Jack found it odd that Oshineda was so excited about introducing him. It was as if they were something more than business partners. At the same time, Mira kept looking at him oddly. She clearly wanted to say something, but never uttered a single word.
"Mr. Mills, let introduce a special friend to you," Oshineda said, stopping before a woman. "Ms. Natalya Maximoff, she's known for her involvement in military equipment and other defense operations."
Unlike with the old men Oshineda introduced him to, Jack actually took noticed of the woman. She wasn't anything special, raven hair, decent body, a charming smile and eyes of a predator.
Hm… she's not entirely my type, but if the system marks her, then…who am I to complain?
"Mr. Mills… it's the first time I have seen your handsome face in such a boring crowd," Natalya said, offering her hand. "I hope we get to see each other more often."
"Likewise, ma'am."
"Oh please, don't call me ma'am. I'm only forty, haha."
Jack didn't pay attention to her words and took her hand. Since she seemed a classy, rich woman, it wouldn't be too bad to hug her thigh for a while.
To impress her, he was even going to kiss her hand, to appear as a young, chivalrous man. But all his plans changed when a notification flashed before his eyes.
[Contact made with a Gutter Wench.]
[$1,000 was deducted from the card.]
[Current Balance: $936,499]
What!?
[Gutter Wench is the category for the lowest of low tier. None of the Goddesses wants the Host to be involved with such women. Please reroute your priorities and stay away from her.]
[The Host will incur more severe penalties for further involvement with the woman.]
What can I do if she's the one approaching me?
[It doesn't matter who approaches whom. The Host will have to bear the consequences.]
…thank you so much.
[It's my pleasure.]
I wasn't complimenting you.
[I know. My existence is beyond the Host's realm of comprehension.]
Shut it.
[Request acknowledged.]
Just touching Natalya cost him a thousand dollars? While it wasn't much, all plans Jack had about hugging her thigh went straight out of his head. Hell, he could only imagine what would happen to his fortune if he stayed around her for long.
It'll be a problem if I ignore her now…
From what he saw, Natalya was a powerful woman. No one around her seemed daring enough to even approach her. Suddenly, Jack wanted to be like one of them.
Thankfully, he had an escape.
"Mr. Oshineda, is there anyone else you wanted to introduce to me?" Jack asked.
From the corner of his eyes, he noticed Natalya's frown. She thought she had him, but there was no woman in the world whom he loved more than his divine bank account.
Jack was a firm believer that dating women could drain one's bank account, but even he wouldn't spend to such an extent.
"Um… yes, Mr. Mills, there's one more entrepreneur," Oshineda said, smiling nervously. "But meeting her isn't easy, even for me."
Jack raised an eyebrow. Oshineda was certainly one of the most important people he had met in this life. For him to say he couldn't meet someone was a big statement.
Yet, it only made Jack wonder more about who she was. Also, he wanted to meet her, as it was the best excuse to get away from Natalya before she made him lose more money.
"Well, we won't know until we try, right?" Jack replied. "If meeting her in my fortune, not even god would stop me."
Oshineda smiled awkwardly after hearing his last remark. He never took Jack as someone interested in religion, but it seemed the young man had more hidden traits than he thought. Little did he know it was Jack's way of praying to Fortuna to work her magic.
"Of course, there's no harm in trying."
After saying so, Oshineda took Jack towards the elevators. Someone there checked their ID before letting them up. Jack was hesitant handing over his ID, but to his surprise, he was included in the guest list, not as a plus one, but as his own entrant.
Cindy must've pulled some strings to get me here. She isn't anything like I thought.
The thought of Cindy being a spy resurfaced in his head. For a moment, he wondered if he should ask Anna to investigate her background. But then he remembered her nature. She would investigate Cindy, but after kidnapping her and ending him.
Yeah… it's not the best idea.
"Miss, I'm afraid you'll have to stay back. Only two people are allowed to go upstairs at a time."
"I've never heard of this rule—" Oshineda tried arguing but got cut off.
"Then you can stay here, sir. I can't break the rules."
"But—"
"It's fine, grandpa," Mira said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I have some people I wanted to greet, so this works perfectly."
"If you say so."
Mira nodded and stepped back, disappearing into the crowd.
A minute later, they arrived at the rooftop lounge. Unlike the hall, this place was fairly empty. Jack could only see security personnel everywhere. Whoever the woman was, she must have been an important person to have an entire floor to herself.
A guard stopped them as they walked ahead, asking for the purpose of their arrival. Oshineda spoke in the politest tone he could muster, treating the security with more respect than he had shown to the guest in the hall.
But Jack was thinking about something else.
Why does the guy looks familiar?
Suddenly, all the guards seemed familiar to him, and then it hit him.
No fricking way.
All these guys were the ones he had seen in Anna's mansion. That meant the woman Oshineda mentioned was…
"Anna…?"
"Mr. Mills, you know Ms. Simorelli?"
Oshineda was even more surprised than Jack was. It was logical because Jack was more scared than surprised. He had rejected her invitation, only to meet her there.
"I'd be worried if he didn't recognize the one he spends his nights with," Anna said, giving Jack a rare smile.