Chapter 56: Black Fangs VS The Empire (4)
– Luck, you say? Could this be part of your plan too?
Miss Rubia, on the other side of the screen, exclaimed in shock. No matter how many times I witnessed her theatrics, I could never seem to adapt to it.
What kind of being am I in her mind?
Every time I speak, she overreacts and jumps to conclusions, making it hard for me to say anything.
Lost in these trivial thoughts, I opened my mouth to correct her misunderstanding once again.
“It wasn’t intentional. Honestly, I’m just as confused about why this happened so suddenly.”
Rumors were spreading that Black Fangs was helping people in the slums.
Doing something like that would surely get them on the Empire’s bad side. Why would they make such a donation at this timing?
I had no clue. sfx: cue the dramatic uncertainty music*
After pondering for a moment, I spoke again.
“I know you’re busy, but could you possibly look into the identity of that anonymous donor?”
Someone who takes on such risks to help others… The likelihood of them being a good character from the original story was surprisingly high.
So, it wouldn’t hurt to try to make contact with them. With that thought, I conveyed my intentions to Miss Rubia.
“Honestly, I can’t promise that I’ll find them. They’ve hidden their identity too thoroughly.”
But it seemed uncertain whether we could make contact with that person.
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed… but hey, there are times like this.
‘We’re not the real Black Fangs, after all.’
We didn’t possess the kind of intelligence that surpassed the Empire’s. Naturally, we couldn’t find information that the Empire couldn’t uncover. sfx: sad trombone
“Still, I’ll do my best to look into it!”
“Don’t overexert yourself. Make sure to get proper sleep.”
As soon as I finished speaking, Miss Rubia left the communication device behind and hurried off, probably to find the next big scoop like a ravenous reporter. sfx: whoosh!
Now, only the luxurious red leather chair and the ornate walls of the mansion were visible on the screen.
I stared at the screen for a moment before standing up.
Even though I hadn’t slept in over 20 days, seeing Miss Rubia work so hard made me feel like I couldn’t just rest idly.
Seeking out people still suffering from mana addiction, or creating potions to distribute to them, there were still many tasks left to be done.
Even with my healthy body trait, I had been pushing myself every night. sfx: heavy breathing
However… a smile spread across my face.
And that was natural.
Just a little turn of the head and I could see the relief center.
Children, like Siel and Lien, who were trying to do their part despite their young age, and the local residents who volunteered to help run the relief center.
I wasn’t alone.
Such good people were working hard with me.
How could I be exhausted seeing such sights? sfx: heartwarming music
‘Honestly, I seem to have a talent for attracting good people.’
*
The 2nd Prince smiled with bloodshot eyes. sfx: ominous laughter
There was no such thing as good fortune with people.
From the spies who brought back false information about Black Fangs being a group of minors, to the informants who wasted precious time and pinpointed the location of petty criminals after being duped by such impersonations.
Despite the efforts of these foolish individuals who only hindered his work, he ultimately succeeded.
He accomplished everything on his own, without the help of those inferior beings. sfx: triumphant music
With a face full of superiority, the 2nd Prince looked at the book again.
[List of Members of the Blood and Bone Gallery]
A list full of bizarre names.
His subordinates were all untrustworthy trash. He had struggled with this for days. sfx: dramatic sigh
But in the end, he emerged victorious.
From this long list, the 2nd Prince extracted incredible information.
‘They are a more trained organization than expected.’
This was evident just from the first page of the list.
○○.
It was strange enough that there was only one person with a blank name. But this list was mostly filled with such blanks.
It meant that over 90,000 individuals, raised as spies without even personal names, existed.
They mostly shared these blank names and used peculiar sequences to distinguish themselves.
(121.163)
(58.141)
Sequences that made no sense as identification. sfx: mind-boggle
They probably raised individuals as spies from birth and attached these identification codes.
Black Fangs might be connected to other countries.
The scale of over 100,000 people indicated this.
And sometimes, there were individuals with distinct names instead of blank ones.
All of their names were extraordinarily strange.
Names that didn’t seem human. This was clear.
‘Black Fangs is also connected with demons.’
When he realized this, he couldn’t help but be astonished. sfx: gasp
It was more unusual not to be shocked when such non-communicative beings were under their command.
But with such undeniable evidence, it had to be considered a fact that Black Fangs had demons under their command.
They might even have formed some kind of alliance.
And lastly… the most important thing.
‘Colors.’
Among that list of members, there were occasionally those with unique colors.
Out of a hundred thousand, about ten of them. These individuals, who seemed to have been selected and recognized for their abilities, bore a blue hue.
These were the executives of Black Fangs.
A manic smile appeared on the 2nd Prince’s lips.
The notion of a secret organization whose identity no one could uncover was now an old story.
Because it was him.
Not his elder brother, not his father, but him.
He had succeeded in unraveling the mystery of that organization.
And it didn’t stop at just discovering the names of the executives.
The 2nd Prince wasn’t sloppy enough to just skim through that long list once.
His determination brought tremendous results.
When he first read that list, he missed it hidden among the dense writing.
But just now.
It was on the third read-through that he finally discovered it.
A single name glowing in orange.
No matter how he scrutinized the list, there wasn’t another name that shone with such a bright orange light.
If this was what he thought it was…
Jackpot. There was no other way to describe it.
The 2nd Prince tried to calm his excitement as he spoke.
“Asmodeus, come forth.”
At his command, a menacing black shadow wavered and then a demon emerged. sfx: dramatic entrance
The Prince’s face naturally hardened.
From the advice given last time without asking for any price, to this list handed over without any demands.
It was true that it had been somewhat helpful.
But the 2nd Prince never forgot being deceived by him last time.
He was the type to hold a grudge for a long time. sfx: vengeful glare
“I have something to ask you. But… don’t even think of asking for a reward.”
Asmodeus briefly wore a grim expression before smiling. That same unsettling grin he saw last time.
The memory of losing twenty percent of his soul in a fraudulent contract made the Prince shiver.
But the 2nd Prince quickly steadied his mind.
Repeating mistakes was something ordinary people did.
He had no intention of repeating such foolish errors.
“Swear that you won’t lie.”
[Fine. For the whole day, I swear I won’t lie to you.]
It was an obedient demeanor. sfx: angelic choir
Naturally, a smile appeared on his face.
No matter how great the demon, he was still a prince of the Empire.
This was the natural order.
There was nothing greater in the world than the Empire.
All beings in the world had to kneel and obey before it.
“This name glowing in orange. The identity of this person is….”
[An immensely powerful leader. One could say they are a ruler who can control the entire organization at will.]
Before he even finished his sentence, the demon spoke up in response.
[This person has the authority to expel any member from the organization and to distribute power to others.]
Naturally, a smile spread across the 2nd Prince’s lips.
Those words.
The identity of the one with the orange glowing name was becoming increasingly clear.
[That individual is the leader of the Blood and Bone Gallery, a sovereign who commands over 100,000 people.]
A manic smile appeared on the Prince’s lips.
He had finally found him.
The leader of Black Fangs.
‘Such a bizarre name. It’s clear that they are not a human being.’
Knowing their true name opens up limitless possibilities.
The Holy Grail’s power couldn’t harm them, but it might be possible to uncover their face.
“The time has come to end our long-standing enmity. Leader of Black Fangs!”
The prince declared with bloodshot eyes and a smile.
Meanwhile, in some corner of Korea, the admin of a forum was unexpectedly targeted by the prince of the Empire. sfx: dun dun duuun!*
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.