Chapter 144: Welcome To Crimson!

Chapter 144: Welcome To Crimson!

The Personal Jet started to taxi smoothly down the long airstrip, waiting for its designated turn for take-off. Just like with my recent horseback riding experience, I have absolutely zero past experience or skill with flying and traveling inside a plane, so my nerves are honestly a bit on edge right now.

Mei, easily noticing me staring directly out the heavy glass window with a tense frame, tries to comfort my nervous nature with a playful smile, "Master, I have flown plenty, and I can assure you it is safer than being in a car."

I adjusted my posture against the leather seat, trying to maintain some humor to mask the anxiety as I ask her, "So how good are the airbags on this thing?"

All three women sitting across from me smiled at my joke, but then they collectively adopted rather odd faces the exact second I threw out a follow-up question, "And where are the parachutes?"

The sexy attendant dressed in her crisp red dress stepped into the central aisle, chuckling as she answered, "Sorry, we don't have those. And we are flying over land the whole way, so the life vests will be useless as well for water landings."

Jenifer calmly pushed up her glasses with one finger, looking across the small table space to say to me seriously, "Master, the flight will be about five and a half hours long, so just bear with it, and I recommend you drink a bit when we can move freely."

The attendant nodded her head in immediate agreement, adding her own credentials to the travel itinerary, "Don't worry Mr Tang, I am a skilled bartender as well, so you can order most drinks."

Finally, the radio crackled and it was officially our turn for departure. The planes operating at both the small and large airports here always take off westward towards the open sea, just in case emergency water landings ever become a tactical necessity. Incoming flights, on the other hand, land from west to east on the grid.

Soon the private jet rapidly made its way down the runway, the engines roaring to life as the sudden feeling of my stomach getting moved was heavily felt the exact moment we became airborne. All I can see from my vantage point is the massive grid of Star City lights getting a bit smaller as we slowly climb and increase our forward speed.

Thanks to my Acrobatics Master skill being fully active, I have absolutely no inherent fear of heights, but the raw fear of crashing is still very strong in my heart, mimicking what most children and some adults feel when flying for the first time in their lives. The heavy pressure on my eardrums becomes pronounced as our altitude steadily rises, and after a short while of climbing, we enter the thick cloud-cover.

The flight attendant finally unbuckled her seatbelt with a smooth click, standing up in the cabin as she said to us, "Unless turbulence is unreasonable, for the rest of the trip, you can move freely, and Mr Tang, you can stop looking out the window at nighttime, due to large amounts of rural area not being visible. During day flights, there is a bit to see however. What would you like to drink?"

I unlatched my own harness, shifting my weight as I replied, "Long Island Iced Tea or Jack Daniel's on the rocks, whatever is fine with me."

The woman nodded, turning her gaze toward my companions, "Miss Han and Xia?"

Jenifer adjusted her posture, her tone remaining completely professional, "It is late, so just a bottle of Smart Water."

Mei leaned back against her cushion, answering with a grin, "A bottle of Dr Pepper."

Then the attendant went straight to the galley area to prepare the drinks for us, before heading up front to serve the pilots their fresh coffee.

I unbuckle completely and move over to the spacious left-side couch, sliding onto the leather before pulling out my smartphone to see my unread messages. Fortunately, my private plane has a dedicated Satellite Internet Connection integrated into the frame, ensuring I will never be without my ability to use the internet during transit. Even my standard cellular phone service remains completely unhindered up here.

The Fire Birds organization is a massive corporate behemoth, matching the strength of even the strongest of the Subordinate Families tied to the four major clans. Only the direct economic power of the Long, Feng, Lang, and Tang families are stronger than the four major Syndicates in pure financial strength, though the clans fall short of the Syndicates when it comes to raw Military Force.

The primary reason the Syndicates are weaker economically is due to the heavy taxation protocols of the Central Government, which purposefully creates an even playing field to act as a referee between the four Families and the Syndicates.

The Central Government is truly running a massive racket here on Pangaea. It meticulously balances the light and dark sides of the four families, all while siphoning massive amounts of money off both sides to keep themselves independently powerful. But without the presence of the Central Government, the four Clans would instantly devolve into a brutal Civil War just like in the bloody history of the past, so the Central system still has distinct value, as long as they don't overreach themselves.

Jenifer and Mei smoothly slide onto the couch to sit on each side of me, looking closely at what I am doing on my screen. Mei, masking her boredom with pure curiosity, asks me, "What is it you are working on this time?"

I leaned back against the cushions, deciding to tell both of them about my and Lucy's secret project updates. Oh, and on a brief side note, Mei had completely figured out that I already knew about Lucy's true identity right after the recent Police Station incident.

I tapped the screen, showing them the network layout as I explained, "Lucy Shen and I have finalized a new AI search program to add to Harem-Chat and is soon going live. We had been working out the bugs and security protocol for a while now, and it is ready to go. It will go live on February 14th, on Lovers Day. I named the program... Valentine."

My last world had a very similar holiday to our local Lovers Day. My original Earth, however, never had a Saint Valentine, so I thought I would bring the concept of Valentine into this world on that specific day. I had told Lucy all about the history of Valentine's Day in my old world, and she absolutely loved the aesthetic idea. This is exactly how many worlds sync-together over time; my mere presence changes the cultures and societal views of this reality, well after I am eventually gone.

My last Earth most definitely did not benefit from my past self, considering how completely useless I was back then. Yeah, my past self had severe personal issues before he finally inherited his last life's memories to become a significantly better human being, so an entire world paid the price for it.

Jenifer adjusted her glasses, looking at the code interface to ask a very good tactical question, "How will Valentine help Harem-Chat?"

I grin widely, unlocking a secure portion of the application to tell both of them, "It is now live on our private Harem-Chat channel, open it up and use it. It is the ultimate search and resource program. We have access to it early because of me and Lucy, but others will have to wait for Valentine's Day, or I meant Lovers Day."

The two women immediately pulled out their own devices to log in, just as the attendant brought us our completed drink orders. Mei took a sip of her soda, her eyes scanning the fresh interface before she asked, "So by filling out this user profile, it will let the AI make better searches and results based on my likes? So I can ask for things like what you want for your birthday as a gift, and based on you and me, will give me suggestions?"

I took a sip of my cocktail, nodding firmly to confirm her logic, "That is right! If both you and Jenifer asked it... [What 3 gifts in the price-range of xxx$ would Rick like?] then both of you, based on your unique profiles, will probably have some differences on the best gifts. It takes into account your personal knowledge of the gift and the thoughtfulness behind it. So the more specific you are, the better. So answer your questionnaires well, because they might affect things you get as gifts."

The exact second those words left my mouth, both women started to answer the profile questions like their actual lives depended on it. The comprehensive test runs the absolute gamut of psychological traits, covering things like fears, likes, preferences, personal wealth, world-views, and much more. Everything is calculated on a percentage scale from 1 to 99, and an answer of 0 or 100 is treated as an absolute never or always.

I purposely only drank one Long Island during the flight, because a lot of bad things could easily happen high in the sky inside a flying metal tube with five women on board.

After the alcohol fully hit my system and I felt completely relaxed, I laid my head down directly in Jenifer's lap while resting my legs across Mei's lap.

Soon the heavy fatigue of the week caught up to me, and I drifted off into dreamland.

Meanwhile in Crimson State, Phoenix City...

In an older, historic section of the city from long ago, stands a massive, traditional Japan Empire mansion, complete with classic sliding doors and paper shoji screens throughout the interior of this noble family estate.

Out in the inner-courtyard used specifically for martial arts training, the winter snow gently falls over the meditating figure of a woman, tempering her physical body and spirit against the freezing elements.

This is Hinata Kyusho, the 29-year-old half-sister of Steven Woo, featuring long black hair and fierce red eyes. She is a highly dedicated practitioner of the Katana, and she strictly follows her clan's use of Kyusho Jitsu in combat.

The snow falls softly from her eyelashes as her eyes suddenly snap open, hearing the quiet footsteps of a servant coming up from behind her. Her strict voice cuts through the cold air as she asks in Japanese, "-Why do you interrupt my training?-"

The servant man answers immediately in the same language, kneeling low on the frozen ground while keeping his eyes glued to his knees, refusing to look directly at the woman, "-Rick Lee will arrive in Phoenix City in a few hours, my lady.-"

Her left hand instantly tightens its grip on her sword's scabbard, her voice deepening with cold intensity, "-Why has he come to Crimson? And did Cat Woo come with him?-"

"-No my lady, your brother's ex-wife is not with him, he has only come with a Han woman and a China Empire woman. He is arriving as part of his official work with the Fire Birds,-" the servant explained carefully.

Click!

Hinata closes her eyes slowly, using her right thumb to gently push the polished hilt of her Katana out of the guard.

Shing! Swoosh! Clatter!

From her kneeling position, she drew her razor-sharp blade in a blinding, overhead arc, splitting a thick wooden pole cleanly in half. Her physical stance was absolutely amazing, and if I were here to witness the strike, my skills would confirm she was a Master Level practitioner of the Katana.

Shing! Click!

And as fast as she performed the lethal cut, her Katana was retrieved fluidly back into her scabbard with a sharp clicking sound. She turned her fierce red eyes back toward the servant, her voice dropping into a cold promise, "-My brother is in prison due to this man's shameful trickery, so I will regain our family honor by eliminating this man who ruined our family reputation. I will give my life to eliminate Rick Lee. Ready the men we have, we will welcome Rick Lee to Crimson with blood.-"

Fire Birds Headquarters in Crimson State, Phoenix City...

Bill Woo, Cat's uncle, is sitting directly at his massive executive desk with a group of ten sub-leaders gathered in front of him. They are all wearing sharp business suits of varying designs and colors, but every single one of them features some distinct indicator of red-crimson to show they are a part of the Fire Birds organization.

Bill leaned forward, tapping his fingers on the wood as he commanded the room, "Gentleman and Ladies, please sit. I am all glad you made it for this inspection meeting with the soon to be Leader. If any of you had not shown, it would have been embarrassing for us."

One woman sitting near the front, dressed in a tight red-dress and a heavy fur-coat, smiled dismissively and asked, "State Manager Woo, I don't understand why you made us all come to the Capital from our districts? We all did not even show for Tina Feng's inspection last year, so why this kid? Sure I get it, he is going to be the new Leader, but I don't see what is so special. He only got the job by fighting other kids?"

Bill Woo, knowing the volatile temperaments of all these sub-leaders, fully understands why it feels like a massive hassle to all travel here, considering Crimson State is not a small piece of land after-all, but he flatly explains the reality, "Diana, I have met young Rick Tang and feel it is in our best interest to show our loyalty early. Rick has been recognized by both Leader and Head Feng for his ability. You don't seem to understand how Tony Feng being so doting towards Rick is important here."

Bill stood up completely from his leather chair, walking to the front of his desk before leaning back against the edge of the mahogany frame to face his crew, "Leader Daniel Feng confided in me that Rick Lee-Tang may even beat him in a fair fight. Rick is also the one who straightened Leader's books in such a way that we only paid ¾ of what Central extorted from us in taxes. So he is coming here to look over our books to try and save us money as well. Also... Rick Lee has even killed Master level fighters, one of which was defeating Laura Long. So try not to offend him and assume him incapable based on his age, or how he got the position."

One tough-looking fellow sitting further back, wearing a bright red-suit with a black-shirt underneath, frowned heavily as he chimed in with a laugh, "I feel a bit funny that our next leader is marrying a Lang woman, what is up with that? Might as well have married Brenda Sho while he was on a roll, ha-ha?!"

Bill Woo took a slow, cold drink of his Vodka, his eyes narrowing as he sneered at this ruffian's ignorance, "And after hospitalizing Laura Long and tossing her ass in jail, he turned around and married her little sister, so what is your point? Our new Leader is marrying Tina Feng, and he has an exceptionally high bar for women in his harem. That just means he is capable, does it not? Like I said before, I have personally met him, and I was impressed. He is sharper than others in his age range. Anyway, this is your final warning... He kills people without regret, and I won't cover for you guys, so it is your choice."

One woman in the middle of the group rubbed her temples, remembering a specific report as she asked, "I remember now, one of our leaders in North City in Azure State was killed by Rick Tang, right? And no one cared he did that. Daniel Feng, our Leader, even praised him for it."

Bill nodded his head firmly, confirming the grim outcome, "Yes, that sub-leader Di thought he could kill Rick, and he lost his life for interfering with the Tournament Contender. And now all of the Di family from North City are working in our sweatshops or brothels, so take that anyway you like it."

Bill downed the absolute rest of his drink, setting the glass down hard onto the desk before smiling with a direct challenge, "I am going to Greet Rick Tang at the airport, who is coming with me?"

In my dream, I was intensely making love to Jenifer for the very first time in a plush bed, so when I slowly realized what was actually going on as I woke up, I was completely confused by the physical sensations.

My head was still resting flat in Jenifer's lap, and she was actively leaning her upper body forward while our tongues danced together in a deep kiss, but I can feel that Mei is currently riding my dick in a slow rhythm. Jenifer, realizing from my shifting eyes that I am fully awake now, broke the kiss to take a breath and tell me, "Mei wanted the two of you to join The Mile High Club."

Mei was slowly rising and lowering her hips over my lap, leaning down to lock her lips onto mine the exact second Jenifer sat up straight to give us room. There is a thick blanket draped completely over Mei and my lower-body to hide the physical encounter from the rest of the cabin, but I can tell she has been at it for a good bit, because I am already incredibly close to filling her up.

Mei broke our kiss briefly, whispering quietly against my lips, "I finished as you woke up, Master~! So just let it go too."

As Jenifer immediately leans right back in to kiss me again, I just decide to go with the absolute flow of the encounter, sucking hungrily on her lips while reaching up to pull Mei's hips down firmly against my waist as my excitement level reached its absolute climax.

Mei sat up straight on top of me, feeling the intense burst of my warmth filling her deep inside as she sighed out, "Yay, we are now members, Ufufu. Jenifer, that was a good idea you gave me."

Jenifer, hearing Mei blurt out the secret, looked heavily embarrassed and scrambled to sit back up in her own seat, hurriedly putting her glasses back onto her face. She looked down into my still completely confused face, adjusting her posture to explain, "When I used your valentine App, I found some interesting ideas it gave us. It realized we were in an airliner and knowing of our relationships, it recommended joining the Mile High Club to make you happy. Valentine also told us, 'you enjoyed the company of two lovers at one time,' cough."

I fully understood her explanation, though I was a bit unprepared for Valentine to give such incredibly accurate situational data, taking the actual airplane environment into account, what an amazing AI search engine!

In reality, Jenifer had been completely tricked; it was actually Lucy pranking her through the backend interface, feeding her own personal advice while pretending to be the automated Valentine system.

I shifted my clothes slightly, offering a relaxed grin, "Thanks to both of you for this unexpected treat. Jenifer, are you alright?"

Jenifer, quietly waiting for Mei to fully clean up our physical connection under the blanket, nodded her head to me and told me, "Watching Mei and you connect has given me confidence to do the same with you, Master. But I want to do it in bed, not like this for the first time, if that is fine."

By this time, Mei had smoothly pulled up my pants and secured her own clothing back in place, and that was the exact moment I realized the situation!

I looked around the small cabin, my eyes widening, "Where is the attendant?!"

Mei pointed a single finger toward the closed bathroom door, smiling mischievously, "I told her to wait there, fufu."

I shook my head in pure disbelief as I got up from the couch, walking across the carpet to knock firmly on the bathroom door as I said, "Sorry, you can come out now, I need to use the restroom now."

The exact second the words left my mouth, the cockpit door opened up at the other end of the plane, and the attendant stepped out into the aisle, looking completely confused as to why I was talking to an empty restroom with everyone else sitting out in the open. I realized instantly that Mei had totally tricked me, so I just quickly darted inside the bathroom as my two maids giggled loudly behind my back.

Later on in the flight, the heavy static of the PA system crackled to life as we heard the announcement over the speakers from the pilot, [We are making our approach in the Moscow International Airport, please buckle up everyone.]

The four of us immediately slid into our designated armchairs and buckled our safety belts, and I couldn't help but smile as I looked straight out the window at the bright city lights of Crimson's Capital, Phoenix City.

Jenifer, seeing my face looking both excited and nervous for the landing, reached across the small table space to firmly hold my hand, "Welcome to Crimson."