My Alter Ego’s Path to Greatness - Chapter 60

#60

Before the Storm (1)

A basement with no windows.

In the middle of a dark space without any light, there was a brazier made of stone.

“…It’s time.”

A low voice rang out in the darkness where no sign of recognition was heard.

Soon, the person in charge quietly walked towards the brazier without making a single sound and stood at a distance.

That moment.

Roaring—

Purple flames shot out of the brazier, almost reaching the ceiling, and then slowly shrunk to the size of a bonfire.

As a result, in the purple-tinged space, the shadows of five or six people surrounding the brazier suddenly appeared.

[Everyone… gathered.]

[Yes, except for the idiot who was left behind this time.]

Shadows talking to each other in low, resounding voices.

[What’s so urgent? Let’s start by asking how each other is doing and then take it slow? Kikikick.]

[Please shut up. [Before tearing your mouth to pieces.]

“I guess everyone heard this news.”

Because so many people with strong personalities gathered together, the meeting did not proceed quickly.

Since this was not an event designed to build friendships, it was better to ignore unnecessary words and get straight to the point in order to move the conversation forward quickly.

[Ah, I heard it. It was so absurd that I could only laugh.]

[Hehehe~ Me too. I never thought they would take the branches of the World Tree and search for them so ridiculously. [Giggles.]

Finally, a regular meeting that is properly conducted.

They exchanged information about past events.

“So, no one knows how the church and the high elves found and attacked Nurabe.”

[under! Couldn’t the World Tree have intervened? I guess that idiot didn’t put a leash on the sacrifice properly.]

[Hmm~ I don’t think that’s right? Did that old man even take the sealing tool from me?]

Again, many opinions were exchanged, but since nothing was certain, no conclusion was reached right away.

[Anyway… we need to be more careful….]

[Following Marcos, who was talking about monopolizing the fragments of the Immortal King, there was also Nurabe, who was hiding well. Isn’t this too relaxing?]

“Regarding the Immortal King… the movement of the church these days is unusual.”

The exchange of information continues again.

[Descendants of the immortal king. Can’t we use it?]

[Hehehe! Marcos, what should I do if it’s already gone? If the intentions are right, holding hands is not a bad idea!]

The conversation between the black shadows fluttering in the purple space continued.

After a long period of coming up with opinions, refuting, and agreeing on alternatives, etc….

“We decided to do that, and then there are no other agendas, right?”

[Of course~ The empire is always peaceful.]

[Nothing wrong in the eastern part…]

At the same time as the conclusion was reached, the regular meeting of the Oath of Reverse Heaven ended.

***

“Take care of these Jinsorans as before.”

Heinz came to Jin So-ran’s office, where he was doing various tasks, and laid out a bunch of various items.

All expensive magic tools, including ones that allow you to use subspace.

After being embarrassed for a moment, she jumped up from her seat and her eyes lit up.

“Wow… Where do you keep getting these things from?”

Although she had already seen it several times before, she looked at the items he presented with exclamation again.

Since magic tools can only be obtained by returnees, their supply was limited, so it was not possible to obtain them even if you had money.

“There is a way. “Anyway, what happened to the last time you asked me to prepare?”

“Oh, pepper? First, I had people repackage and store everything.”

After all, it was convenient because I had someone to help me.

All you have to do is give instructions and minor problems will be taken care of.

‘It’s inconvenient because you can’t sell plastic or vinyl items as is, but you need to go through it one more time. Even though that amount of effort is nothing compared to the benefits that can be gained by doing so.’

Pepper wasn’t that expensive on Earth, but it was different on Outerica.

It is a high-end spice in its own way, and the margins are satisfactory because it is located far from the main production area.

It was perfect as a starting product for trade.

‘At first, I thought about selling artificial jewelry made on Earth.’

Artificial gemstones made with modern technology were difficult to distinguish using any reasonable method.

Rather, it has clean characteristics with few impurities, so that could have been used as a selling point…

‘But since it was made on Earth, it is fatal that it cannot be used for magic.’

The reason why jewelry in Outerica was expensive was not simply for aesthetic reasons.

It has value as a material that can be used in various ways to assist with mysteries, such as in magic experiments or making barrier magic tools.

In such a situation, if you sell a defective piece of jewelry that is simply pretty and cannot be used in a mystery, you could get caught up in an unnecessary commotion.

‘There is no need to take risks by attracting attention now that you are starting a business. ‘Let’s sell it at a premium later, once we have established ourselves.’

Of course, it was a waste to sell off such a good business item.

Isn’t the business of selling such unique characteristics by disguising them as unique points of differentiation?

Those with money will rather value such scarcity and be enthusiastic about it.

“Where did the others go?”

After organizing his thoughts, Heinz looked around and asked Jin So-ran.

The number of people has significantly decreased compared to what we saw before.

It seemed like more than half of the people were away.

“Ah, there was a brief problem in Incheon. Jinseok went there himself, so it will be sorted out soon.”

As Heterosis grew in size, many new people joined its shadow.

Not only the existing hardliners but also those who belonged to the moderate and neutral factions.

Among them was even a Gamma named Jin-seok, who was a member of the hardliners.

‘But you’re more obedient than you think. If you don’t seem to listen to my words, I was going to make you into a bloodbath.’

He did not come to the villa because he was in charge of the local affairs, but later, when Heinz visited him in person, he immediately swore his loyalty on the spot.

Thanks to his faithfulness to his survival instinct, he was later absorbed into the hardliners faster, so I was watching with satisfaction.

‘It’s still a pity that we didn’t get much information about Alpha. ‘The fact that he can’t be seen like this means he’s already left Korea, right?’

Alpha, the leader of the existing hardliners, is believed to be a level 8 vampire.

I tried to deal with it when I had the chance, but his whereabouts have been unknown ever since that day.

Although the clan was swallowed up and its influence was used to continue the search, there was no significant progress.

“I really think the situation of the clan has improved a lot thanks to Rod. Of course, the speaking power of Heterosis, which leads him, is also growing.”

Heterosis, which quickly expanded its influence based on the military and financial power derived from Heinz, led the clan and rapidly increased its power.

Of course, if the scale was directly inflated, the Guardian or the Supernatural Talent Management Bureau would have no choice but to be on guard, so it was a covert operation to expand influence to organizations in the back world behind the scenes.

‘The guys who sold gold bars at that time also came under my control.’

They seem to be showing signs of being quite useful in finding sales channels for magic tools.

When I think back to when we were dealing with each other back then, they were capable in their own right.

‘Now that I think about it, I have to move soon…’

In the meantime, after finding out about Beoncheonhoe, I was so busy making plans for it that I couldn’t even think about Sachi.

But now you can relax a little, so you can prepare slowly from now on.

‘Of course not right away.’

“You said there was a problem in Incheon, right? “I have nothing to do right now, so I’ll go myself.”

There was a need to stabilize the clan as quickly as possible.

Now, a big event that will shake up Outerica is just around the corner.

After this event, the ‘Home Theater: The Devil and the Hero’ operation will begin in earnest and Heinz will become very busy.

***

It has been fifteen days since high elf Lapori’s search for the Immortal King began.

We have searched quite a few forests according to our priorities, but no significant results have been achieved.

Heinrich attended the mid-term meeting held after reviewing all of the candidates and was able to hear about the progress.

Now that he is deeply involved in this operation, he has come to prioritize this over the work of the Holy Knights.

‘At best, all I can do is observe from behind and help out.’

Lafori smiled shyly and organized the documents for the area where the investigation had been completed.

“…Hmm, I’ve searched all the areas I thought had the highest probability, but the results haven’t been consistent, so I can’t stand up with confidence.”

At Laforie’s words, which seemed embarrassing, the saint and the archbishop firmly shook their heads, saying that it was not so.

“I am just grateful to Mr. Lapori for making this effort. “It was our denomination that decided on the search order in the first place.”

“In fact, it may be in a completely different area where there is no forest. Even if that happens, it’s not a bad thing because it can greatly narrow down the region.”

“Thanks to this, the church’s search team is still focusing on areas without forests. “It goes without saying that efficiency has increased significantly.”

As they said, search personnel who were still in operation were dispatched mainly to areas including deserts and wastelands.

Of course, the search for the forest had not yet been completely completed, but the church needed to prepare in advance for any eventuality.

Archbishop Latius looked at the documents on the wall that outlined continental evangelism and priorities.

“Then let’s take a look at the next batch of candidates. Let’s see… This time, it’s roughly around 30% of the areas.”

“Haha, I guess that probability doesn’t mean much now.”

“Hmm, isn’t that inevitable? “Saint.”

“oh! Yes. That must have been the result of the efforts of many people. “I was too insensitive.”

The saintess sighed with a self-reproaching expression.

Although he said it was okay, he seemed to have become impatient with the situation where no results were being achieved.

“Then, since it is already late today, we will go through these areas one by one starting tomorrow.”

“ah! Thank you very much, Lapori. “You must be tired, so please go in and rest.”

As the situation ended, Heinrich, who had been observing the progress of the Hans search operation in real time, returned to his quarters.

‘Is it finally…. There really isn’t much left now.’

On the fifteenth day after the search began, the Forest of Monsters located on the west side of the continent was included as the next candidate.

‘Still, I’m glad I was able to make it on time.’

Because I was just able to get the results of my research.

The same time Heinrich headed to his lodgings.

[Hehe… Hehehahahahahahaha! We finally succeeded!] A

sinister laugh that seemed to have come from hell echoed in a cave.

[As expected, nothing is impossible for Hans. Given enough time, things like this are nothing special.]

Acrich Hans, the descendant of the Immortal King, had the front of his black robe wide open, exposing his ribs.

An object that shows off its presence between the empty gaps between the starkly exposed white ribs.

It was a fragment of the ‘Heart of the Immortal King’, a black jewel that pulsated periodically like a heart.

But there was a big difference from before.

The image was unclear and opaque.

[Kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk.. Phase subspace using this body. It exists but does not exist. This body has come closer to perfection! Hahaha!]

I created a space that overlapped with his existence and placed the heart extracted with “immortality” there.

To put it simply, it was as if Hans’ body itself had been turned into a subspace magic tool.

If I were human… No, it was an eccentricity that would have never been possible if it were a living being.

Of course, it wasn’t the right way, and he gave up a complete cut, and the space was only the inside of his ribs, but…

that problem was nothing to him.

‘The initial goal has already been achieved!’

By turning the body itself into a pseudo-subspace, it was possible to ignore the limitations of fragments and create a smooth passage for supplying black magic.

It goes without saying that its existence can now be easily concealed.

There was no way the difficulty of hiding it was the same when it was fully exposed and when it was connected only by a single passage.

‘I was also able to use [Immortality] properly.’

Now, even if your whole body is reduced to dust, you can instantly recover with the black magic supplied through the passage.

In order to defeat him, a blow that splits the entire space or magic to handle it became essential.

‘And there’s no way Hans would take such an attack lightly.’

A satisfying result in many ways.

It was a few days before Lapori’s search for the Forest of Monsters began.