#170
Kyuushu Crisis (2)
While Hans was active on Earth, time in Auterica was rapidly flowing.
Now, the Talia Kingdom was officially ruled by hybrids.
They decided to continue without changing the country’s name to minimize political reasons and chaos.
After all, it wasn’t much different from how they had been ruling from the shadows until now; they kept the shell the same while only changing the regime.
Although they didn’t exactly hide the fact that the new ruling class was vampires, they also didn’t widely announce it, opting for a vague approach.
Too abrupt a change could cause severe resistance, so they paid attention to their external appearances.
Of course, such a shallow tactic couldn’t eliminate all the shock.
“Did you hear that news? Apparently, our king has changed.”
“Huh? What do you mean all of a sudden?”
The rumors gradually spreading out from the capital were just the tip of the iceberg.
“What’s that newly built shiny place for?”
“They say it’s a blood donation center… If you sell your blood, they give you money or various benefits.”
“Blood?! That sounds really sketchy. What if it’s a curse or something?”
“Oh, come on. It’s officially run by the government, they say. And they pay well, so if you need quick cash, it’s not bad. You do feel a bit tired afterward, but it doesn’t hurt, plus they give you all sorts of health snacks afterward.”
“Still… Wait, how do you know so much about it? …No way?”
“Ahem, things have been tough for the economy lately…”
Blood donation centers, major bases for the vampires spreading throughout the regions, began to open one by one, and even ordinary citizens who previously had no interest in politics started feeling the changes in their day-to-day lives.
Of course, some realized that vampires were now ruling the nation and expressed their concerns, but all the focal points were under the control of hybrids, leaving ordinary folks with little they could do.
Since there hadn’t been immediate harm, they could only observe the situation with worried glances.
But naturally, there were those who could not look at the situation so optimistically…
“Huh, what’s going on all of a sudden… of all times.”
“…I had a sense something was off, but I didn’t expect them to step forward so suddenly.”
The neighboring countries bordering Talia and the Holy Church Order, essentially the representatives of the Ion Continent, were precisely those.
It was not through intelligence they gathered that the initial realization of the situation was made.
It was a messenger from the ‘Talia Kingdom,’ who had come through proper procedures to report all these facts.
And now, at the Rosellia Temple, the holy site of the Holy Church Order, Duke Bright, who had participated in the last summit, visited in person to meet with high-ranking members of the order.
“I’m sorry to barge in so suddenly; I can only imagine how bewildered you must be.”
“It’s alright. While it was a bit surprising… I’m just grateful you came here.”
Considering the matter at hand, the figures present were nothing short of splendid.
Cardinals in charge of major decisions in the order, the Holy Liesta as their face, and…
“It’s a confusing era in many ways. Prioritizing dialogue in this situation is only natural. Isn’t that the quickest path to peace and coexistence?”
“You speak wisely, Saint.”
…Just as they were busy with their affairs, Heinrich, the Saint Landgard, who had recently become well-known for swiftly exterminating numerous evil forces based on accurate ‘prophecies,’ looked seriously at Duke Bright.
And the result of the subsequent discussions of cooperation went undoubtedly in a direction that satisfied both sides.
*
The Hahoe Mask, which had been ruling the night in Korea with fear, had crossed over to Japan, but its effects did not manifest immediately.
[I almost got caught by the Yakuza and died, but just managed to escape.]
– I’m not sure if I should mention specific locations. I live in Fukuoka, and this time I…
– …Just when I thought it was over, suddenly everything went dark, and someone appeared.
– I was so scared I trembled and fainted, so I didn’t get a good look, but it was a guy in black clothes with a weird mask. When I came to, I was in a hospital.
– Now, I’ve returned home after being questioned by the police, but suddenly the sense of reality has vanished, so I’m just rambling about it. Did I dream?
Of course, as his activities ramped up, he began encountering many people, and some of those who met him posted their experiences online…
– Oh, this is interesting. When’s the next episode coming out?
– A masked hero? What is this, the 90s? LOL But it’s my type (laughs).
– Someone escaped from here! Quick, get ready to medicate!
Since he avoided leaving evidence of his appearance just like in Korea, that buzz quietly faded away without becoming a major issue.
In the chaotic internet, serious posts were often dismissed as simple delusions.
However, since Fukuoka City is one of Japan’s major cities, many people were feeling changes in their surroundings, albeit unknowingly.
Something felt unusually quiet compared to usual, for some unknown reason.
As time passed, the influence spread beyond Fukuoka to nearby regions like Kumamoto and Nagasaki, and related content began accumulating in online communities.
While this was merely a story limited to some parts of Kyushu, Japan’s third-largest island, it still hadn’t become mainstream, but among the local residents, there were quite a few who resonated with it.
But unlike those ordinary people, there were those who felt the impact most acutely—the underground organizations that could be considered parties to this situation.
“What on earth happened? Does anyone know someone?!”
“I checked through the police I have connections with, and it’s a sea of blood! It seems like they’re all dead…”
Whether they were allies of those who had fallen or rival organizations, they were highly alert to this sudden situation.
Forces that had started going silent one by one began to disappear.
By any measure, this was an attack aimed squarely at their industry, so they couldn’t afford to let their guard down even a bit.
And…
“Alright, report back.”
The next to react sensitively and start an investigation was the regional ability management office under the state ability commission in Kyushu.
“Compared to the on-site investigation results and numerous eyewitness accounts, the credibility is assessed to be very high. It’s practically certain.”
“Ah, so it was real? What was it again… Hahoe Mask?”
The head of the Kyushu Office, managing the Awakened Ones in the region, muttered in disbelief.
Having managed a region, he had certainly heard of the famous Awakened One making waves in a neighboring country.
However, he had until now firmly believed the tales of the Hahoe Mask’s exploits were mere media plays by the Korean government.
“This is absurd. So, the guy wreaking havoc in Korea has come all the way to Japan? While hunting criminals, no less?”
The head’s mouth twitched.
Before pondering the morality of the situation, what managing officer would appreciate a foreigner recklessly storming through their territory?
Especially if the trouble was occurring in their own assigned area?
‘So it’s not a fabricated character. They say he is Korea’s unofficial strongest? What a laugh.’
How foolish must they think of them to venture across borders and cause a ruckus like this?
The perception formed that he must be blindly confident, thinking he could act recklessly just based on that title.
“Just one Awakened One at that.”
With things having come to this, whether the Hahoe Mask was a fabricated hero or if Korea was genuinely being toyed with by a single Awakened One no longer mattered.
The only thing that remained was that their own pride was at stake.
“Tamura.”
“Yes! Director!”
“If we can’t capture this guy, we’ll look foolish. You understand?”
“Of course! We will show them that we are surely not the incompetent Koreans!”
“But let’s make sure to inform the Returnee Association too. This guy has stirred up half of Kyushu in just a few days. We must assume his skills are genuine.”
While that was indeed impressive, it wasn’t enough to intimidate them.
The reason they had overlooked the underground organizations until now was due to their secrecy and undefined political implications with higher-ups, not because of any lack of military power.
‘Come to think of it, capturing an Awakened One who had created trouble in Korea wouldn’t be such a bad narrative. If the media plays this right, we might just elevate our status to the central government.’
Highlighting him as the infamous criminal known as the unofficial strongest in Korea seemed like a solid path.
Thus, the director, lost in daydreams, got the guardians of the Japanese Returnee Association involved and organized a pursuit team for the Hahoe Mask…
And in the days that followed, as they began to operate in earnest,
The miraculous fruition of his delusions did not come to pass.
Until the moment the Hahoe Mask was about to obliterate the entire dark underbelly of Kyushu.
*
“Tsk, how bothersome.”
As he subconsciously complained, Hans lightly waved his staff, and a myriad of demon hands shot out from the magic circle surrounding him and swept the surroundings.
Vroom—
“Block it!”
“Grace of the Holy Spirit!”
Simultaneously defending against and counterattacking the dozens of individuals.
However, the group currently fighting against Hans was not the crime organization he had been targeting.
The Japanese tracking team that had persistently followed him for days had ambushed him while hiding near the target he was after.
‘Naturally, being on an island limits the available destination, and the targets I had planned to confront in Kyushu were my last goals.’
Unlike Korea, where they had experienced difficulties due to a lack of information, the Japanese side now had a decent grasp of the Hahoe Mask’s motives and was aware of where he was headed for their tracking efforts.
And the result was precisely the situation they were in now.
‘In Korea, no one ever dared to charge at me like this.’
Having been active for quite some time in Korea, Hans had encountered agents or guardians from the ability management office before.
However, at those times, he had always evaded confrontation, and the other party had rarely taken aggressive action, leading to those incidents being brushed under the rug.
There were various reasons for this.
It might have been simply fear holding them back, or they might have secretly sympathized with the actions of the Hahoe Mask.
Moreover, the general approach taken to persuade the Hahoe Mask added to this situation, making it somewhat understandable.
However, Japan was in a different predicament and was compelled to attack relentlessly.
To Hans, their interference was just annoying.
‘If it weren’t for them, I could have cleaned up Kyushu and moved to the next region right away.’
As he contemplated how to shake off these pesky leeches and focus on his goals,
He suddenly perceived a sense of prophecy, adjusting his grip on the bone staff.
He positioned his feet firmly against the ground.
Lowering his center of gravity provided stability.
He spun his waist with the aid of magical power.
And the staff, wrapped in dark magic, moved gracefully…
“Miracle Wind Blade! Spiral Wind’s… Kek!”
Boom—!
He struck the foolish one who was shouting that unnecessarily long technique name after successfully hiding and attempting to ambush him.
With perfect form aided indirectly by Heinrich’s “Path of Martial Arts”.
“What an idiot, even in this situation!”
“More importantly, wasn’t that person a wizard? What was that move just now?!”
Sighs and cries of astonishment erupted simultaneously.
However, unlike the awakened ones criticizing the one who had attempted the ambush, Hans was, for his part, deeply impressed.
‘So tenaciously declaring the technique name even in this circumstance! This guy has spirit and a sense of romance.’
That thoroughly inefficient act could only be executed by the strong when facing the weak— it was the greatest ‘style.’
While it was also quite bold to attempt that against him, the thrill of having succeeded at such a moment was something he could appreciate…
‘No, even so, that was pushing it! I almost fell for ‘Hans’s’ allure.’
While Hans’s vanity and pretentiousness were in full swing, he wanted that intensely, but still, there should be limits to such things.
There’s a degree to everything, after all.
Hehehe— I have much to do, so let’s wrap this up quickly. Shadowy Corridor!
…Though, even so, sometimes it didn’t seem too bad to do this occasionally.
In that moment, he could somewhat understand the feelings of Malcolm, who had become a Death Wizard, recalling how he used to chant incantations every time he used magic.
*
And at that moment, at a location slightly detached from the fight.
-[Hahoe Mask confirmed. Begin operation. All units to position.]
-[Confirmed.]
-[Okay.]
A concealed group began to move quietly.
