The Red Hand

Chapter 160 – All the President’s Headaches.

In the aftermath of Akagi's speech to mankind, President Rosewood had been having a difficult time, to say the least. In the days after the event, things had spiraled out of control, there was a minor panic across the entire world, and while things had calmed down a bit, the global mood was still tense. Rosewood was currently handling a press conference at the White House, and the reporters were bombarding her with questions about Akagi.

"Please, everyone, one at a time!" President Rosewood was trying to keep things in order. "I will get to as many of your questions as possible, so please calm down, and let's all act like respectable professionals. Please."

{Akagi, why did you have to give that speech and then leave right after?!? You left everything to me, dammit!} She cursed Akagi in her head.

"Now, let's start with you." She pointed to one reporter and began the very long process of addressing a deluge of questions relating to Akagi. In one of the longest press conference Q&As in White House history, President Rosewood went over everything she knew about the Demon. She made sure to reassure the public that she was not a threat, at present, and that there was no need for panic or hysteria. The threat of such a powerful world-ending monster was not lost on her, but she tried to bring down the temperature and calm people's nerves. President Rosewood had a good idea of who Akagi was and how she would act, so by the end of the press conference, she'd manage to, at the very least, prevent breakdown of law and order. She was grateful this whole ordeal happened after her reelection, since she figured another term would be impossible after this, and a continued career in politics wasn't necessarily guaranteed.

Once she was finished, Rosewood retreated to one of her side rooms for a small break, with Nariyuki close by. The agent poured her a small cup of coffee and the two took a moment to speak about the present situation.

"I just want to crawl in some hole and hide, Nariyuki." Rosewood rubbed her temples as Nariyuki brought her drink. "I knew things would be miserable, but this was just..."

{I know I'm the President, but this is not what I signed up for...} (Rosewood)

"It's like I told you. Akagi sees this as nothing more than a game to play for entertainment. She's probably getting a kick out of all this." Nariyuki sighed.

"Yeah well, I wish she'd leave me out of this game." Rosewood said while sipping her coffee.

"It's a bit too late for that. You've caught her eye, and I doubt she's going to leave you alone." Nariyuki laughed. "At least your future employer seems to treat her people well enough."

"Hey, if they run me out of the country, at least I've got somewhere to go." Rosewood rolled her eyes. "It seems that the press pool calmed down a bit. But I have a feeling there's going to be a round of congressional hearings on this whole event. Have fun. Since they will 100% call you."

{Thank god I got them on board with this whole thing FIRST. Otherwise I'd be getting impeached for sure...} (Rosewood.)

"Joy." Nariyuki sighed. She hated going before Congress. "Do you think they're going to make you back out of the deals we made over the week? Akagi's not going to like that."

"I will do everything in my power to ram those through Congress where we need their approval. If I have to wash a few hands to get it done, so be it. I'd rather not take chances when we're dealing with a literal Demon." Rosewood sighed.

"Yeah, the world-ending creature meant to kill us all just wants to live peacefully in the mountains of Japan with her little village." Nariyuki shook her head. "If you'd told me a year ago I'd say those words, I'd've told you to check into the mental ward."

"Yeah, when I ran for office I thought I'd be dealing with the Chinese, the Russians, or hell, even some stupidity out of the EU. But no, I get this. Goodie..." Rosewood groaned. "Why the hell did I make that stupid comment about Demons and the Demon Lord? I jinxed myself."

"But it's so much fun!" Hikari popped out of the ceiling and dropped to the floor. "Man, that press conference was great! I thought you were going to rip that one guy's head off when he started getting sassy!"

"Are you always around at the perfect time, Hikari? And why are you even here? I thought you were going home." President Rosewood sighed. "Akagi told us she'd call off her intel gathering, so seeing you still around is concerning."

"Intel gathering has been wrapped up, and we're moving our assets to the next job site." Hikari smiled. “So we'll be out of your hair soon!”

"Whoever you go to next, I feel bad for their security forces. Lord knows you've given the Secret Service more aneurysms than I ever thought possible." Nariyuki said.

"Are you going to be heading down south? I've heard tales of ninja cats saving villages and destroying drug cartels." Rosewood was very aware of the clan's activities in South America.

{Not that I would mind that since their activities have crippled drug operations and smuggling into the States has dropped a good amount.} (Rosewood)

"Sorry, but our next assignment is classified." Hikari put her finger over her lips in a 'sssh' manner. "But it will be so much more fun! I've been bored around here since you guys just gave up trying to stop me, and that got lame."

"Well, sorry we don't have anti-magic systems in place yet." Rosewood rolled her eyes. "Perhaps when we get some knowledge exchange with your master, things might be more interesting in the future."

“I think we'll still win.” Hikari laughed.

"Yes well, anyway. Did you stop by just to say goodbye?" Rosewood asked.

"Partly, I was also tasked with delivering a message from my Lord." Hikari's words caused Rosewood's eyes to turn sharp. "Now where was that paper?" She reached into a pocket and pulled out a small notepad. "Here it is! Ok, so there are a few things."

"Go ahead." Rosewood motioned for her to proceed.

"First, she wanted to thank you for such a lovely reception. She said she enjoyed your hospitality and D.C. itself. Second, she wanted to let you know that a formal Ambassador has been chosen to represent the Kingdom of Dumetor, and they will arrive once the territory is turned over to her in the summer."

"I will alert the State Department, though it will take a bit of time to get a formal office ready." President Rosewood figured it would take a few months for that to be ready.

"Yeah, she figured that. Anyway. Third, she wanted to give you a warning." Hikari looked at Rosewood.

"A warning?" President Rosewood tensed up.

"Yes." Hikari nodded. "Out of consideration for you, and because of your kindness, she wanted to give you a bit of info that she hasn't shared with many others."

{I don't like the sound of this.} (Rosewood)

"My Lord wanted you to be aware that one of the World Bosses from FWO has appeared in Japan and that she is currently hunting her." Hikari said.

"What?!?" President Rosewood's eyes went wide. "You mean one of the game bosses is in our world?"

{What does that even mean?!?} (Rosewood)

"Yes, it appears that the Lord of Vampires Silfana has appeared in Kyoto. In my world, she was the leader of a nation of monsters, and was widely regarded as quite the terrifying being." Hikari explained. “She routinely waged war on the rest of the continent and was regarded as one of the biggest threats to the Empire.”

"How is that even possible?" Nariyuki asked. "I thought the game was purged once you all left?"

{Our intel agencies dug as deep as they could, but nothing indicated the developers knew anything about this situation, and they still deny any responsibility.} (Rosewood)

"We are investigating that as we speak, though my Lord has a few theories." Hikari shrugged. "What's important is that she wants you to be on alert in case any of the others appear. If Serval shows up in the U.S. that will be a disaster."

"Serval?" President Rosewood had no idea who that was.

"The Emerald Dragon Emperor, Serval." Hikari explained who he was. "He was the final World Boss defeated by the Assault Team, and was responsible for a large number of player deaths. In our world, he was a being told of in legend, and there were stories of him plunging the world into armageddon if he ever awoke again." Hikari continued. "He was considered to be the single most powerful being in our world, not counting the gods, and defeating him was thought to be impossible."

"And she thinks such a monster might appear in our world?" President Rosewood began to sweat a bit.

"Possibly. If Silfana appeared, it's possible that the others might." Hikari reached into her pocket again and threw a small notepad at Rosewood. "That contains data on all ten World Bosses based on what my Lord has documented with help from Hishya. I'd advise going over it just in case."

President Rosewood looked at a few pages and noted that there were even a few drawings of the World Bosses before something caught her attention. "The sixth World Boss was the Lord of all Demons, Rivenshaft. He resided in a parallel plane of existence termed the Underworld." She sighed. "Great, more Demons."

"He was quite scary, but not actually problematic since he only rarely came to the material plane." Hikari explained. "Though if he showed up in this world, that would be bad. However, I wouldn't be worried about him, since my Lord told me that if he shows up, she'd handle him personally. This world only has room for one top Demon, and that's a seat reserved exclusively for her."

{None of us would stand for a pretender Demon Lord, or anyone who claims this world as their own. It belongs to Lady Akagi!} (Hikari)

"Well, that's reassuring." Nariyuki rolled her eyes. "One Demon or another, does it really matter for us? We're still screwed regardless."

"I'd say your all getting off lucky, all things considered." Hikari said. "My Lord is more interested in her own life and those of the family. As she said on Monday, if you leave her alone she'll probably leave you alone."

"Either way, thank you for this information. As for the returnee she's sending us. Can you tell her to send someone to perform further discussion on that issue? The Pentagon is chomping at the bit to start running tests with magic." President Rosewood said.

"I'll pass along the message, though I have word of advice." Hikari held up her hand. "Birdy is a bit of a handful, and while I'd never question her loyalty, she's a bit more apt to creatively interpret orders." She gave a dry laugh. "Birdy isn't one to take orders from anyone but my Lord, so she might be a bit hard to work with. Though she'll probably be fine, just make sure you don't push her buttons and try not to aggravate her too much."

"I'll make sure she's treated well." President Rosewood gave a wry smile.

{Just what we need MORE problem children.} (Rosewood)

"Excellent! Then, until we meet again!" Hikari jumped into the ceiling and disappeared.

"Well, one problem left the building, and several more showed up to replace it." Nariyuki smiled.

"Why are you acting like you're not involved." Rosewood grinned. "You're going to be very busy with all the new fun things going on. I'll be assigning you to our incoming returnee, and I suspect that you'll be called upon for further discussions with our resident Demon Lord."

*Tsk* Nariyuki clicked her tongue. "You don't pay me enough for all this crap."

*KNOCK* *KNOCK* *KNOCK*

"Madam President, it's time for your next meeting. The Speaker is waiting for you in conference room 3." (Staffer.)

"Well, I guess my respite is over." Rosewood stood up. "No rest for the weary. I've got a country to run, Demon Lord or not."