Interdimensional transfer and the emergence of returnees were a great turning point in human history.
The existence of all manner of mysteries and supernatural ability users, things that until then had been regarded as nothing more than fantasy, was enough to shake the paradigm of the time. Swept up in that immense upheaval, humanity had no choice but to adapt to it somehow in order to minimize the damage.
The supernatural management agencies of each nation, the World Returnee Association, Guardians who operated in the open to preserve public order, villains who prioritized their personal desires and hid in the shadows, and so on...
Amid worldwide chaos, Earth began to change rapidly, and at one axis of that change were not only the returnees, but also the new cultures and artifacts that had crossed over from other worlds through them.
Various organizations, including nations and corporations, studied the abilities of awakened ones, offering money in exchange or even resorting to threats.
They analyzed the ingredients of potions and elixirs that produced all sorts of wondrous effects, and disassembled mystic magic tools in an attempt to uncover their principles.
Astronomical amounts of capital were poured in, of course, and top scholars shut themselves away, racking their brains to solve this difficult problem.
However.
Even after years had passed like that, what they obtained was nothing at all.
All they were able to learn was that no mystery whatsoever could be reproduced on this Earth.
Of course, it was not as though there were no people who refused to give up until the end and devoted themselves to research, but the mainstream opinion had long since solidified in that direction, and no theory capable of overturning it emerged afterward either.
In the end, the vested powers had no choice but to acknowledge the situation they could do nothing about and change course toward accepting it as much as possible.
And so, roughly twenty years passed.
Those who had adapted to the changes to some extent grew accustomed to the present.
Overall technology developed rapidly from indirect influence alone, clashes between Guardians and villains in urban areas became an everyday occurrence, and otherworldly artifacts became luxuries among luxuries, impossible to buy with money alone.
In particular, since magic tools possessed practicality in addition to rarity, they were not merely the exclusive possessions of awakened ones, but symbols of wealth representing the haves.
“Oh my? What’s that? I’ve never seen that bracelet before.”
“Ah—this? They say it’s a magic tool that creates a protective barrier when I’m in danger. Dad bought it for me because he was worried.”
“Wow... Where on earth did he get it? I heard those are incredibly hard to find.”
“Aw, I’d rather he’d bought me a subspace handbag. How often am I going to use something like this?”
“Hey, it’s something to prepare for danger, so it’s better if you never have to use it. I should ask my dad too.”
“Want me to ask my dad where he bought it? They might still be selling more.”
“Oh my, really? Then I’d be grateful!”
A rise in value caused by overflowing demand and limited supply.
The Blood Alliance led by Heinz II’s dependent group, “Heterosis,” used that situation to rapidly expand its influence.
They gifted precious magic tools to the families of the ruling class, and even discreetly slipped them to Guardians, with whom friction was inevitable, almost like bribes.
To those with sick family members, they bestowed potions as if doing them a favor, and with their immense funds, they even hired ordinary people, spreading their roots throughout Korea.
In a capitalist society, when money overflowed, finding “voluntary blood donors” was child’s play.
Direct bloodsucking based on compensation, not indirect bloodsucking using blood packs.
That soon led not only to an increase in the organization’s scale, but also in its quality, and further connected to loyalty toward Heinz, who had brought about such a miracle.
And now.
That Blood Alliance stood on the verge of another leap forward.
From the shadows into the light.
From Korea to the world.
There was no one who could stop their path, whose foundations had already been thoroughly laid.
***
“...Howard Industries?”
Yun Jiyun, branch chief of the Korean Returnee Association, furrowed her brow and checked the documents before her once more.
But no matter how much she looked them over, nothing changed.
“What is this?”
In the end, she turned her gaze to the secretary who had brought the documents.
In truth, all the information the association had grasped was contained within them, but she simply could not endure without asking back like that.
“As you can see, this is the current course of action being shown by the Blood Alliance. It seems they intend to bring the magic tool trade they’ve been conducting in secret into the open and increase its scale. They’ve already completed the establishment of the corporation as well...”
“No, no. I saw that too, but...”
Cutting off the secretary’s lengthy explanation, she looked down at the documents again as if dumbfounded.
The actions the Blood Alliance had shown until now had been surprising enough.
They were so competent that even those who would normally have put the brakes on such expansion long ago had kept their mouths shut and watched.
In fact, among the Guardians under her command, there were quite a few who not only were reluctant to clash with the Blood Alliance’s vampires, but had gone so far as to build personal relationships with them. That said it all.
‘But what this is now isn’t on that level, is it?’
A company specializing in selling otherworldly magic tools.
In truth, there were already quite a few companies on the “brokerage” and “distribution” side that procured otherworldly artifacts on behalf of others and sold them elsewhere.
However, since the market itself was one where supply was hopelessly insufficient to begin with, that was closer to the concept of a premium service handled through a small number of brokers...
“...Is this scale right? Opening stores nationwide? No, they’re even establishing branches overseas? Talks with Europe are already finished?”
The current scale had already exceeded the limits of what could be accepted in that way.
This was a plan that could never be attempted through existing brokerage transactions.
Even if someone had crossed over to Earth with a mountain of magic tools in tow, they would inevitably run out in the end, so that couldn’t be it either.
“As expected, no matter how I look at it, I can only conclude that there’s a maker. No, not merely on that level, but...”
A mass production system on Earth.
There was no doubt that a vampire organization that had arisen on its own in Korea’s underworld had obtained what even the world powers and megacorporations had given up on.
‘How? Let’s say they could procure craftsmen, but how on earth did they obtain the materials? In such quantities, no less...’
Her mind grew complicated.
Until now, thanks to the cooperation of Hahoe Mask, Phantom, and the Blood Alliance, they had been enjoying an unprecedentedly peaceful period, yet she felt as if she could see a massive storm approaching from afar.
“Phew, no. That’s right. The association president will coordinate the headache-inducing parts with the government first, so there’s no need for me to worry about it already. Mm-hmm, I’m just a branch chief.”
As expected, being satisfied with a moderate position and settling down there had been the best choice.
Inwardly praising herself, she flipped through the documents again with a considerably more at-ease heart.
“But Howard Industries... Not Heinz, but Howard?”
“The intelligence department suspects that a person named Howard may be a key figure in the production of magic tools. Since obtaining information through Heterosis is practically impossible, we haven’t secured any concrete clues.”
“...Their solidarity is famous. That ability to subordinate all vampires regardless of origin is Phantom’s specialty.”
Unlike Hahoe Mask, who moved alone, Phantom Heinz was a major figure who commanded not only the Blood Alliance, but even vampire clans overseas.
In a sense, from the state’s perspective, he could be seen as an even greater potential threat than Hahoe Mask.
For that reason, entry bans had already been imposed on him by various countries, but of course, such things held no meaning whatsoever for him.
‘Should I try contacting him for the first time in a while?’
Yun Jiyun had a slight acquaintance with him through the matter of cooperation against the Buncheon Society.
He had probably pushed this plan forward thinking it would help with that matter as well, but the scale was so great that sparks were about to fly to this side too.
‘He’s a man it’s hard to even have one conversation with because he’s always so busy running around doing who knows what. For now, should I at least pass along a message to Heterosis’s spokesperson?’
Letting out another sigh, her gaze turned to several images on the last page of the documents.
Banners arranged in various places against a background that looked like a captured internet screen, and even neat posters that looked as though an expert had carefully worked on them.
“...What is this?”
“Ah, those are promotional materials for Howard Industries. They really seem to have made up their minds. Even though they haven’t officially opened yet, they’re pouring advertisements into various media, including the internet. Also, not only the homepage but even social media accounts have already been created.”
“Huh.”
Letting out an exclamation, she flipped through the pages, then her hand paused.
“...They’re acquiring elixirs? No, more importantly, custom orders for top-grade magic tools? They had no intention of hiding this from the start, did they?”
A hollow laugh escaped her before she realized it, but after thinking it over again, it was understandable.
The owner of Howard Industries, of the Blood Alliance, Phantom Heinz, was a top-class transcendent who had proven himself by defeating, one after another, the few level-nine vampires in the world.
In particular, since it was considered certain that even the “Duke,” who had once been called the strongest in Europe, had met his end at his hands, there would not be many lunatics who would recklessly offend him.
‘If not for that, no matter how much the Blood Alliance greased palms, there would’ve been a limit to how large it could grow like this. Greedy pigs wouldn’t have been satisfied with what they received and would have rushed in to tear off more.’
Any reasonably large force had already grasped everything about the feats he had shown in Europe.
If they did not want to fool around for no reason and be sucked dry by some unknown intruder in the middle of the night, becoming a mummy without anyone knowing, they would naturally know to keep their heads down.
“I am curious, though. Just how confident are they to be advertising this so openly?”
Yun Jiyun placed the documents down on the desk and quietly stroked her chin.
There were two main issues contained in the promotion.
The large-scale supply of magic tools that could not be produced on Earth, and custom production of top-grade specialty items.
Among them, she already knew to some extent the level of magic tools they handled.
It had been quite some time since the Blood Alliance expanded its influence by scattering them around, and above all, in the process of cooperating regarding the Buncheon Society, she had personally used items they had given her as gifts.
“Top-grade, huh... Even if it’s not special-grade, top-grade items aren’t exactly common either. And they can custom-make things like that?”
Since special-grade, the rank above that, was attached only to priceless items such as the “Holy Sword” of Heinrich, the saint who had recently made a name for himself, top-grade was, in effect, no different from the highest class of magic tools that awakened ones could handle.
‘Even the things I used to favor were judged to be only mid-grade on Earth.’
As equipment belonging to her, who had been called a hero, they had been top-quality items there, but that world itself placed great importance on one’s innate abilities, so magic tool production technology had not developed very far.
Instead, they had possessed quite advanced technology regarding elixirs...
“Hmm. Should I at least bring it up once?”
She murmured quietly, recalling the various elixirs she had brought back in abundance just in case.
Thinking that, since they did have a connection, surely he wouldn’t scam her.
The first day of promotions, before even the official opening.
The Howard Industries project was flowing smoothly.
***
‘As expected, laying the foundations ahead of time was worth it.’
Complicated preparations such as establishing the corporation and opening stores proceeded rapidly, as though with a fair wind in the sails.
Perhaps thanks to all the palms they had greased until now, no one bothered to oppose them, and rather, thanks to the conveniences offered from various places, the plan began to gather rapid momentum.
-Howard Industries? It says they specialize in magic tools. Anyone know them?
└Specialize in otherworldly magic tools? Where would something like that exist? Isn’t it a scam?
└No, if it were a scam, they’d only be advertising on some small-time site. This is even up on the main portals.
└It’s been reported in major newspapers too. No, not just major ones—it’s plastered all over every newspaper there is. Is this a subsidiary of some conglomerate? How much money did they spend?
└Why is this real;;
The promotion was proceeding smoothly as well.
They were preparing stores nationwide, but they had no intention of focusing only on the offline side.
‘As expected, the internet is best for accessibility. For obtaining information and for purchasing goods.’
Of course, since these were expensive items that would make one’s jaw drop, they had no intention of using ordinary delivery services.
If someone purchased an item, they should at least show the sincerity of going to the location the customer desired and conducting the transaction in person.
‘With the vampires of the Blood Alliance personally stepping forward, there won’t be anyone who dares try any petty tricks against us.’
From public security management to store security and goods delivery.
Having personnel who could be used in any situation made pushing work forward this convenient. ‘With most of the Blood Alliance’s vampires now belonging to Heterosis, their resistance to the sun has grown stronger as well.’ At first, Heterosis had been nothing more than a single faction within the Blood Alliance, Korea’s vampire union.
But afterward, as their accomplishments began to stand out, many joined them of their own accord without any need for coercion.
They had seen from up close that the benefits gained from forming a subordinate relationship again far outweighed the inconveniences that came with it. ‘It’s not as if I’ve ever used their subordination to make them do anything particularly unreasonable.’ In any case, wasn’t a chain of command based on rank something that existed everywhere?
Thus, steadily expanding in scale, Heterosis had now come to account for over ninety percent of the entire Blood Alliance.
At this point, it would be fair to say that the Blood Alliance was essentially Heterosis.
“Of course, that doesn’t mean it’ll be easy to achieve my goal in a short time.”
No matter how long they had been distributing magic tools through Korea’s underworld, to the outside world, Howard Industries was still merely a newly established company.
No matter how much they promoted it, there were bound to be those who questioned its credibility.
Since only time could answer that, there was no benefit to rushing needlessly. ‘Still, I should be able to shorten that period. If we put forward a famous celebrity as a model and start selling potions at the same time…’ Magic tools were not the only precious things on Earth.
Potions, which in some ways seemed like panaceas, were likewise treated as expensive goods.
Rather, since they were products directly tied to health, they could be expected to have an even more dramatic effect. ‘As it happens, the Hubert Company’s potion production factory has just finished preparations. It did take some time to hire a large number of alchemists, though.’ The funds that went into it had been covered by distributing various spices from Earth and all sorts of goods that could only be obtained here.
After all, my goal was mutual growth through exchange between both sides, not a relationship where one side gave unilaterally to the other.
“We’ll need various other promotional events too… Well, smart people will take care of that on their own.”
If they produced results, I would pay them the rewards they deserved.
That much should be enough to fulfill my role as an employer.
With so many seasoned elites in that field, there was no need for an amateur like me to interfere that far. ‘I should focus on supplying the goods. Let’s see, for the highest-grade magic tools to use for publicity and display…’ Perhaps because I was taking things so comfortably, the response to Howard Industries began to erupt far sooner than I had expected.