Chapter 510 (1/2)
The grey-haired woman nodded at his words after she had schooled her face from the shock that was there previously. Apparently, she hadn’t considered that someone else was bold enough to open a random door and squirrel themselves away.
“Mr. Erickson. I’m surprised you let the factory long enough to attend this.” Sonya said, a touch of irony in her words.
Randidly’s lip curled, but he said nothing. Truly, she was right.
She joined him on the couch with her own plate of food and drink, and for a long time, they simply sat there. After a few minutes of tension, something eased between them, as both of their unconscious acknowledged each other as fellow introverts. Both preferred this silence vastly to the frantic energy of the party.
It was only after Sonya produced a bottle of wine from her interspatial watch and offered some to Randidly that they spoke again. Mostly, they spoke of steel prices, and whether they were being skimped on it. They were both aware that stirring up negative emotions in regards to Foreman Davey was the point of the party, and while Randidly was satisfied from the straightforward impression that Foreman Davey gave him, it seemed Sonya was waivering more.
They shared several drinks. Catching Sonya’s eyes wandering in a ...strange way, Randidly abruptly realized that this woman probably had a Vitality total that might not even be ⅕ his. Drinking a whole bottle of wine probably wouldn’t knock her unconscious, but some of her reasoning would be inhibited. Perhaps that was the reason for providing so much free alcohol.
Randidly was about to suggest they switch to water when Gregory Muldane, another influential steelworker, surreptitiously opened the door and snuck in. He froze briefly when he spotted Randidly and Sonya, but his wizened and twisted face quickly bloomed into a smile.
“So, you guys too, eh?” He said, throwing himself down between Randidly and Sonya. Randidly saw with a sinking feeling he carried his own bottle of wine. But very quickly he forgot about that, as talk turned from the politics of the steel factory to the particulars.
They talked about shifts in purity in the ore and the optimum temperature for the blast furnace, and the time the carbon splicing could occur before impurities would emerge in the metal. To his surprise, Randidly found himself so taken with the frank and open the way these two people were talking that he revealed the general idea behind his Erickson Steel: the fact that he used a method to mix in the bones of monsters into the metal.
Both considered that for a long time, slowing sipping their drinks. Outside, the party was going full swing. The two idiots Tooya and Diego were dead drunk, their arms draped around petite women, heedless of the calculating looks in the eyes of the waitstaff and bartenders.
Still, within the safety of the small sunroom, Randidly finally felt like he felt a place to relax. Although Randidly didn’t intend to dedicate himself to this fully, he still found the process of making the metal to be incredibly fulfilling. Hard work is sometimes its own reward, and comparing knowledge, Randidly felt like he was among peers, in metalworking at least.
These two would likely have even more exaggerated results if they possessed Randidly’s stats and Skills.
The next thing that took Randidly by surprise was words out of Sonya’s mouth, very soon after a small burp. “That woman is really pretty. She’s been looking at me.”
Both Randidly and Gregory looked up, curiously. Sure enough, a curvaceous woman in a turquoise dress was leaning up against the side table by the pool. She had wide-set eyes and soft looking lips. As Sonya indicated, her eyes had wandered away from the party, and locked on their figures through the window.
When Gregory and Randidly looked at her, she smiled, as if she had a secret that she was only willing to share if they came over. Instantly, Randidly was put on guard.
Gregory giggled. “Ohoho… what a pretty young thing.”
“Shut up, you old pervert,” Sonya said, slapping Gregory good-naturedly. Both of them stunk of alcohol. There were four empty wine bottles on the floor. “She was looking at me. Let’s go talk to her.”
“Uh,” Randidly began, but they were both standing.
They cast impatient glances his way and then walked off, arm in arm.
“Uh…,” Randidly said again, slowly standing. Then he sighed. Gathering information was the point. He had already learned a bit about the profit margin that Foreman Davey was making on him, and the situation with the expanding Zones. He would likely learn more if he went out there. So he followed them.