[CEO's Cheat Sheet]
Research and Development (R&D): Corporate activities directed toward innovating, designing, and launching new products or technologies.
Disruptive Innovation: An innovation that creates a new market and eventually disrupts an existing market or monopoly.
Vellum: Expensive parchment paper made from calfskin, generally monopolized by nobles and the church in ancient times.
The air in the backyard of Winterhaven Castle felt incredibly hot, nearly overpowering the freezing blizzard outside the obsidian walls.
Ornn Coppervein stood in front of the giant combustion furnace he had just built. The dwarf held a long iron blowpipe, his face flushed red from the heat and intense concentration. At the end of the pipe, a blob of molten silica glowed a brilliant golden color.
"Keep the fire going! Don't let the temperature drop!" Ornn shouted to Titus and Rufus, who were busy pumping the giant wind bellows.
Stephanie stood a few steps behind him, wearing her fur coat elegantly. Her eyes were fixed on the blue System screen displaying precise temperature instructions.
"Now, Ornn. Dip it into the cooling solution I prepared," Stephanie instructed calmly.
Ornn pulled the iron pipe back, letting the flattened blob of glass cool slowly on a flat metal tray. A loud hissing sound echoed, followed by billowing white steam.
As the steam faded, Ornn and the surrounding workers held their breath.
On the metal table lay a one-square-meter sheet of glass. The glass was not greenish, wavy, or filled with air bubbles like the expensive glass owned by the King in the Capital.
The glass was completely transparent, pure, and flawless.
"By my sacred ancestors..." Ornn touched the glass surface with trembling hands. The old dwarf, who had seen thousands of gemstones, was nearly in tears. "Invisible glass. This... this is clearer than a mountain waterfall! Boss Lady, if we coat the back with thin silver... this will be the most perfect mirror on the entire continent!"
[Ding! Item Created: Clear Glass (Quality: SSS).]
[Reward: +500 WP per production batch.]
"Excellent. Move it to the warehouse, we will start molding exclusive mirrors tomorrow," Stephanie said, smiling in satisfaction. She turned her head toward the adjacent factory. "How is the Wood Pulp Division?"
Sylas Thorne stepped forward from the row of giant wooden vats. The Elf Accountant held up a thin, bright white object. Unlike traditional parchment which was thick, stiff, and yellowish, this sheet was thin, light, and incredibly smooth.
"Magnificent," Sylas murmured, rubbing the white paper with his slender fingers. "The Church of Light monopolizes Vellum parchment made from calfskin. The process takes months, and it costs one gold coin for ten sheets. But you... you crushed pine wood, mixed it with alkaline chemicals, and mass-produced it in a matter of days."
"How much can we print this week, Sylas?" Stephanie asked.
"With the remaining refugee workforce, around ten thousand sheets," Sylas answered, his emerald eyes gleaming with absolute cunning. "If we sell a hundred sheets of this white paper for one silver coin... Madam Director, the Church of Light will lose 90% of their administrative revenue across the North and East overnight. We will kill them with a piece of paper."
"That is precisely the plan," Stephanie gave a faint smirk. She turned around, intending to return to her office to devise a distribution strategy.
However, just as she stepped away from the noisy factory area, a highly familiar giant hand suddenly wrapped around her waist from behind.
In one smooth, undeniable motion, Revista lifted Stephanie's body as if she were as light as a feather, carried her into an empty, warm storage room, and kicked the door shut.
BAM.
Stephanie's back pressed against the wooden door, while Revista caged her with his muscular arms resting on the door on either side of her head.
"Revista? What are you doing? The factory is busy," Stephanie protested, looking up at the silver-haired man's face.
Revista leaned down, his hot breath hitting Stephanie's face. His red eyes did not emit the murderous aura they had when facing an enemy, but rather a dark, deep, and... demanding possessive gaze.
"Our contract," Revista growled in a low, hoarse voice, sending vibrations straight into Stephanie's chest. "You said, for every new factory that successfully operates, I get my salary. Today, you opened two factories."
Stephanie sighed, hiding an amused smile at the corner of her lips. She had truly hired the clingiest 'monster' on the entire continent.
"Alright, Sir Prince. What do you want for your salary today? Extra wolf meat? A new fur blanket?" Stephanie teased.
"You know exactly what I want," Revista answered with a heavy voice.
Without waiting for further approval, the giant man buried his face into the crook of Stephanie's neck. He wrapped both his arms tightly around her, drowning Stephanie in an incredibly protective, scorching embrace. His sharp nose inhaled the soft scent of lavender from Stephanie's skin, while his lips occasionally left light, possessive kisses over her pulse.
"Twenty minutes," Revista murmured in Stephanie's ear, his voice muffled by her hair. "You are not allowed to work. You are not allowed to look at that noisy dwarf or that arrogant Elf. For these twenty minutes... you are entirely mine."
Stephanie could only roll her eyes, but her hands slowly reached up to return Revista's embrace, gently stroking the man's muscular back. A top-tier asset indeed requires specific non-financial compensation, the CEO thought, resigned yet comfortable.
However, those twenty minutes of peace never happened.
Just five minutes into Revista enjoying his 'salary', the sound of panicked footsteps echoed, running down the hallway outside the door.
"BOSS LADY!! BOSS LADY!!"
Gideon, the young scout, screamed hysterically, nearly breaking down the storage room door if Revista's deadly aura hadn't seeped through the cracks.
Stephanie immediately patted Revista's shoulder, forcing the visibly sulking and annoyed man to release his embrace. Stephanie straightened her clothes and opened the door.
"What is it, Gideon? It's not time for the daily report yet," Stephanie said, her cold and professional aura returning in an instant.
Gideon's face was deathly pale, as if he had just seen a ghost. He panted heavily, pointing toward the main gates of Winterhaven with a trembling finger.
"T-Troops, Boss! From the Southern border!" Gideon yelled, his eyes widening in sheer terror. "Heavy-armored troops bearing the golden sun flag of the Church of Light, and wolf cavalry carrying Duke Malakor's banner! There are thousands of them! They brought wall-breaking magic cannons!"
Revista, who was still standing behind Stephanie, changed instantly. His relaxed posture tensed. The black veins of the curse faintly reappeared on his neck. His red eyes blazed brightly, responding to the instincts of war and the threat directed at his property—and his woman.
However, Stephanie's reaction was far beyond Gideon's expectations.
The woman did not panic. She did not pale. Instead, the cunning, highly anticipatory smile of a true capitalist slowly etched itself onto her red lips.
"Perfect," Stephanie whispered. "I was just wondering how to test the durability of my 10,000 WP Obsidian Wall. Let's welcome our special guests, Revista."