————
The command center instantly became tense and busy.
However, at this moment, something unexpected happened even for William. The door to the command center was suddenly pushed open, and an uninvited guest, accompanied by three or four black-suited security personnel, appeared in the control room.
Everything related to Dream Zero was Kael Technology’s top secret, and entry into this area required passing through several levels of scrutiny. The fact that someone could walk in so casually indicated that the person held extremely high authority within Kael Technology.
Indeed, this was the case.
“Director Allen…?” Manager William, seeing the short, corpulent man with brownish short hair standing opposite him, maintained a composed face, but his heart sank.
“It’s nothing, just came to see. Manager William, you’ve been working hard. Any new developments with Dream Zero?”
Director Allen waved his hand casually, as if inspecting the work, and asked casually.
Under normal circumstances, William would have just smiled and dealt with it, but today, his expression finally began to betray his feelings, looking somewhat unnatural. 𝘳𝘦.𝒸𝑜𝘮
Director Allen just smiled at this and, without waiting for William to respond, quickly walked to the front of the command room. On the large screen, the red-level secret report from team 39-A was still being displayed.
“What are you guys doing? The intelligence that Manager William and I have worked hard for the company to obtain, and you’re just standing there? Hurry up and record it!”
At Director Allen’s rebuke, the three or four black-clad men he brought with him immediately approached the command center’s researchers, demanding access.
The researchers were at a loss. They looked at Manager William and then at Director Allen, unsure of what to do. After all, once they handed over the access, others would also get the detailed intelligence, and then the credit would no longer belong to them alone.
Clearly, Director Allen’s appearance at this point was no coincidence. He didn’t even pretend, making it obvious he was there to take credit.
“As Director Allen is an important guide in our plan, his words are my words. You guys step back,” William said after taking several deep breaths, choosing to give up and letting Allen’s people take over the place to extract the data.
Allen seeing William’s clenched fists still smiled and patted him approvingly on the shoulder.
“I’ll report this important intelligence at the board meeting. William, I think you’re very smart, very valuable and potential. You can join me at the board meeting.”
“Thank you, Director Allen, for the promotion.”
William put on a grateful facade, but a hint of darkness flashed deep in his eyes towards Allen.
At Kael Technology, the Board of Directors symbolized the highest power within the company. Being invited to attend such a meeting, even just to show his face, was an absolute honor. But William was angry because he could have gained much more, even possibly a seat on the Board of Directors. Now, all of that was lost, and it was obvious that Allen would take a significant portion of the credit.
What could he do? Nothing. He was just a department manager, and Director Allen’s level was far above his; William had no power to choose.
“By the way William, I just saw in the company’s financial system that you applied for a large fund allocation. What are you planning to do?”
“The 39-A team sacrificed themselves to obtain intelligence. This is their condolence money and reward for their brave sacrifice,” William replied expressionlessly.
Hearing this, Director Allen shook his head and whispered into William’s ear, “William, it seems you’re still not smart enough. The main contributor to this intelligence is us, not that dead 39th team. They just followed our brilliant command to obtain the information. Even their improper operations and mistakes led to the current fuzziness and lack of clarity in the intelligence.”
With just a few words, Director Allen claimed the credit of the 39-A team and even put the blame for the incomplete intelligence on them, perfecting their image.
“Director Allen, that doesn’t seem right,” William said, still expressionless.
“Let me be honest with you William. The Board of Directors has long had objections to the expenses you’ve been incurring for condolence money and reward mechanisms for explorers. This not only leads to a waste of company funds but also creates a very bad social effect.”
Allen handed William a piece of news, which reported the families of explorers who had died in Dream Zero accusing Kael Technology of conducting illegal secret experiments, otherwise, how could there be so many casualties.
“William, the company’s PR department has already lodged serious protests.”
“There’s no way around it. Sacrifices are inevitable if the company wants to explore Dream Zero,” William replied without any expression.
“No, no, no, William, you know what? Some things, if you don’t count them, they don’t exist, understand? Once you issue condolence money, it’s like admitting to the outside world that these employees’ deaths were caused by Kael Technology. And if we just fire those who died, then there’s no evidence against us. Then the related departments in the company can be more aggressive. Trust our PR strength; those families… heh, they won’t be able to make a sound.”
William looked at Allen’s chubby face, filled with a fatuous smile. In an era where prosthetic technology was advanced, it was quite a feat to still be overweight.
Finally, with an expressionless face, he asked, “But in this case, many explorers will protest, even strike.”
“Strike? Protest? Hehe, that’s why I say you are still too young. Those employees have already signed contracts with us. If they don’t meet the set targets, they’ll face hefty fines and compensations. You should trust the company’s legal department. Once the explorers know the cost of breach of contract, believe me, they won’t dare to do anything.”
“Because of the changes in Dragon Nation, the company is in a precarious situation. More than ever, as part of the company’s leadership, we need to understand how to share the company’s worries and save expenses.”
Allen spoke earnestly as he patted William on the shoulder.
“Just do as I say. There’s a press conference in three days, and we must control the public opinion at this time. We absolutely cannot let any information about employee casualties leak. Once our ‘Witch’s Brand’ is launched… huh, the company’s market value will surely rebound, even surpass previous levels. William, I have some leftover stock shares. If you need, you can contact me, and I’ll allocate you a quota for purchase.”
“Thank you Director Allen. I’ll consider it.”
“Work hard with me, William. In Kael Technology, people without a background can’t climb very far. Trust me, I won’t let you down.”
After Allen and his people left, the researcher who first discovered the 39-A team’s remaining information came trembling to William.
Even a fool could see that William was in a very bad mood. But with such an important matter, the researcher had no choice but to bravely report, “Manager William, I’m very sorry, I was too excited earlier and overlooked another piece of information from the 39-A team.”
“Overlooked?”
“Yes, the 39-A team sent a second message. It’s very short, just explaining the source of this mural intelligence. It’s very likely that there’s someone from another organization in Dream Zero who understands the dream even more deeply than we do at Kael Technology.”
Realizing the significance of a mysterious competitor and having overlooked such a crucial piece of information, the researcher, thinking of what happened to Famas before, became so scared that his legs almost gave out, almost kneeling before Manager William.
“I’m sorry, Manager William, it’s my fault for being negligent at work, please…”
“No, no.” Since Director Allen’s appearance, the previously expressionless William finally showed a slight smile.
“You did well.”
William muttered to himself, then stared thoughtfully at the intelligence for a few seconds. In front of the astonished researcher, he suddenly and decisively deleted the message.
𝑖𝘦.𝑐𝘰𝘮