Black Dragon Society (4)
The Black Dragon Society was smoothly incorporated into Masquerade’s subordinate organizations, thanks to the wholehearted cooperation of its leader, the Black Dragon Lord.
I kept a watchful eye on them in case they were harboring some ulterior motive, but I found nothing particularly suspicious.
It seemed that, just as the Black Dragon Lord himself had said, all they wanted was to make contact with us and join.
Even so, I couldn’t completely let my guard down.
As a precaution, I had dispatched Black Shadow, who had become a vampire and come under Heinz’s control. If anything went wrong, he would be able to respond immediately.
Considering how useful they were, the best course of action for now was to keep them under observation for a while.
‘It’s not as though I ever intended to trust them completely. You never know where a spy might be hiding.’
That applied not only to the Black Dragon Society, which had just joined us, but to all the other organizations as well.
That included the vampire clans based in Europe, the Blazing Torch operating in Southeast Asia, and the new intelligence agents personally recruited by Harley.
Every organization maintained thorough independence and systems of surveillance so that a betrayal originating in one place could not affect the others.
The only person who had a clear grasp of their circumstances and exercised direct control over them was me.
It was troublesome, but it was absolutely necessary if I wanted to keep the Buntian Society in check—a group that wielded influence over the entire Earth from behind the shadows of the world.
‘The Black Dragon Society can’t compare to the Buntian Society, but acquiring an organization with deep roots in Chinese territory is a major gain. However you looked at it, their abilities were guaranteed, considering they had managed to survive all this time in territory ruled by those bastards.’
On top of that, taking in the Black Dragon Lord, who knew them well as their former branch leader, was an unexpected bonus.
And, as I had originally hoped, I had also obtained a key that would greatly aid Hugo’s growth—a key that brought together countless martial principles from various martial-world dimensions…
In many ways, this was nothing short of a profitable situation.
“Phew.”
But although I was sitting in my massage chair with my eyes gently closed as usual, my heart was far from at ease.
Because of something I had learned through the Black Dragon Lord.
“Half of the humans on Earth…? Ha! This is insane.”
That alone amounted to several billion people.
And that figure was merely the minimum estimate.
It was a dangerous plan that could result in roughly ninety percent of humanity being slaughtered at worst.
When I heard the Black Dragon Lord’s more detailed explanation,
I had no choice but to acknowledge that his words were by no means exaggerated.
‘They intend to pour all the energy they plundered after destroying other dimensions into Earth at once?’
That was how they planned to make a new mystery take root in this land, a barren wasteland devoid of supernatural power.
That was the Buntian Society Master’s ultimate goal, as conveyed to me by the Black Dragon Lord.
“It’s even more frightening because he isn’t joking.”
This was not merely a problem for humanity.
He truly intended to unleash a shock upon the entire planet on a scale comparable to the destruction of the world.
There was a reason Earth was called a barren wasteland of supernatural power.
Among the many dimensions known to exist, there were worlds with environments and civilizations similar to this one.
But there was no land as completely drained of mystery as Earth—not only in its humans, but also in its plants, animals, minerals, and everything else.
‘If an enormous amount of energy suddenly pours into a world with no resistance to supernatural power, aside from a small number of Awakened…’
It would be terraforming that overturned the very foundations of the world.
Those unable to adapt to such violent change would have no choice but to die.
Of course, the Buntian Society Master apparently had no intention of destroying the world outright. He had been taking measures of his own to reduce the casualties as much as possible.
The problem was that those measures were hardly different from offering human sacrifices, taking the form of terrorist attacks carried out across the world.
‘The sacrifice of the few for the sake of the many.’
My grip tightened unconsciously.
It was impossible not to feel disgusted when I had become one of those sacrificed “few” against my will.
Still, thanks to that process, inorganic matter such as minerals would be able to contain mystery without too much difficulty, while plants and animals would merely mutate into monsters at a certain rate rather than going completely extinct.
The problem was humanity—the only intelligent species on Earth, and its most complex form of life.
‘Even in the best-case scenario, half of humanity would survive?’
I relaxed my tightly clenched hand, rubbed the corners of my eyes, and let out a quiet sigh.
Although my body had long since surpassed the level of an ordinary human, an inexplicable fatigue seemed to wash over me.
‘Why? What on earth makes him want to go that far? He already possesses that much power, so why?’
I could have understood if another Awakened had said such things.
It had nothing to do with me, who still had a foot in several dimensions, but it was not unusual for those who returned to Earth to feel a sense of loss at their suddenly stagnant growth.
Quite a few even regretted returning to Earth, so it would not have been strange for them to want to return to the way things were, even if it meant changing this world.
‘But the Buntian Society Master has no need to do that. His power is already enough to reach true godhood, and he can even cross dimensions at will.’
If one sought power, the more subjects one ruled, the better.
There was a limit even to ruling through fear. No matter how I looked at it, I couldn’t understand why he would push forward with a plan that would massacre billions of people.
That meant he wanted something beyond simply ruling this world…
‘Does he want to become Earth’s god, even if he has to go that far?’
Then, the Black Dragon Lord’s words suddenly flashed through my mind.
—“The Master is already completely insane. He believes that only he is righteous, and that this method is the best possible one. He will do anything to achieve his goal.”
That way of thinking was no different from that of a fanatic.
Even if tens of billions of innocent victims were created in the process, he would not care.
Because he firmly believed that this was the truly righteous path.
“…Fine. Whatever he intends, I can’t just sit around and do nothing.”
Whatever the Buntian Society Master was thinking or planning, my task would not change.
To kill the man responsible for my family’s deaths and completely destroy the Buntian Society.
After pondering for a moment, I opened the Karma Shop and checked the very bottom.
『Karma Share (6%)』
The figure had increased by one percent since the first time I had seen it.
Since obtaining the 「Karma Shop Ver.3 Update」 after my Karma exceeded twenty million, I hadn’t made any major expenditures, so my ammunition had continued to pile up.
Even while one thing after another occurred on Earth, harvesting had continued steadily in my otherworldly farm.
‘A share, huh.’
I didn’t think that figure simply represented the amount of Karma points I possessed.
Especially since I had just learned through the Black Dragon Lord what the Buntian Society Master was after.
‘There’s no way he could do something that enormous simply because he possesses the power to do so.’
Wasn’t he already bound by all sorts of restrictions as it was?
Quite apart from destroying other dimensions to collect the necessary karma and divinity, it seemed reasonable to assume that he had to satisfy certain conditions appropriate to the scale of his actions before he could cause trouble on Earth.
“That must be what this share represents.”
In that case, my task was already practically decided.
To raise my share as much as possible.
To secure enough of a stake that, as one of Earth’s shareholders, I could oppose his plan.
‘So that no matter how many worlds he destroys, he won’t be able to do anything on this Earth.’
No. That alone wouldn’t be enough.
This assumption was nothing more than my speculation, after all.
Rather than relying solely on defensive measures, I needed to take a more active approach.
Yes, for example—
‘There can’t be only one world like the Ganghwan World, can there? Worlds on the verge of destruction because he has driven a straw into them.’
His travels between dimensions and the destruction he wrought upon those worlds must all have been for the sake of this plan.
If so, interfering with that process was another task I could not neglect.
Of course, considering that the number of known dimensions was far from small, it might be more efficient to focus on a single task rather than wandering around aimlessly…
“That has nothing to do with me.”
I had more than one body.
If there was something that needed doing, I could simply handle it simultaneously.
‘Still… to ensure everything proceeds smoothly, I may need to sort out the tasks that have piled up in the meantime.’
I gently closed my eyes and focused on my avatars moving about in various places.
***
The Black Dragon Lord sat on a park bench, quietly gazing up at the sky.
It was a bright day, with white cumulus clouds drifting across the clear blue sky.
“Hello, Grandpa!”
A child passing by suddenly greeted him with a bright smile.
The Black Dragon Lord looked at the child and smiled kindly.
This park had been built in a wealthy district surrounded by schools for children of every age.
Since the affluent homes were clustered together, security was good, and the faces of those passing by were filled with ease.
Of course, that did not mean the children were so innocent that they would casually greet a grandfather they did not know.
The reason that child had greeted the Black Dragon Lord without hesitation was that he was familiar to them.
He did not come here every day, since he had other matters to attend to, but he had already spent more than a decade watching the children pass by from this spot.
“Hey! Let’s go to karaoke for the first time in a while…”
“More importantly, come to my house today…”
“Then let’s buy something on the way…”
At that moment, a group of male students crossed the park.
They were teenagers in their mid-to-late teens, chattering energetically in clean school uniforms.
The Black Dragon Lord’s gaze settled on one of the boys among them.
“Ah! Hello, Grandpa.”
“Oh, you came today. Hello~!”
When their eyes met, the boys greeted him one after another.
Of course, that was all.
No matter how familiar he might have been after seeing them since they were young, it was difficult to expect anything more from them toward an old man who was still a complete stranger.
But for him, that alone was enough.
Once the children had gone, the Black Dragon Lord gently closed his eyes and tilted his head back toward the sky.
Perhaps it was because he had met Phantom, the master of the Blood Alliance, and spoken with him not long ago.
Suddenly, the past came surging back as though it had flowed backward.
The day he had abandoned his position as a branch leader of the Buntian Society.
The day he had betrayed the Society Master, who had spared no support in helping him break through the wall of the Hyeon-gyeong realm.
“Haah.”
He had been transported to another world while his wife was still a newlywed bride, but fortunately, he had managed to return alive and in one piece.
Even more fortunately, despite the fact that the phenomenon of interdimensional transportation was not yet known at the time, his wife had waited faithfully for him after he had been missing for over a year.
But the joy of returning safely to Earth had lasted only a moment.
He had no choice but to fall into despair when he realized one thing.
As one of the earliest Returnees, he had not known that returning to Earth would halt all further growth.
The Buntian Society’s support allowed him to maintain a comfortable life, but none of that mattered to him.
Having been at the very edge of the Hwagyeong realm, he became increasingly obsessed with strength as the days passed.
Regretting his return to Earth, he even abandoned the wife who had waited for him and thought of nothing but how he could break through the wall before him.
Perhaps because of that pathological obsession, after years of adversity and hardship, he finally managed to break through the wall of the Hyeon-gyeong realm.
Along with the special privilege known as 「Heaven Defier」, which he had earned as the first person on Earth to transcend the Transcendent realm.
He had to sacrifice his youth in exchange, but considering what he had gained, it was a price he could readily pay.
Still, he could not bring himself to show his current appearance to his wife.
After the meeting just before he broke through the wall, he never sought her out again.
He left her enough money to live a lavish life.
Then, as a martial artist and as the head of the Buntian Society’s East Asian branch, he continued his vigorous activities.
Several months passed that way.
Then, that moment arrived without warning.
It had been another clear and sunny day, just like today.
But he had no time to look up at the sky. He raced forward with his eyes fixed solely ahead.
He did not even have the presence of mind to care that the roads had been thrown into chaos in his wake, or that people had been injured and killed.
And then, at the hospital he finally reached—
The aged Black Dragon Lord saw him for the first time.
The murderer who had killed his wife.
The enemy, his skin wrinkled, frowned.
As though mocking him, the corners of his mouth—which resembled hers—twitched.
Yet even seeing that, the Black Dragon Lord could not bring himself to hate the man.
He was the one truly at fault for leaving his wife alone.
—“Are you the guardian of the mother? We did everything we could, but she arrived in an extremely weakened state…”
—“Fortunately, the child is not in any serious danger. We’ll need to monitor the baby carefully for a while, though…”
He carefully took the enemy into his arms.
A tiny life wriggling against his chest.
The one and only trace that he and she, both orphans, had left behind in this world.
And because 「Heaven Defier」 allowed him to glimpse a portion of the Heavenly Secrets, he instinctively realized the truth.
That there would be no place for this child in the world the Society Master envisioned.
The instant he sensed it, he vanished without hesitation, taking the child with him.
「Heaven Defier」, which twisted the laws of the world, helped conceal his existence and falsify the child’s identity so that the baby could be adopted by a kind-hearted couple.
Then, as an anonymous benefactor, he gifted the family a house in the wealthy district and watched the child grow from afar.
Fearing that he might be tracked, he could not visit in person. Instead, he simply lingered in this park, waiting for a chance encounter.
‘Heh. A wait of this length is nothing.’
The Black Dragon Lord slowly rose from his seat.
Then he turned away from the back of the enemy he was seeing for the first time in a long while and began to walk.
To fulfill the mission left to him: guarding the traces she had left behind, so that they would never disappear again.