperature is rising.  

Tension, anxiety, unease, and fear…  

Calm down, Luka. There’s no need to pounce like a predator that’s found its prey.  

If Gilda were the real culprit, she wouldn’t have met me alone. There’s more to this story.  

“Gilda, keep talking. I don’t need peace of mind. I just want the truth, even if it’s uncomfortable or infuriating.”  

“The truth is… I tried to oust Giselle. By any means necessary.”  

“Like other businesspeople? Even if it meant killing her?”  

My tone must have sounded accusatory. Because that’s exactly what I intended.  

Gilda narrowed her eyes slightly.  

“Luka, do you really think I would have tried to kill Giselle?”  

“Frankly, belief has nothing to do with this. I’m not interested in your intentions or character—I just want to know what you did to Giselle.”  

Believing what I want to believe doesn’t matter. The facts do. Only facts, stripped of subjectivity and emotion, can shine light on the truth.  

“Luka, I know about Akies Victima. They say an Akies Victima user can extract the truth from the smallest clues and traces of lies.”  

Gilda emptied her glass and stood up.  

“That’s only as far as…”  

I stopped mid-sentence.  

Swish.  

Gilda was undressing. Stiff fabric slipped to the floor with soft thuds. She stood before me, completely bare.  

“I’m neither fully cybernetic nor trained in emotional suppression. I’ve had a fair amount to drink, and right now, my emotions and mental state are incredibly unstable. This should be the perfect condition for you to see through me with your insight.”  

Gilda stood in her most natural form, covering nothing.  

“You’ve been under suspicion for quite some time.”  

“Everyone thinks I did something to Giselle. I keep hearing the whispers. That I locked her away somewhere cruelly… or maybe even killed her.”

“So, did you feel wronged?”  

Gilda’s eyebrows curved downward in sorrow. She let out a bitter laugh.  

“There’s nothing to feel wronged about. In reality, I did try to abduct Giselle. On her way back from Border City to Akbaran. I couldn’t stand by and watch her recklessness any longer.”  

I held on to my reason.  

'Tried to abduct her?'  

That meant she had failed to do so.  

“There must have been a legal way to remove Giselle from management.”  

“Luka, don’t say childish things. Giselle is better at backdoor dealings than I am. If I tried to get her on embezzlement or breach of duty, some mid-level executives under her would have taken the fall and resigned. And once the scale of the embezzlement became public, G&G Cybernetics would have been doomed. I wasn’t in my right mind back then. I was half out of it.”  

I analyzed Gilda’s words piece by piece, breaking them down like a machine. She wasn’t holding anything back. She was letting all her emotions spill out.  

Her raw emotions gave weight to her words. She was confessing her crimes to me.  

“I never intended to kill Giselle. I only planned to keep her confined for a few months—at most, a year or two. Just until I could fully take control of the company.”  

That was enough for the puzzle pieces in my head to click into place.  

'During that process, Gabriel’s lover and adopted daughter were brutally murdered. That was Kinuan and Valek’s doing.'  

Gilda… had wanted to oust Giselle. But she had planned to do it in the least violent way possible—through abduction. She had no intention of shedding blood.  

“…Someone beat you to it. They moved faster than you did. And Giselle was caught in it.”  

I blinked. From Gilda’s exposed body, signals of truth and relief radiated.  

'She’s not lying.'  

Even trained individuals can only maintain a mechanical mask—they can’t fabricate emotions entirely.  

“I was preparing to abduct Giselle, so naturally, I left traces everywhere. I was overwhelmed dealing with the investigations and interrogations from those who suspected me as the prime suspect. I didn’t have the time or resources to track down the real culprit.”  

The true perpetrator had used Gilda as a smokescreen to hide themselves. It was masterfully done.  

'Kinuan’s style.'  

This was exactly the kind of scheme Kinuan would pull. And there was evidence that his influence was involved.  

'But why? Why Giselle, of all people?'  

Would Kinuan have a reason to abduct Giselle? If he wanted to wake me up, did he need to make her disappear? Wouldn’t maintaining a cooperative relationship with her have been more beneficial?

I quickly sifted through old memories, retracing Kinuan’s words and actions in a short span of time.  

There was something there. A clue. If I could just grasp that single thread and pull, everything would unravel.  

“Gilda, your clothes…”  

I started to tell Gilda to get dressed but stopped myself. There was no need to interrogate or press any further.  

Swish.  

Silently, I stood up and picked up Gilda’s coat.  

“Luka, do you trust me?”  

A memory surfaced. The first time I met Gilda, she had been tied up, stripped bare, and imprisoned by a gang.  

“I should have trusted you sooner. So you wouldn’t have had to take your clothes off.”  

I draped the coat over her shoulders. Gilda’s eyes welled up with moisture, her gaze flickering.  

“There was no one… I could tell. No one at all. Because it’s true—I did intend to abduct her.”  

I no longer wanted to probe or question her. Gilda had already wrestled with her own conscience and reached her conclusion.  

'Gilda acted as the leader of a corporation. Meanwhile, Giselle… she wasn’t acting as the head of a group. She was acting as my lover.'  

Giselle wouldn’t have cared whether G&G Cybernetics collapsed or not. She would have dragged her subordinates and employees into hell just for me.  

To be honest, it didn’t feel entirely unpleasant.  

'Giselle moved solely for my sake.'  

I knew this was an incredibly selfish thought. But the truth was, it felt good. Human emotions could be ugly like this.  

Even if Giselle had changed… at the very least, her feelings for me were undeniable. That alone was valuable information—and a comfort—to me.  

“After that, G&G Cybernetics stabilized. We’re sailing smoothly now. Luka, you’re looking for Giselle, right? If you need help…”  

Gilda spoke as she sat back down. She quietly put her clothes back on while I turned away, recalling Ismael’s advice.  

“…Partner with one of the companies the Federation government has put forward and expand into Border City. Prioritize the Federation’s interests, as long as it doesn’t severely harm your company’s profits.”  

“I was planning to establish a joint venture anyway. But I hadn’t intended to partner with a company that simply obeys the Federation’s orders. However, if it helps Luka, I’ll do it. I truly hope you find Giselle.”  

“I’ll find her—no matter what it takes.”  

Now fully dressed, Gilda straightened her attire.  

“So, are you leaving now?”

I nodded. I didn’t have much time. In more ways than one.  

'After today, I might never see Gilda again.'  

I looked toward the door, sighed, and then sat back down.  

“A short while should be fine to catch up. I’m also curious about how everyone else is doing. But instead of alcohol, I’ll have water. I’ve had enough to drink.”  

Gilda smiled, her makeup slightly smudged.  

I listened as she spoke. Martina, Diva, and Grace seemed to be doing fairly well. Even the lower-tier members of Gabriel’s gang had managed to settle down—living relatively well for people from the slums.  

“…Honestly, I was worried that you and Gabriel were dating.”  

What a pointless thing for me to bring up.  

“I already told you, Gabriel isn’t my type.”  

“But even after all this time, you never got a boyfriend. And it didn’t seem like you were into women either.”  

“Well, that’s because I liked you, Luka. I was just waiting for my chance.”  

I almost dropped my glass of water. My eyes must have gone wide.  

“…What?”  

“You’re so dense when it comes to this stuff, Luka. Did you really not notice how popular you were? The women around you were always watching for an opening, and yet you walked around with that overly serious look on your face—it was adorable.”  

“I mean… It’s not like I was completely unaware, but… you too, Gilda?”  

“If I had been just a little less reserved, I probably would’ve confessed to you outright. The only reason I didn’t was… well, back then, you seemed to be struggling a lot. Still are, honestly. I bet Grace thought the same way. That’s what we older women call consideration.”  

I felt my face heat up.  

“…This feels weird.”  

“You’re pretty handsome, Luka. You’ve got that ruggedness, but you also have a way of stirring a woman’s protective instincts. I bet you’ve never had to chase after a woman in your life. They’ve always come to you, haven’t they?”  

…Now that I thought about it, that was probably true. I couldn’t deny it.  

Gilda laughed, clearly amused. Memories of Akbaran resurfaced. Those times had been tough too, but… there were moments like this, moments that had been fun.  

“Even in Border City, I bet women made the first move on you, didn’t they?”  

That, too, was difficult to deny.  

“Uh… well…”  

My hesitation made Gilda’s eyes widen.  

“Seriously? I mean, it’s not really my place to say, but Giselle must have a rough time dealing with that.”  

I stiffened. I didn’t want any misunderstandings.  

“There were no incidents. I swear on my life.”

Gilda laughed even louder at that.  

“Seriously, you’re hilarious. You haven’t changed a bit. Still the same stubborn fool.”  

She wiped away tears of laughter and checked the time. I could feel it was time for me to leave as well.  

“See you next time, Gilda.”  

We both knew. This might be the last time.  

“Luka, I share responsibility for Giselle’s disappearance. Someone must have used me. If… in the worst-case scenario, you need someone to take your anger out on, come find me. I’ve reinforced G&G enough that it won’t collapse even if I’m gone.”  

If Giselle was dead, she was saying I could kill her.  

“That won’t happen.”  

With those final words, I left the room, parting ways with Gilda. Retracing my steps, I entered the elevator.  

'In the end, it all comes back to Kinuan.'  

I ran my fingers along my neck.  

Kinuan had proposed a trade—Paolo’s legacy in exchange for Giselle’s information. But after that, he had never shown himself to me again.  

'That offer was a lie. He just needed to test me.'  

But why? The questions piled up.  

Ding.  

The elevator came to a stop. It wasn’t the rooftop yet. It had ignored my input and halted on its own. No one should be getting on.  

'This meeting between Gilda and me was arranged and monitored by the Federation government.'  

I glanced at the elevator’s electronic panel.  

Bzzzt, crackle.  

The display flickered with static instead of showing the floor number.  

Vrrrrr.  

With a faint mechanical hum, the elevator doors slid open. A dark hallway stretched ahead, the lights completely out.  

Whirrr, whirrr.  

A mechanical sound echoed from the darkness. A pair of dim red lights flickered… and then, an android emerged.  

'A cleaning android.'  

It was non-combat. Its movements were clumsy, as if suffering from a malfunction. Its upper and lower body didn’t seem to sync, making it sway with each step.  

'Hacked.'

That android had been hacked by someone.  

Screeeeech.  

The android came to a halt. It looked eerie, like a marionette with its strings half-severed.  

—Protect, Gilda. Right, now.  

The android warned me.  

In any other situation, I would have questioned it.  

But if Gilda was in danger, there was no time for that. Whether those words were true or false, I wouldn’t allow myself to have regrets.  

No doubts. No distractions. It was time to enter combat mode.  

Crunch!  

I leaped in place, reaching upward. My prosthetic hand shot out, piercing through the ceiling.  

I fumbled for a moment before finding the elevator cables.  

Crack! Tiiing!  

Gripping the cables and pulleys, I yanked hard, breaking and severing them. The elevator swayed violently before snagging onto something and stopping.  

No time to hesitate.  

Boom!  

I stomped down with force. The impact made the elevator shake, the sound of misaligned parts grinding against each other.  

Before I could stomp again—  

The elevator plummeted.  

Kaaang!  

…Good. This was the fastest way back to Gilda.

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