Chapter 50 - CEO Follows A Bookish Clue!

In downtown Mithil the buildings mostly all blended in together, with only a few standing out as prominent landmarks.

For example, the glorious [Grand Athenaeum of Mithil] was impossible to miss when approaching central downtown from any angle--with its wide set of polished marble steps serving to elevate visitors off the filthy, trash-ridden streets, into a conspicuously clean, well-maintained facade of a large-looming white structure, designed with Roman-style columns and gold trimmings; that was, unlike its neighbors, noticeably devoid of any age-showing nicks or chunks broken away here and there, almost as if it had just been constructed the day before.

Akira, Ai, and Kanna stood before it, gaping in awe at the structure that put even the Oracle of Acquama's dwellings to shame, as a continual trickle of scholarly-looking patrons climbed and descended the steps, passing in and out of the rotating glass doors with businesalike order and efficiency.

"I can't even remember the last time I've been to a library." Kanna said.

Akira scratched her head. "Libraries..." She grumbled. "I practically lived in the one on my college campus, while I was studying for my business degree."

Kanna glanced Akira over, liking every square inch of what she saw. "A smart and sexy detective, helped by her two lovely sidekicks, are on a search for clues about a runaway club boss's whereabouts."

Ai giggled. "I like it! Sounds like a real plot for a book."

Glancing up, Akira noticed a marble sculpture of an owl placed on a promontory ledge above the entrance--its wings spread wide and talons bared, as though swooping down at her. Perhaps it was just coincidence, but the sight reminded her of the "Creamy Owl" controlled by Lakshmi, back at the Amrita.

'Am I getting closer to finding you?'

...

Inside the Athenaeum, the front foyer was every bit as grand as the exterior had alluded.

Their footsteps clacked loudly against the decorative tiles on their approach to the front desk, that was set at the center of two curve-shaped wooden staircases that connected to the upper level. Two wide archways served as entry points to the library proper with its endless rows of bookshelves and polished study tables set with lamps, arranged in a wide open space cast in a warm, austere light.

At the front desk, a Nandi woman was sat with her head low, combing through paperwork. She was impeccably dressed, in a regular lady's work suit with neatly groomed hair, and the smallest—near non-existent—pair of breasts that Akira had seen on a Nandi lady thus far.

Upon noticing their presence, the [Level 1] [Suckretary] looked up from her task with a cordial smile as she greeted them in even, rehearsed tone, "welcome to the Grand Athenaeum, I will be glad to assist you."

"Nice place you've got here!" Kanna remarked, to which the Nandi gave a small laugh.

"Of course. The Athenaeum caters to high-end intellectuals and academics, after all," she said, her eyes shiftinf as she meticulously examined the trio, maintaining a spotless smile all the while but sniffing her nose slightly--as if she'd just caught a whiff of someone else's unclaimed fart. "Unfortunately, because of our location we have to suffer the occasional riffraff coming in from off the street, looking for somewhere to warm up because they can't afford heating."

Kanna was stunned, her mouth hung open and brow furrowed in anger. She was nearly about to drop a bomb in her retort, when Akira suddenly brushed her aside.

"Good morning!" She greeted the Suckretary, whilst retrieving a pile of books out of her inventory—ones pulled from Lakshmi's office—and piled them on top of the desk. "I have a couple of books here, that I'd like to return."

Ignoring Kanna's harsh gaze, the Suckretary turned to her, nodding. "Very well." She said, jutting out her hand expectantly. "Your card please, ma'am?"

"Actually, I didn't borrow these books." Akira said, smiling innocently and letting out a nervous laugh—buying her precious time to recall the ingenious story she'd concocted ahead of time. "I found them at my new place and couldn't get in touch with the previous owner, so I decided to bring them in myself."

Kanna and Ai exchanged glances, whispering among themselves.

"Is that all he came up with?" Kanna said.

Ai countered, "big bro is the world's richest, youngest, cutthroat playboy billionair CEO; not a big-name author with a huge imagination!"

Regardless, Akira's excuse wasn't going to fly with this unnecessarily proud desk worker:

"Is that so?" The Suckretary said, frowning, as she tilted her head to the side and clasped her propped hands with neatly polished nails in front of her. "Apologies, but we only accept returns from the original borrower."

'As I expected,' Akira thought. 'I still wanted to give it a try, just in case...'

She sighed. 'Good to know bureaucracy is still alive and well, even in Another World.'

"It's fine." Akira said to the Suckretary, trying to appear sheepish. "It's a rule, so it can't be helped."

Despite her words, however, and despite being seemingly met with another dead end...

The clever CEO still had one final card up her sleeve.

"The person I need to track down...all I know is, she's supposedly the manager of the Amrita."

The Suckretary winced, as if caught off-guard.

It happened so fast—so briefly—but Akira was certain she'd glimpsed that pretty, plastered on smile waver, even for just a mere fraction of a millisecond.

"Oh?" The Suckretary said, all tense and fumbling, all of a sudden. "Sorry...I wouldn't know."

Akira and Kanna briefly exchanged glances, both thinking the exact same thing—that this cow lady was hiding a secret.

Ai, clearing her throat, then leaned forward with both elbows propped on the desk.

"The Amrita...is a bar. A MILK bar." She told the Suckretary, letting Akira step back to think for a moment. "Kind of...tucked away. A bit shady."

"It's like a regular bar, only the alcohol is served mixed in with MILK."

"However, this milk...it ACTUALLY comes from—"

"YES, yes..." The Suckretary cut in. Evidently, the topic had struck a raw nerve with her.

"I know all about that disgusting place." She continued, practically wearing a sneer on her face, in stark contrast to her previously manufactured, customer-friendly demeanor.

"No proper lady should have ANY business at such a place, filled with lowlife degenerates."

Akira smiled—retaining her cordiality, even in the face of the Suckretary's tirade.

"A proper lady...such as Madame Lakshmi, you mean?"

The Suckretary bristled—realizing she'd been trapped by her own words.

"Madame Lakshmi is a lot more than just a mere club owner."

"Is that so?" The conniving CEO said. "I'm afraid I'm just visiting Mithil, so I had no idea."

"I paid a visit to the Amrita, just last night, and I thought it was a lot of fun."

The Suckretary snorted. "A tourist! Hah. I should've guessed, judging by those RAGS."

At this point, she was no longer even bothering to hide her true personality, that appeared to have endless ammunition of spite set aside for those of a lower socioeconomic status.

"I haven't any notion what kind of SCHEME you're trying to cook up..."

"However, if it involves Madame Lakshmi, I would advise you to give it up for your own well-being."

She grinned at Akira, baring her full set of teeth. "It's useless to even try."

"The Madame—her family—they're UNTOUCHABLE, to a lowly maggot such as yourself."

Kanna and Ai were silently fuming, even as Akira didn't falter in the slightest after the Suckretary's brutal barrage...except to wipe away a bit of spittle that had landed on her face.

"Thank you." Was all she said, giving a courteous bow. "You've been...very helpful."

The Suckretary, rolling her eyes, simply scoffed and waved her away.

Another visitor approached the front desk at that time, whom she promptly turned to, with her fake smile returned to her face.

Akira Maximilian still didn't mind the display of sheer rudeness, however.

After all...she'd just gotten everything she could have hoped for out of the exchange.

Kanna and Ai ran after her as she briskly walked out the door; back into the foggy, foul-smelling streets of downtown Mithil.

Ai was giggling as they descended the grand entrance steps of the Athenaeum. "That was an insane amount of lip coming from a Level 1!" She said. "I could tell Kanna-sis was barely holding it in."

"Right," Kanna said. "I SO wanted to pound that snooty bitch's face!"

Akira chuckled. "I'm glad you didn't. Because now, I think we have a much clearer picture of who this Madame Lakshmi character is, based on what she told us..."

"She's wealthy—part of the upper crust, here in Mithil, living apart from all the rabble."

"But she doesn't mind rubbing shoulders with the lower class," Kanna noted, while glancing around at their decidedly lower crust surroundings; barely swerving in time to dodge a collision with a speeding rickshaw driver, as the trio was crossing the street.

"Mhm." Akira nodded. "She managed the Amrita, has some ties to the Athenaeum, and likely has her hands dipped into much of what goes on here in Mithil. Probably owns a number of other small businesses."

Kanna tilted her head, quizzically. "What makes you think she owns other businesses?"

Akira froze in her steps. In truth, she wasn't sure of how she'd arrived at that conclusion—other than the fact it was a smart thing to do, as a business owner. "Diversifying the portfolio," as it is referred to.

"Just call it....a hunch."