Heinz stared at him with cold eyes. The weight of the entire world seemed to press down on that single point, as if it had turned against him. But despite the pressure, which would have suffocated most people, the old man continued to stroke his beard with a smile, as if amused.
'He was a former branch manager of the Heavenly Change Society?'
Heinz's eyebrows twitched. It was certainly surprising news. Even he, who had considered various possibilities, hadn't anticipated this. But the biggest question wasn't the information itself.
'Why is he telling me this?'
It was something he hadn't heard even after extracting all the information Heukyeong knew. Perhaps, as the man himself said, it was a secret known only to him. To reveal such a thing to Heinz, a stranger… no, to an enemy who had invaded his organization… was an incomprehensible act.
"What are you thinking?"
Heinz didn't hide his question. The current situation was absolutely in his favor. He didn't need to be cautious about digging into the man's true intentions. If necessary, he could just force him to talk.
"It's nothing special. I just thought it would be good to have an honest conversation with a comrade who shares the same goal."
"The same goal…"
"To bring down the Heavenly Change Society. Isn't that what you want?"
The Black Dragon Lord looked at Heinz with profound eyes. A dark energy flickered within his black pupils.
"—At the Masquerade."
"Hmm."
Heinz tilted his head. He wasn't surprised that the man knew the name. Although Masquerade hadn't been active for long, with so many witnesses, the information would have spread one way or another. He hadn't intended to hide the name anyway.
"I can't believe this."
The problem was something else.
"You attacked us first, and now you're calling us comrades with the same goal…? It sounds like you're making excuses to escape the situation."
It was a matter of trust. Even though they were having a peaceful conversation, this wasn't a meeting for making friends. It was a place to punish the intruder who had invaded his territory and wreaked havoc.
"Hmm, I apologize for that. But we had our reasons."
"Reasons?"
"How much do you know about the Heavenly Change Society's prophet?"
"Prophet? Are you talking about the Oracle?"
"…Hmm, I had a hunch, but it was true. To think you could utter that name and avoid her gaze."
Heinz frowned. He thought the man was about to make excuses, but why was he suddenly changing the subject?
"Her prophecies aren't just glimpses of the future. It's closer to predicting fate by reading the flow that penetrates the past, present, and future, and the thoughts unconsciously emitted by humans."
Sensing the cold atmosphere, the Black Dragon Lord immediately began to explain.
"Her influence extends to the entire Earth. Moreover, the moment someone utters a word that clearly refers to her, they're caught in her gaze and become a target. Of course, there are various abilities in the world, so there are ways to circumvent it, but…"
He finished by saying it was best to leave as little trace as possible for safety, and then looked at Heinz, at something surrounding him, with a strange expression.
"But this is the first time I've seen someone with so little reaction. It's not like you're blocking the tracking with some method, but it feels like you're not even recognized in the first place."
Then, shaking his head slightly, he continued what he had been saying before. Why he, the Black Dragon Society, had to use such a complicated method.
"Unfortunately, our Black Dragon Society doesn't possess an ability like yours. Her vigilance is already at its peak due to what you did in Southeast Asia, so if we tried to contact the Blood Alliance with the intention of cooperating in this situation…"
…the risk of being detected would be very high.
That's why he hadn't told Heukyeong, the executor, anything related to it from the beginning. In the end, the whole incident was just a ploy to contact him while bypassing the surveillance network.
'The Oracle is that powerful?'
Heinz raised an eyebrow at his excessive caution. In fact, he didn't know much about the Oracle. He only knew that she was part of the command center that guided the Heavenly Change Society's actions with her ability to see the future.
"It's only natural, considering she's reached the Divine Realm, even if she's a non-combatant. Although she had to give up most of her power due to the sin of divulging heavenly secrets, most of the restrictions on Earth have disappeared for her, so she can't be ignored. …Well, it seems like she's your perfect counter, though."
But the Black Dragon Lord's reaction was as if it were natural. He continued to scan Heinz's surroundings, seemingly fascinated by the fact that he was completely outside the Oracle's reach.
"Alright, I understand. We can talk about the details later… now, the most important question remains."
Heinz narrowed his eyes and stared at him. The surrounding air, which had been calm during their conversation, began to stir again. As if he would tear apart the person he was facing the moment he sensed anything suspicious.
"Speak. Former East Asian Branch Manager of the Heavenly Change Society, Heaven-Defying Sage."
A thick blood mist spread around them.
"Your true purpose. Why did you betray the Heavenly Change Society and turn against them?"
His stern gaze, which wouldn't tolerate any lies, pierced the old man's mind.
"And why should I trust you?"
The Black Dragon Lord could no longer maintain his composure under the increasing pressure with each word. He flinched a few times, as if suppressing his body's urge to enter a defensive stance, and then sighed deeply.
"Well, isn't it obvious?"
Then, with a hardened face, he continued,
"If the Lord of Heavenly Change's plan succeeds, at least half of Earth's population won't survive."
It was a more humanitarian reason than he expected. And a problem on a much larger, global scale than he had anticipated.
'Masquerade… a group of adversaries.'
The Lord of Heavenly Change slowly raised his head. His gaze fell upon the immense laws governing this world.
'Is this your will, Akasha?'
A part of the extra-dimensional system that only he could fully observe in this world. It was the source of the power that had bestowed the blessing of Awakening upon humans, Earth's only intelligent species, and allowed them to wield the miracle of the supernatural.
'And at the same time, it's the key to destruction that leads the world to ruin.'
Buzz—
-I will never give up… I will definitely become…
Hum—
-No matter what it takes… no matter the sacrifice…!
A familiar headache accompanied by tinnitus filled his ears. A foreign voice, seemingly his own yet somehow unfamiliar, echoed in his mind. But he didn't even blink, staring intently at the laws of the world.
It was nothing new.
A vision of the future, now a thing of the past, flashed before his eyes. Like a nation with a closed-door policy collapsing under foreign pressure—the image of a world that had ultimately failed to endure and met its demise.
'I anticipated interference.'
It was always like this. No matter what countermeasures he took based on accumulated knowledge, it was useless. Like an unavoidable fate, it always appeared at an unexpected moment, in an unforeseen form, ruining his plans.
'But I'm definitely moving forward.'
He could be sure of that. His responses, based on accumulated experience, were effective. He had managed to raise the occupation rate this much despite all the restrictions, which was the best result so far. There was only one problem.
The system's resistance had also reached a level he couldn't ignore. The level of his adversaries had become unprecedentedly threatening as his achievements grew.
'Hahoetal and Phantom, the Otherworldly Saint and Lion Mask, and…'
Multiple enemies who, like him, could freely traverse dimensions. The fact that he hadn't yet fully grasped their identities was a huge problem. He needed to understand his enemies to devise countermeasures…
"Aha! Lord! You were here!"
As he was deep in thought…
A boisterous voice interrupted his thoughts.
"I have something to tell you, so this is perfect!"
The hazel-haired middle-aged man, the Doctor, strode towards him. He had done something to his body, as his fluorescent yellow eyes flickered like glowing lights.
"Ah! As expected, the Lord recognizes them too, right? These eyes, aren't they amazing? I added a few things based on the factors extracted from the Observer of the Rodeka dimension…"
Then, as usual, he digressed and started rambling. Boastfully showing off his body fused with materials from various races, the artificially tuned spirit circuits, and the artificial body mixed with various products of scientific civilization.
"As expected, a body cultivated as a homunculus is much more flexible in this aspect, right? I should have changed bodies sooner. A body with too much pure human content is inflexible!"
The mad scientist, who had used his own body as research material for human experimentation, regardless of the decline in his own status, grumbled discontentedly. Of course, he was able to be resurrected thanks to having cultivated several copies of his body in advance…
"It would have been better if the Perfect Evolution Project had succeeded… Ah! Speaking of which, that Lion Mask from Masquerade… I think I knew him. Something vaguely comes to mind when I hear about him…"
"Doctor, let's get to the point."
Then, the Lord of Heavenly Change, who had been quietly listening to his rambling, spoke softly. He had shown him enough courtesy by waiting this long, considering his position. Since he had just devoured a dimension, he had enough leeway to not confine himself for a while, as long as he didn't overuse his powers, but that didn't mean he would continue to listen to his endless nonsense.
"Ehehehe! I was so excited that I forgot for a moment!"
The Doctor slapped his forehead and grinned at the Lord. Then, with a seemingly delighted expression, he continued,
"I've been looking through the logs while I was dormant, and I found something very interesting! Someone tried to hack into the system I locked!"
"Hacking?"
"It wasn't just any amateur! The fact that they were able to access it means they're using something beyond a quantum computer from an advanced scientific civilization."
It also meant that not only was the equipment's performance exceptional, but so was the user's skill. If it weren't for his 「Deus Ex Machina」, it might have actually been breached.
"So, I tried backtracking, but they paid close attention to security, so it wasn't easy to pinpoint the location! Hehehe~ This is so embarrassing!"
Of course, it wasn't that he hadn't gained anything. Although he couldn't pinpoint the origin, he succeeded in finding traces left by the skilled hacker.
"…A large-scale hacking across Southeast Asia."
The decisive factor that led them to hold an emergency meeting. It was evidence that the unknown hacker was deeply involved in the collapse of the Southeast Asian branch.
"Masquerade."
"Exactly! To think they possess such a hacker, they're not just brutes! Woohoo~ I'd like to face them myself, but it seems they've stopped their activities recently! How unfortunate."
The Lord of Heavenly Change closed his eyes, ignoring the Doctor, who was genuinely disappointed. Masquerade, the group of adversaries hindering his plans. It wasn't good news that they had an information and communication specialist who could impress the Doctor.
'But I will overcome it. No matter the obstacles. Even if it means more sacrifices.'
All of this was for this world. To save Earth from destruction.
That was his mission as a Regressor—a mission he couldn't tell anyone.