Meanwhile, while Su Yi and Ilis were under investigation, Cairns of the Navigation Department was riding high.
Thanks to Madman's crucial performance last time, Cairns had received an exceptional promotion and reached L27!
Madman had risen just as fast, reaching L20 and becoming Cairns's trusted aide.
"Serves them right! Did they really think two big achievements meant they could do whatever they wanted?"
"They even dared go after an L30! Do they think the company belongs to them?"
Cairns looked thoroughly pleased with himself.
He was not part of Lald's faction.
The Navigation Department had always been powerful, with far more say than the Operations Department!
For now, though, his attention was mostly on his next assignment.
Tomorrow, they were due to jump to Company Headquarters.
And he was about to land a coveted position in its Sales Department!
The Sales Department had become a formidable presence within the company over the past few centuries.
Its marketing prowess had brought the company enormous profits.
Granted, its outrageous strategies had put tremendous pressure on the Operations Department.
Making even their own employees' Powered Armor carry advertisements, in particular,
had drawn a flood of complaints from the Operations, Exploration, Production, Technology, and Armed Departments.
But faced with all that profit, senior management had chosen to let the complaints die down.
More than a century later, company employees had grown used to the ads plastered across their own products.
The Navigation Department held considerable power, but it still fell short of the Sales Department.
The latter had an especially strong voice at Headquarters.
Many policies had to give way to its demands.
Cairns was sipping premium coffee and reading company news when he suddenly shot to his feet.
"How is that possible?!"
His expression changed drastically.
The results of the investigation into Ilis