After breakfast, the four of them went to the company together.
From the boss to the intern, the entire “Dream Witch” team only consisted of four people. They all looked like young girls, with the intern apparently the oldest, and there were even two obvious underage child workers…
Even by startup standards, this scale was far too small.
“As expected, we still need to recruit new employees.”
Cecilia muttered this as she sat down in the office.
But how to recruit was the real problem.
Although money wasn’t an issue for her, considering the company’s potential status as an undercover unit, they couldn’t just hire anyone.
They had to be capable, and after learning the truth about the undercover division, they wouldn’t report it to the Association.
They also had to be trustworthy, without overly complicated backgrounds…
Finding talent who met these criteria was extremely difficult. After much thought, only those from Nightmare could be trusted, but going that route risked being discovered by the Hero Association.
Among the current three employees, Fran’s resume contained traces of “Nightmare.” However, her reason for leaving was causing massive damage to the modification department. This was verifiable, so her dismissal was justified and wouldn’t raise much suspicion from the Association…
After all, being in the same industry, it was quite common for researchers to move between hero companies and evil organizations.
Knock knock.
At that moment, a short, polite knock interrupted Cecilia’s thoughts. Judging by the height of the knock, it could only be Clara.
After all, the entire underground garden had very few walls, so Cecilia’s office was just a remodeled European-style gazebo.
But as the boss, compared to Clara’s office, this gazebo was fitted with a ring of glass curtain walls that could switch between transparent and opaque when powered—a high-end feature—so no one could see inside from the outside.
“Come in.”
Cecilia said, and Clara poked her head in, then carefully closed the door behind her before walking over to Cecilia’s large desk.
“President, I have something I want to ask… I want to talk to you.”
When Clara came in, Cecilia was rapidly typing on the keyboard and staring at the screen.
Since she couldn’t see the screen, Clara wasn’t sure if Cecilia was working or playing a game.
“My cute little pet, today’s not payday yet.”
“No, I’m not here to ask about that…”
“Oh? So you want me to give you a raise or a bonus because of what happened last night? Learning to do the heroine’s pillow business so quickly, huh?”
“It’s not that!!”
Facing Cecilia’s teasing, Clara tried to organize her words carefully.
She asked, “When Lucia and I got hurt… you lied, saying you had something to do and didn’t come upstairs with us, but you actually set up a dream in the dormitory, right?”
“Oh, you figured it out? From what happened yesterday?”
Cecilia didn’t deny it but didn’t stop working either.
“So it is…”
Having finally solved the mystery, Clara breathed a sigh of relief, but Cecilia grinned and said:
“Ha~ You simple-minded pet, your thoughts are way too simple. You think if you can’t figure out what’s going on, it must all be me manipulating the dream?
“Think carefully. I don’t know anything about the past ‘Squirrel.’ Even if I created an identical fake person in the dream, I couldn’t replicate your personality or tone…”
It seemed Clara’s guess was still not accurate.
Clara thought for a moment and asked again, “Could it be Dr. Fran pretending?”
Changing someone’s appearance in a dream shouldn’t be difficult. Besides, there were only a few people in this company, so Cecilia’s helper could only be Fran…
Playing “Squirrel” in the dream, regardless of the voice, how did she even perfectly mimic the tone? And that phone call earlier, was that made through the dream as well?
There were still many mysteries. Cecilia waved her hand without looking up.
“Don’t ask. Lucia’s suspicions have already been cleared, isn’t that a good thing?”
“But is continuing to keep this a secret really a good thing?”
“Huh? You have to ask me that? Of course, it’s up to you! Are you a three-year-old kid or what?”
Saying this, Cecilia glanced at Clara.
“Sigh, fine.”
She sighed and changed her tone, “I think it’s better if you keep going.”
“Huh?”
Cecilia’s sudden change surprised Clara. More importantly…
Her usual mocking expression turned unusually serious.
“Have you considered how many people are watching your magical girl identity now? Especially after openly provoking the ‘Fourth Calamity’… Though you’ve gained fame, the dangers of hero activities have greatly increased, and you could die unexpectedly.”
Clara understood Cecilia’s meaning and frowned.
If a hero’s real identity is exposed, their family becomes endangered. That’s why many heroes choose to officially retire shortly after revealing themselves.
Cecilia continued, “Large hero companies provide protection for heroes’ families, but Dream Witch is still just a small company. If the enemy finds out about your connection, maybe you’ll be fine… but Lucia will be in danger! You stupid pet!”
Cecilia insulted her as she switched back to her usual tone.
At the same time, this was Cecilia’s reason for intervening in this matter.
Her words genuinely scared Clara.
“But Clara, since you’re a mysterious person with no past, only Fran, myself, and some Nightmare members know you’re actually Squirrel…
“Not many have seen the current you, and it’s unlikely anyone would connect you with a squid monster.”
“Then, as my caretaker… she won’t be targeted?”
Clara asked, but Cecilia laughed dismissively.
“Hah? You think too highly of her. If anyone were to be targeted, it’d be me! Compared to you pets, I’m definitely the more valuable master!”
Although this statement was aggravating, Clara was convinced by Cecilia’s reasoning.
Even for Lucia’s sake, it really was better not to reveal the truth for now. If she told Lucia her identity, her attitude toward her would surely change, and she might slip up someday.
“And if you really want to know what happened that day, just go ask Fran~~”
“Okay, I’ll go find Dr. Fran to ask…”
Clara nodded and turned to leave the boss’s office.
“Oh, right.”
At that moment, Cecilia said:
“I won’t be at the company this afternoon, but I arranged for Nightmare’s freaks to attack the Eight Gates subway station. It’s around three o’clock, I think? You just need to wait at the scene, then pretend to be passing by and intervene directly. After the fight, go straight home. Make sure you perform well on camera~~”
“Huh? Today?”
Clara turned back in shock.
She had long expected this day but didn’t think it would come so soon.
“Don’t worry, they’re all just trash for you to practice on~ As my pet, you shouldn’t even lose to trash, right? Fight realistically, it’s fine if you even kill them directly!”
It wasn’t about whether she could win or not…
Nightmare’s execution department’s “trash” were her former colleagues?!
Though this was an undercover division mission, having to go after past comrades…
Clara still hesitated to bring herself to do it.