A Veteran Player is Needed in the Apocalypse

Chapter 14. Executive Meeting

In front of the meeting room on the top floor, where the executive meeting was in full swing.

Meursault checked the time and the pistol in his pocket before speaking.

“It’s been about an hour since the meeting started, so their tension and focus must have waned. Let’s go in now.”

As soon as Meursault finished speaking, he knocked on the meeting room door.

…Huh? But why did he check the gun just now?

Knock, knock.

“It’s Meursault. I brought him.”

Then I heard the familiar voice of the commander from inside.

“Come in.”

With the commander’s permission, Meursault opened the meeting room door without hesitation.

I took a step inside.

Eight sharp gazes fell on me, and at the same time, a system message appeared before my eyes.

[The title effect of ‘Luna Moon’s Close Friend’ is applied to the target.]

[The title effect of ‘Luna Moon’s Close Friend’ is applied to the target.]

[The title effect of ‘Luna Moon’s Close Friend’ is applied to the target.]

[The title effect of ‘Luna Moon’s Close Friend’ is applied to the target.]

‘This is just like a game.’

The title effect worked on four out of the eight.

Among the executives of the Cola Zone, four were pro-Hayden, while the remaining four were pro-Daphne.

Among them, the pro-Hayden executives were comrades who had fought on the same battlefield as Luna Moon.

So it was a natural result.

The pro-Daphne executives didn’t have a favorable impression of Luna Moon, so the title effect didn’t apply, but it was likely they knew about her.

Meursault, who mainly handled tactics, supply, and accounting in the military, seemed to have no acquaintance with Luna Moon, who was a military doctor, or he simply wasn’t interested in any woman other than Daphne.

“Ah…”

As soon as they saw my face after entering the meeting room, it wasn’t just the pro-Hayden faction that thought of Luna Moon. Different emotions began to surface on the faces of the old executives looking at me.

“In the end…”

The first to speak was the bearded head of the pro-Daphne faction.

“You’ve found the child of that military doctor.”

As soon as those quiet words flowed out, the executives of both factions began to speak as if that was a signal.

“I thought it might be, based on the appearance, but is he really that woman’s child?”

“That woman! How dare you call the hero of the suppression war ‘that woman’!”

“Isn’t the title of hero too much for a deserter?”

“What, what? Deserter? Deserter? This crazy-”

“Just leave it. People who worship a woman who has never even been on the battlefield as a noble can’t distinguish between a hero and a deserter.”

“What did you just say? A woman who has never been on the battlefield?!”

As the voices of both sides grew louder, the eldest pro-Hayden executive opened his mouth and muttered in a low voice.

“Have you all gone senile? To raise your voices with His Excellency present.”

At those words, the meeting room became as silent as a mouse.

Commander Hayden, sitting at the head of the table, seemed merely amused by the situation.

‘It’s not the first time Luna Moon has been mentioned at an executive meeting.’

I thought this because the commander’s face showed familiarity instead of anger or embarrassment.

And because the old executive pointed out ‘raising voices in front of the commander,’ not ‘mentioning Luna Moon.’

Seeing the commander even slightly smirking, it seemed he was waiting for the executives to bring up Luna Moon.

“May I speak now?”

“I’m sorry.”

“We’re sorry.”

The executives bowed their heads so low that their foreheads almost touched the meeting table, and Commander Hayden continued speaking.

He gestured to me, and as I walked over to his side, his calloused and scarred hand gripped my shoulder.

“Let me introduce him. This child’s name is Haydam Goodman. He is my only son.”

At the mention of the name Haydam ‘Goodman,’ the faces of the pro-Daphne executives twisted.

Only the head of the pro-Daphne faction nodded with an expressionless face.

In the ensuing silence, the commander’s remaining eye lazily scanned the executives.

“I’ve found my lost child. Won’t you congratulate me?”

“No, congratulations.”

“Congratulations.”

Even the pro-Daphne executives, who had wrinkled their faces, weren’t oblivious enough not to say congratulations.

I thought the introduction would wrap up without me having to say anything.

But the commander, who had been smiling and watching the executives, turned to me and asked.

“So, Haydam. Tell us.”

Huh? Tell you what?

“Is your mother a deserter or a hero?”

At those words, everyone in the room except me flinched.

‘This bastard…’

I wondered why he was silent when the place was about to turn into a mess over whether Luna Moon was a deserter or a hero.

He was waiting to solve a sensitive issue without getting his hands dirty.

I was still just a ten-year-old kid.

No executive here would seriously take issue with whatever answer I gave.

So, Commander Hayden was not only asking for my thoughts on my mother but also testing my problem-solving skills, like asking about the lunch menu.

‘Well, it’s not a bad thing for me. No, it’s actually a necessary thing.’

Logically, what child wouldn’t be upset hearing their mother called a deserter to their face?

Nevertheless, the commander asking for my opinion was essentially giving me a chance to appeal to the executives.

Looking ahead, most of the executives seemed curious about what I would answer.

Only the one who directly mentioned the word deserter was sweating coldly.

‘Is Luna Moon a deserter or a hero?’

The essence of this question was ultimately, ‘Is there an issue with calling Luna Moon a deserter?’

In other words, he was asking if I would punish the person who insulted my mother or not.

‘Commander Hayden could have punished the pro-Daphne executive for saying that about Luna Moon on the spot.’

But he didn’t.

Even with his absolute power.

Moreover, judging by the atmosphere, the deserter controversy didn’t seem like it was brought up for the first time.

‘So there must be a reason he hasn’t addressed it so far.’

Think about it.

If the commander had punished the pro-Daphne executive for making that remark, the pro-Daphne faction would have had a reason to question my mother’s background.

At the very least, the rumor that ‘an executive was imprisoned for pointing out that Haydam Goodman’s mother is a deserter’ would have spread throughout the military.

The story about Luna Moon being a deserter likely started because she avoided formal discharge and then died while evading scrutiny.

Even if there were circumstances, it doesn’t change the fact that she deserted.

If Luna Moon being a deserter became an issue, it would be detrimental to me.

What soldier would trust the child of a deserter?

Thus, my mother must not be a deserter.

And at the same time, she must not be a hero.

If I said Luna Moon was a hero, it was clear as day how the pro-Daphne faction would react.

They would denigrate me as an emotional and unfair child who punished an executive at the first meeting for calling his mother a deserter.

So there was only one answer I could give.

“Whether you think my mother is a deserter or a hero, the important thing is that I am undoubtedly His Excellency’s child… isn’t it?”

Seeing the satisfied smile on the commander’s lips, it seemed like that was the answer he had in mind.

“Did you hear that?”

The commander twisted his lips as he stared directly at the executive who had used the word “deserter.”

“Haydam forgives your rudeness, so you shouldn’t bring up his mother’s issue again.”

“Ah, of course.”

The executive stuttered in response, but the commander’s gaze grew even colder.

“Is that all?”

“Pardon? Ah, I apologize for my rudeness, Lord Haydam. I am truly sorry.”

Although it seemed to me that the executive apologized quite politely, the commander’s expression remained stern.

“I asked if that’s all.”

“Pardon…? Well, so…”

The executive, unable to grasp what the commander wanted, hesitated. Then Meursault, who was standing at the entrance of the meeting room, pulled out a pistol from his coat and shot the executive without any hesitation.

At the sound of the gunshot ringing in my ears, my first thought was this.

‘So that’s why he checked the gun.’

I saw the executive, shot in the forehead, collapse onto the meeting room table with a thud, blood spurting out.

‘Damn.’

What was this?

The other executives were equally shocked, their faces filled with horror.

They all looked as if they wanted to question Meursault’s sanity, but the commander spoke before any of them could.

“Meursault, what is the meaning of this?”

The commander asked, as if he had been waiting for this moment.

“Not only did you draw a weapon in my presence, but you also shot your superior. Are you out of your mind?”

The commander immediately rebuked Meursault, but his tone was so gentle that anyone could tell this was what the commander had wanted.

Despite having just killed his superior, Meursault showed no change in expression. He holstered his gun and knelt down.

“I apologize. Even though Lord Haydam forgave the rudeness, I couldn’t stand his attitude of not showing gratitude until the end.”

“Does that mean you can shoot your superior? You’ll be on probation for a while.”

“Thank you for your lenient punishment.”

With those words, Meursault left the meeting room, possibly to really serve his probation.

After this ridiculous drama ended in a flash, silence fell over the meeting room once more.

The corpse of the executive, shot dead, only twitched occasionally.

I felt something hot on my cheek and touched it to find blood.

Since the executive had been sitting nearby, it seemed some blood had splattered on me.

‘This crazy dictator NPC bastard?’

As if there weren’t enough NPCs to use, he killed one just for not giving a proper thank you.

‘Of course, the thank you was just an excuse.’

Not thanking me was just a pretext.

The commander clearly wanted to kill the pro-Daphne executive who always insulted Luna Moon.

At first glance, the executive might seem foolish for insulting Luna Moon in front of the commander.

But considering the executives had freely talked about Luna Moon in front of the commander, it was clear he had never intervened in the pro-Daphne faction’s rude remarks about her.

Just as I didn’t answer the deserter or hero question, the commander also couldn’t easily answer that question.

But now he had to step in.

Because I, the son of him and Luna Moon, was here in this place.

To establish my authority, he instilled fear in the executives.

Moreover, it was Meursault who actually executed the punishment.

So the commander wouldn’t be directly blamed.

‘A very clever choice.’

Thinking this, I wiped the blood off my cheek with my sleeve.

Somehow, I felt eyes on me.

And soon I realized, the executives were looking at me with horrified faces.

Not at the psychopathic dictator commander father, but at me.