"What the heck?" Jean's expression of shock stood in stark contrast to the smile on 'D's face before her.
"Simply put, you'll be taking over my position for a while to experience firsthand how to operate a large-scale organization. Of course, at the same time, we'll arrange for people to train several little ones, including you. Isn't that killing multiple birds with one stone?"
"But I have absolutely no experience. To be put directly into such an important position… doesn't that feel a bit like I was just hand-picked?"
'D's move left Jean feeling quite overwhelmed by the unexpected favor.
"What are you talking about? I *did* hand-pick you. Besides, Minto will assist you; just follow her arrangements and you'll be fine."
With that, 'D' clapped her hands, and Miss Minto, who had apparently been waiting outside the door, pushed it open and walked in.
"I'm counting on you, Minto."
"I understand, Lord 'D'. Leave Lady Jean to me." Miss Minto remained as indifferent as ever, or rather, expressionless; it was impossible to tell what she was thinking.
Then 'D' walked over, pulled Jean to her seat, sat her down, patted her on the shoulder, and pointed to the piles of documents stacked like small mountains all around.
"To help train your abilities as much as possible, I specifically saved up a week's worth. These tasks should help you get the hang of things quickly."
After saying that, she gave Jean a thumbs-up. "Don't thank me." Then, with a 'pop', she vanished.
Miss Minto's veins could be seen bulging visibly, but she quickly regained her composure.
"Lady Jean."
"Just call me Jean."
"That is not allowed. It might not have mattered before, but now you represent the face of the entire Comprehensive Underworld, so overstepping boundaries is absolutely not permitted."
"I, I understand." Facing the suddenly assertive Miss Minto, Jean felt a bit intimidated deep down.
"Please hold your head high and maintain your pride at all times. When a person becomes a banner, any of their words or actions are no longer just their own personal matter. Please keep this in mind."
"Yes!"
Nodding with satisfaction, Miss Minto then took several documents from the folder she was holding and handed them to Jean.
"First, these documents. Once signed, the news that you are temporarily taking over for Lord 'D' will be officially notified to all levels of deployment. Please read them over first. I have already reviewed the contents, so please feel free to sign."
"Ah, thank you for the trouble."
"It is nothing. I review all of Lord 'D's documents anyway. In fact, only the most important files are sent to her, but even then... never mind."
Jean followed Miss Minto's instructions and quickly browsed through the documents. Honestly, she didn't recognize a single character in the entire document, yet unexpectedly, she could understand everything. To be precise, the text directly reflected the writer's intent.
"This is an expressive method specifically created by Lord 'D' for this Comprehensive Underworld. Before the Comprehensive Underworld was founded, few worlds had such a mix of languages. Therefore, to reduce the learning cost for management personnel and increase communication, this communication mode was created that requires no learning and ensures the meaning is conveyed without deviation."
So it means there's no ambiguity. That really is a good thing. After carefully flipping through the documents a few times, Jean asked Minto a question she had always wanted to know:
"What exactly is the Comprehensive Underworld?"
Obviously, Minto was taken aback by Jean's question, but she quickly composed herself and began to explain patiently:
"For the vast majority of worlds, the cycle of life—which is also an important step in the cycle of souls—the Underworld is indispensable. But at the same time, the Underworld is not necessarily physically connected to the world itself."
Jean nodded. The Underworlds in various legends were indeed not underground in a physical sense. It was just too absurd that one could reach Ereshkigal's Underworld by simply digging underground.
"Therefore, many small and medium-sized worlds that are struggling with world creation or operational maintenance will outsource the Underworld unit to save costs. The Comprehensive Management System created by Lord 'D' became the connecting bridge and the initial foundation, and that is the birth of the Comprehensive Underworld."
"Outsourcing, really? Can the Underworld even be outsourced?" Jean couldn't help but retort.
"The souls circulating in each connected world are isolated from one another, so there is no difference to the world itself."
Seeing that Jean had no other questions, Minto continued: "However, having a foundation alone is not enough to carry the circulation of souls; actual existing Underworld territory is also indispensable. To solve this problem, Lord 'D' contacted several worlds with larger Underworlds and used the Comprehensive Management System to dock with them, forming a massive whole, and then utilized the resulting spare space to conduct outsourcing business."
"Worlds that commission the Underworld pay a continuous price to reduce operational costs, while those that join the Comprehensive Underworld provide Underworld territory and collect payment to reduce their own operational costs. It is a win-win situation."
"Sounds like a middleman." Jean felt like she had heard of this model before.
"You may have misunderstood something. Please do not forget that Lord 'D' is an Evil God and does not act according to common sense and logic. Whether it is an Underworld that has joined or an outsourced Underworld built through a commission, we possess absolute administrative power."
"Then what if the other party doesn't want to?"
"Then we make them want to." Minto revealed a dark, scheming smile:
"Of course, generally speaking, whether it is joining or outsourcing, there are huge benefits. Whether it is intelligence exchange, overall strength improvement, cost savings, or comprehensive risk resistance, it has many advantages. For the creators or managers of small and medium-sized worlds, it is a dream come true. As for the opinions of those so-called Underworld gods or the so-called ruling races, they are actually not important."
Miss Minto slightly exuded killing intent; Jean felt as if she could see a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood behind her.
"In short, the Comprehensive Underworld is both the collective term for these Underworlds and an absolute dictatorial institution with Lord 'D' at its core. Please keep this in mind as you act."
Miss Minto's choice of words made Jean feel immense pressure. Initially, 'D's overly frivolous attitude had given Jean the impression that this was a very easy job, but now, she couldn't help but feel anxious.
"Can I really handle such a heavy responsibility…?"
Seeing Jean's state, Miss Minto suddenly smiled: "Please rest assured, the meaning of my existence is to keep this place running smoothly. In the coming days, I will teach you every detail about operating this Comprehensive Underworld, and there will also be specialized teachers to explain the basic knowledge you need to master at your current stage."
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