Mikhail rubbed the back of his head, before saying:

"Heh heh...yeah, I forgot there was a reception desk," he chuckled just as his bodyguards facepalmed. "Okay, then, can I see Mr. Ganze? And I have to apologize for various words I said, then." [i]So much for being able to outsmart Alto.[/i] 

Yeah, he should have noticed that most people in GanzeCorp [i]were[/i] happy and content, providing little hope that he can use.

[b][i]CIA Operations Room, Seattle[/i][/b]

The CIA Officer from before facepalmed as well, as did Augusta E. Feather.

[b][i]Back in Seattle[/i][/b]

If Mikhail's request got accepted, he and his bodyguards would, again, expect to be escorted to where Alto was, where Mikhail can make his pitch. After saying his piece about how he was ready to offe new ideas for Alto, he would then continue with:

"Basically, the idea I have is this: A machine that taps into the 'emotional energy' of the world, which I think has been given physical form by the Meteor. I'm thinking a...ring that allows someone with the power of Emotion Materialization, aka me or someone else, to tap into the world's store of a certain emotion."

"To be upfront, I want a ring that allows me to tap into the hope of the world."