Although the beautiful dream had already shattered—
The chaos afterward was far from over.
For example—
Aventurine.
Sure, the guy survived.
But he shattered his Aventurine Stone.
That thing was one of the cornerstones personally bestowed upon the Ten Stonehearts by Diamond himself—
Containing one-tenth the power of a Preservation Emanator!
And during the reconstruction of Penacony's dreamscape—
Aventurine had actually helped out too.
So while he definitely wasn't dying anytime soon—
Once he returned to the IPC, who knew how badly the directors who disliked him would roast him for this.
Sure—
The Interastral Peace Corporation worshipped the Amber Lord.
But the seven members controlling the board certainly didn't all get along.
For instance—
The Marketing Development Department and the Strategic Investment Department had never exactly been on friendly terms.
As head of the Strategic Investment Department—
Diamond rarely appeared before outsiders personally.
Instead—
The Ten Stonehearts usually acted on his behalf.
And when it came to major decisions concerning the department's survival—
Diamond allowed the ten elites to decide matters independently and equally through voting.
Amber, Agate, Topaz, Sugilite, Aventurine, Pearl, Obsidian, Jade, Chrysos, and Opal—
And now—
During this Penacony operation—
Aventurine's cornerstone had shattered.
The guy had literally shoved his life straight into the chamber without caring about consequences.
Just like the IPC board itself—
Relationships within the Ten Stonehearts weren't exactly harmonious either.
Topaz and Aventurine had both been personally promoted by Jade.
Their relationship with her was naturally much closer than the others.
But as for everyone else?
That wasn't necessarily the case.
The Penacony project itself—
Had originally been personally assigned by Diamond, with Opal voluntarily handing the mission over to Aventurine.
And unsurprisingly—
Aventurine completed the mission in...
A rather bizarre way.
It almost felt like all his scenes had been deleted.
Before he even had the chance to make his next move—
Before he could guide the Nameless toward uncovering the truth—
Penacony's story had already reached its ending?
The mastermind got defeated.
And meanwhile...
He somehow ended up helping repair Penacony's dreamscape?
No, seriously—
I'm a specialist in bad asset liquidation.
Not dreamscape maintenance!
How does that even make sense?!
Penacony — Reverie Hotel Lobby Bar.
"So you're saying..."
Topaz stared at Aventurine in complete disbelief.
"You shattered your Aventurine Stone for nothing?"
"Serves you right for mocking me before."
She looked utterly delighted.
"Now that your cornerstone's broken, your rank's definitely dropping at least five levels when we get back."
"Maybe you'll end up working under me from now on~"
Topaz's face looked positively radiant.
Back on Belobog—
Aventurine had mocked her relentlessly.
Claiming none of the Ten Stonehearts wanted such a miserable assignment.
Yet somehow—
Topaz had voluntarily accepted the mission anyway.
And now?
Belobog had turned out completely different than expected.
The mission wasn't just a success—
Topaz had even witnessed the planet's future potential firsthand.
A world backed by two Genius Society-level talents—
And possessing an infinitely expandable energy system.
Yes—
The Plasma Spark System.
If the IPC managed to fully acquire that technology—
It would become an absolutely terrifying strategic weapon.
Potentially even comparable to the Imaginary Pulse System.
Naturally—
The IPC would never overlook something like that.
Which was why—
The moment Topaz wrapped up matters on Jarilo-VI—
She immediately rushed over to Penacony.
After all—
She'd already heard that the genius they were searching for had left the Xianzhou not long ago and arrived at the Planet of Festivities.
"But I still completed the mission."
Aventurine leaned back lazily.
"Even if the Nameless did most of the work."
"As a businessman, sitting back and profiting from the chaos isn't exactly a bad outcome."
"Though admittedly... the process got a little ridiculous."
The man had literally prepared to gamble with his life.
Only for events to spiral into utter nonsense instead.
"Mm... fair enough."
Jade nodded gracefully.
"You did finish your assignment."
"Take your vacation properly."
"I doubt Diamond will care too much about the cornerstone."
"And besides..."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"That genius is here too."
"If we can recruit someone like him..."
Jade smiled faintly while sipping her SoulGlad.
As expected—
This overly sweet drink didn't really suit a woman like her.
SoulGlad was far too sugary.
Too easy for people to lose themselves within.
Topaz, however, was completely different.
She genuinely loved the taste of SoulGlad.
And clearly had zero concern about gaining weight from it.
"Oh, right."
Aventurine suddenly remembered something.
"We just received another report, Lady Jade..."
"That genius..."
"He seems to have drawn the attention of the Elation Aeon."
"He may have already become a dual-Path Emanator."
Jade merely nodded calmly.
A dual-Path Emanator.
And a Genius Society member on top of that.
The value hidden within such a person—
Was practically immeasurable.
Outside the IPC—
More people knew Jade not by her codename—
But as Lady Bonajade.
The Bonajade Exchange under her command was infamous across the cosmos.
An elegant and merciless moneylender.
Skilled at reading the hearts of others.
Using contracts and collateral to force opponents into paying their price—
All while generating profits for the IPC.
She was willing to carefully construct long-term schemes in exchange for truly valuable assets.
And likewise—
She excelled at uncovering hidden worth even in those who appeared to possess absolutely nothing.
Which was exactly why—
This genius had already caught Jade's interest.
Beside her—
Topaz suddenly felt a chill run down her spine.
Though it had been a long time since she'd last worked alongside Jade—
She still understood her very well.
Jade wasn't like those straightforward businessmen.
What she specialized in—
Was patiently waiting through transaction after transaction—
Until the single most valuable investment finally appeared.
Those driven into desperation—
Would willingly offer everything to fulfill their deepest desires.
And those desires—
Would in turn grant them unimaginable strength.
Topaz still vividly remembered—
The Silverchain Galaxy, which once fiercely resisted the IPC—
Eventually became one of the Strategic Investment Department's most reliable allies under Jade's methods.
The Bonajade Exchange—
Never turned away a customer.
Which was precisely why—
The person truly sent to negotiate Penacony's future ownership this time—
Was Jade.
Even she herself—
Had merely come along to help cover for Aventurine.
"Little Yelena~"
Jade slowly flipped through the book in her hands.
Though in reality—
That very book was the true Bonajade Exchange.
Taking the form of an ordinary tome—
To lower everyone's guard completely.
Allowing people to approach without even the slightest suspicion.
To read advanced Chapters, head over to p@treon:
patreon.com/nani_kaito