Hate Campaign Part 2

At the Minamoto Corporation headquarters, the atmosphere was different, feeling much better compared to previous weeks. There was no longer any tension or uncertainty; the sweet scent of victory was in the air. They were at the top. Mio, the rookie girl whom no one knew, had defeated Seraphine Laurent, an international titan.

Mio sat in front of the large window in Kaguya's office, staring at her own reflection in the glass. She ran her fingers over her neck, feeling the strange emptiness where her pink hair used to be, the hair that had caused her so many problems. “ I feel... lighter ” Mio murmured with a mixture of strangeness and nostalgia. " Although I miss my long hair. “ Kaguya, who was reviewing some contracts with a satisfied smile, looked up. ” Hair grows back, dear. But last night's glory is eternal. That haircut made you look like a warrior. It suits you. "

Everything seemed so peaceful and prosperous. The morning sun lit up the office, which seemed to promise another successful day.

Until the door burst open.

Tanaka rushed into Kaguya's office, completely forgetting the protocol of knocking before entering. His face, usually stoic, was pale and sweaty. “ Ms. Kaguya! ” Tanaka gasped. “ We have an emergency! The stocks are plummeting! ”

Kaguya didn't flinch, didn't even blink. She simply continued signing a document calmly. “ Relax, Tanaka. It's normal. Markets fluctuate after a big event. Investors are cashing in their profits, and then it will go back up. Just stay calm. ”

“ No, President! ” Tanaka insisted, approaching the desk and tapping the surface urgently. “ This isn't a normal spike! It's a crash! They're selling off massively! There's something unusual about this. ”

Before Kaguya could scold her for her lack of composure, her own personal phone, resting on the desk, began to vibrate.

The notifications wouldn't stop. It was a constant buzzing, like a swarm of angry bees. Confused, Kaguya picked up the device. She read the first notification. Then the second, and then another. Her eyes widened. In a reflexive act of pure shock, she spit out the coffee she had just drunk, staining the documents.

“What the hell...?” Kaguya whispered as she looked at the dozens of messages from partners and investors: 

> “Kaguya, is the rumor true?”

> “Clear this up or we'll withdraw our sponsorship.”

> “What kind of girl did you hire?”

With fingers trembling with courage, he logged onto social media. And then he saw it immediately.

It was a trend that marked him as number one.

An anonymous user, driven by thousands of bots, had posted a devastating thread. The headline read: “THE BUNNY IS A THIEF: PREDATOR OF COMMITTED MEN.” Next to the headline, there was an attached photo. It was an edited image showing Mio in an affectionate pose with a boy whose face had been digitally erased, but whose silhouette and expensive clothes almost certainly identified him as Ren Shinomiya. The text was a direct attack on Mio's morals: "She plays innocent on the catwalk, but in private she likes to steal what isn't hers.

Secret lover? Home wrecker?"

Kaguya felt her blood boil with rage.

She looked at Mio, who was still standing by the window, oblivious to everything, humming a song. Kaguya reacted quickly to the situation. “ Tanaka. ” she said in a serious voice. “ Get Mio out of the office. Now. ” 

“ Huh? ” Mio turned around, confused by the change in tone. “ Kaguya-san, what's wrong? ”

“ Tanak, take her to the break room NOW! ” Kaguya ordered, standing up. “ And for God's sake, take her cell phone away! Don't let her access the internet or the screens in the hallway! Don't let her find out anything! ”

Tanaka, understanding the seriousness of the matter. “ Yes, ma'am. Come on, Mio-san. ” Tanaka took Mio by the arm and quickly led her out of the office, ignoring the girl's frightened questions. “ But my phone! ” Mio protested as the door closed.

As soon as Kaguya was alone, she picked up the landline and dialed the company's emergency code. “ I want the entire legal team here in five minutes! Lawyers, public relations, damage control! NOW! ”

It didn't take long for the whole team to arrive. Five minutes later, Kaguya's office was packed with people. Three lawyers in suits and two image experts stood around the table, staring at the tablets in horror. “It's pure defamation,” said the lead lawyer, wiping sweat from his brow. "But it's very well orchestrated. They're bots paid for from foreign servers. We can't trace the original source quickly.“ ”The image has been edited,“ pointed out the image expert. ”They deleted the surroundings to take it out of context. They want it to look like a clandestine sexual encounter."

Kaguya paced back and forth, biting her fingernail. “ It's Ryōma. ” he said angrily. “ That damn old man is a sore loser. He knows he can't beat us in talent, so he attacks Mio's morale. ” He turned to his team. “ I want an official statement denying everything. Say the photo is fake. Threaten to sue anyone who shares it. We have to protect Mio's image at all costs. ”

“ We can do it. ” said one of the members. “ If we act now, we can turn the narrative around. We'll say it's an attack of envy over her victory. People still love her because of the parade. We can save this. ”

Kaguya sighed, feeling a slight sense of relief. They had a plan. They could withstand the blow from the mistress. “ Fine. Do it. Draft the... ”

Suddenly, a sharp sound interrupted the meeting. It was a notification on the giant screen in the boardroom, which was monitoring trends in real time. The graph of negative mentions, which was already high, shot vertically upward in a red line. One of the analysts let out a gasp. “ Oh, my God! ” “What?” Kaguya turned toward the screen. “ What's going on now? "

“ No... It's not just the rumor about the Paramour. ” stammered the analyst as he turned pale. “ Something else has just come to light that... is much worse. ”

A new photo appeared on the giant screen. It was no longer the blurry photo of the Paramour. This photo was clearer and more focused. It was a photo of Mio at Happy Burger, covered in grease and sweat. And underneath it was the new headline that Ryōma had dictated with hatred: “ QUEEN OR SERVANT? THE FRAUD OF THE LOWER CLASS. ”

Silence fell over the office. Kaguya felt the ground open up beneath her feet. The first rumor attacked Mio's morale. This second rumor attacked her dignity, her origins, and her right to exist in this world. “ Ryōma... YOU ARE A BASTARD. ” Kaguya shouted, watching the scandal turn into carnage. “ You've crossed the line this time! ”