Harsh Director

"This is abuse... I'm sending a complaint to HR."

Knowing Nicholas, that was probably going to come in the form of assault with full intent to cause bodily harm.

"I'm the Director, you can't complain about me." Olga Marie Animusphere narrowed her eyes at the grumbling pale haired teenager, "Who would it even go to?" There was no higher authority to report to beyond her.

Nicholas mimicked her expression, resting his back against the cold metal of the vehicle taking them through Antarctica at speeds greater than it had any right to be moving at being the hulking mass it was, "Court. Clock Tower?"

"You really want to take a matter to the Clock Tower?" Most trials there were charades for the sake of appearances, their rulings predetermined by the one with the bigger political dick, "Against a member of the Twelve Lords?"

A commoner civilian with no background would lose the trial for nothing other than the deciding members wanting to curry her favour.

"Also, you threw an APC at the riot police. Burnt down a police station, caused who knows how much property damage." Olga deadpanned at Nicholas, folding her arms under her chest and involuntarily drawing the teenager's gaze to them, "I'm not even going to mention the possible enemy you've made out of one of the most influential gangs in the city AND how much it cost me to deal with it. You think I enjoy altering people's memories?"

"Y...Yeah Nicholas, I think you should accept the punishment." Kadoc spoke from a dark corner making Olga and Nicholas turn his way in alarm..., "Did you guys... forget I was here?" He sighed and retreated into the shadows, in a fully lit automobile, somehow.

"I thought you was sleeping. Dunno about her though." Nicholas whispered, offhandedly pointing at a stupefied Olga, "Is it just me, or is she way too calm?"

Kadoc leaned forward slightly, expertly avoiding the woman's gaze with skill honed over years of having no friends and no li- *ehem*, "Now that you mention it, the Director's usually explosive, like a mine."

To the point where no one wanted to stay near her for prolonged periods of time out of fear of being chewed up raw and then spit out, then stomped on.

Olga finally seemed to regain her senses and fumed at their discussion,

"A-Am not!"

She was nice!

Right?

True she may have thrown her files in someone's face that one time but that was because of their own incompetence!

"Bill told me you tore up someone's report in their face." Nicholas rubbed his chin in thought, staring at the ceiling, "Randy told me he had to beg you for his vacation because he was a bit behind?"

Olga's expression faltered, there was no way a genius like her couldn't remember 'incidents' once reminded.

I...It was true.

"The report looked like a toddler wrote it." Olga tried to excuse her actions.

"So if a toddler wrote it, you'd tear up the work..."

"Why would there be a toddler at Chaldea?"

"Good point, Kadoc." Nicholas shamelessly retracted his analogy and mentioned another, "So if it was someone's first day at work, you'd punish them fo-"

"But it wasn't his first day, who would make a report on the first day?" Kadoc spoke out again with a small smile, the bastard was enjoying it, "Most of the staff has been working there for years."

Nicholas eyeballed his 'friend', "Buzzkill."

Olga ignored the two manchildren and contemplated whether her reputation was deserved.

"Wait... I've got it!" Nicholas smiled in triumph, "You ordered that I should be thrown out the first day I arrived. And you just lied about letting me use the servant system to cull righteous rebellion."

For the first time in a long time, the Director of Chaldea was left dumbfounded, "W-What?" She tilted her head and recoiled physically, "I did what?! Who told you that? Why would I-..."

Did they really think she was the sort of monster who would throw someone out to die in -80 degrees?!

Did... even Nicholas believe that?!

Needless to say, the teenager didn't believe jackshit, he was just an asshole sometimes.

"My god..." If that was true, then she really was an asshole.

"Lev did." Nicholas threw the problem at Lev, "He came to me after our 'truce'."

"I would never do something like that..." Olga pinched the bridge of her nose, she wanted to cry, "Why would I do something like that to you of all people?" He was the first one to acknowledge her. She even covered all the damages he incurred in London, "You..."

"You messed up, Nicholas." Kadoc scratched the back of his head, "This is too far. The Director is about to cry, again."

"...Yeeah."

Nicholas agreed completely.

-

The staff of Chaldea that welcomed their Director back in the vehicle bay didn't know why she pushed them aside and ran away but it all made sense when Nicholas walked out of the door with Kadoc behind him.

No really wanted to ask him for details after he punched one of the support beams and it crumpled under the strike.

He was also in a less than agreeable mood.

-

Nicholas found Olga hiding in her office, behind her table to be specific, with a cup of coffee and a box of tissues. She was all curled up, hiding her face in her knees with her back to the table.

"Yo Di-... Olga, whatcha up to?" He spoke casually, waving his hand as the metal door slid aside, but received no answer, only soft whimpering and sneezing, "I guess you don't wanna talk to me."

He didn't like making people who weren't assholes cry... it was free game for people like Lev though.

ANYWAY, this was the second time he'd done it now.

Sighing, Nicholas walked over to the lights and flipped them on before walking over to her aquarium, "Did I tell you you have some cool ass fish?" Seriously, there was one with whiskers like a Chinese elder.

"...You did, last time."

He knew the woman that softly answered his question was anything but an asshole.

She spent most of her time working while also making sure her staff had no problems, she even covered where they came up short in secrecy. He hadn't really met anyone as hardworking as her... nor as sensitive to his words.

Most people thought he was nuts.

"Hell, you're cool as shit for not going off to the deep end."

Usually, when you grew up without approval or recognition for painstaking efforts, you were a hateful, reclusive little shit that thought the world owed you something and gave up.

He'd seen the exact opposite of that in his time here.

Nicholas walked to her table with slow, careful steps and leaned against it with one hand, "I can see why you'd wanna cry."

"Lev... I was prepared for him to do something aft... after what you told me."

Well, she wasn't dumb enough to not be able to connect those dots.

"But I-I didn't think you'd believe him. I... I didn't think he'd be right."

She just didn't want to believe someone who had been there would stab her in the back.

"Oh come on, you're not an asshole, I was kidding around." Nicholas knew he was built differ-*ehem* that everyone couldn't deal with their problems by punching them, "I didn't believe what he said either... He's a snake."

The motherfucker even wore green while dressing like an 18th century Brit.

"...You didn't?" Olga stared up at him with bright golden eyes, "Cause... I-I would never-" She was cut off by Nicholas flicking her forehead.

"You take my stuff way too seriously. I know you wouldn't." Nicholas found himself with a small smile on his usually frozen face, "Even I see how you try to look after the staff. You ask them if they eat enough, haven't seen a boss like that ever." Well, she did shout about how they were kids that didn't know what to eat but that was just how hasty she was.

"So... So I'm not an as-..." She was hesitant to say the word, "Asshole?"

"Dunno about that."

Nicholas raised his hands in surrender when tears started welling up in his boss' eyes, "You're not an asshole. I'll make sure the staff know that you aren't one."

"Y-You will?"

"Yeah... I mean," Nicholas scratched his cheek, "You're the first person I wouldn't want to punch."

Olga Marie Animusphere could never know just how literal those words were.

She just burst out laughing, brought out of her shit mood, "W-What's that even supposed to mean?"

The pale haired Master only shrugged in response before giving her a small salute and turning to leave but... his gaze fell on a paper sitting on her desk.

'Total costs for damages in London.'

A ridiculous sum was mentioned in it but that wasn't important, what was important was that it said paid at the end of it.

Nicholas cast a glance at the giggling woman and found himself at a loss for words.

How could anybody think she was an asshole?

"I'll accept whatever punishment you've got."

His code didn't allow him to say cool and move on.

That was the kind of money someone like him would never even see.

-

The Grand Orders will be starting soon.

I'll start settling into a 5 chapters a week schedule soon.

-

You can find up to 7 chapters ahead at patre0n.com/Bleap

Also some polls that are important to the story.