act47side

*Vomit*...

Go on, barf your heart out. At least we got a taste of life in the sky... you won't have anything to throw up when you get back to the frontier, back to the cold and hunger.

Skip the technical inspections before the opening? Absolutely not.

Everyone on Propeller Paradise is racing against the clock to get across the finish line. Mr. Tannen believes that any delay to projects caused by inspections will compromise Propeller Paradise's opening.

In addition, reducing the amount of communication you have to conduct with other tech firms will allow you to devote more of your time to your Rhine Lab research. Mr. Tannen has your best interests at heart.

My best interests?

I spent years wandering the frontier when I first came to Columbia, building houses for the Pioneer Teams and killing bandits for the caravans. Life was hard until I finally got my big break.

If I had someone like Gordon Tannen with my best interests at heart, handling everything I wasn't comfortable with...

That would have been very fortunate, I'm sure.

I would have died out there in the wilderness, I'm sure.

Besides, what he really wants isn't for Rhine to forfeit our control over technical inspections.

How do you know?

You imitate his negotiating style too well. The traps and pitfalls are obvious.

I'm not a Cautus. I'm not in the habit of diving into holes.

Spit it out. What does he really want?

You are as astute and decisive as he said you were.

In that case, I'm sure you understand that, while Mr. Tannen is in charge of Propeller Paradise's overall administration, it is Rhine that has a stranglehold on public opinion.

He doesn't need any accidents at such a critical juncture, nor can he afford one. Therefore, he has put together a list based on project progress, and asks that you perform the inspections in this order.

This way, at least the inspections will have a minimal impact on the progress of individual projects, and minimize the chance of conflict, setting aside the issue of engineering control.

The less hassle for you, the less hassle for him.

I won't try to speculate about Tannen's intentions with the order. We have a compromise.

Give me the list.

Thank you for your understanding, Director Lunorey. I won't trouble you any longer.

One last question. Which rule were you following in the negotiation just now?

The twelfth: Know your boss, and communicate his intentions with absolute faithfulness when negotiating, for you are his personal representative.

However—

Yes?

Before I came, Mr. Tannen stressed how difficult the head of Rhine Lab's Engineering Section was.

I packed blankets because I thought I might have to spend the night in front of your office.

But that's not what I see. You don't need concern from other people, and you're used to cutting through the problem in the most direct possible way. But you still care about people.

Which is why I now have the time to enjoy my lunch in peace, something that I have not done in a long time.

Thank you.