The Third District.

And, among it, Roan.

“Did you see it?”

“Seriously, what the hell happened?”

“I know, right? They’re saying they still haven’t finished suppressing the situation at the museum.”

People who had gotten up in the morning as usual.

Or people who had been forced awake because of the incident that broke out that morning.

Every last one of them looked at the news and newspaper headlines and talked about the “Transparent Museum Explosion.”

It did not matter whether they were old or young, men or women.

At home, at work, at school, online.

Anywhere people gathered, they talked about it.

In fact, it was not just Roan—

the entire Third District was covering the incident.

“Wow, this doesn’t look like some simple case.”

Because there was simply too much to talk about.

“No, but are they saying the museum was actually some completely different building?”

The Transparent Co. building that had been disguised as a museum.

“More importantly, why did President Anlomann show up there?”

President Anlomann, who had suddenly appeared.

“But who was that superpowered person? No, that fire? I couldn’t make out the exact features because they were wrapped in that red aura, but the power was insane.”

“Exactly! Isn’t there any video shot from closer up? We should recruit them into our guild!”

“Oh, come on. They were obviously on Anlomann’s side. Why would they come to us?”

A new superpowered figure with tremendous power.

“But isn’t this terrorism?”

“Is Anlomann fighting Transparent?”

“Can they even do this?”

“No, but more than that, who was that black-clad person? They looked like a different force from that mage.”

“Yeah. They said it was Dark, right?”

“The God of Chaos? It looked like some group that worships that thing. Isn’t it basically a cult?”

The appearance of the God of Chaos religious group called Dark.

“This is insane. What a total mess.”

“Hey. I don’t know what it is, but this is kind of fun.”

“This is fun to you? We don’t even know what’s going to happen to Roan now!”

“No, but just the other day Transparent hit one of Anlomann’s aides. And now this time it looks like Anlomann is doing something.”

“Exactly, which is why I’m saying it’s a disaster! A total disaster!”

People’s conversations spread out in more and more directions, and every kind of speculation ran wild.

It could not be helped.

“Any follow-up reports?”

“No idea! Both sides are keeping quiet right now!”

Transparent Co. and President Anlomann’s side alike.

Not a single one of them said a word.

The news dragged in all sorts of experts and kept reporting on the morning’s incident.

But there had still been no proper follow-up report on anything.

At least until now.

“Oh!”

And then, all at once, whether they were looking at their phones, their TVs, or their computers—

everyone got the same news.

“It’s Transparent! Transparent finally spoke!”

On the TV screen, Transparent Co.’s media spokesperson appeared and began speaking.

“What happened this morning was all an unmistakable act of terrorism.”

Transparent Co. had drawn its blade against President Anlomann.

“President Anlomann personally mobilized armed force and attacked the Transparent Museum, which Transparent Co. had created for the people. We demand severe punishment for this, and furthermore—”

The spokesperson’s gaze fixed directly on the screen.

“We also demand the arrest and severe punishment of the unidentified individuals who committed terrorism against the museum together with President Anlomann.”

People reacted immediately.

==============

—Holy shit. Is Anlomann really throwing down with Transparent?

—Would that even count as a fight? Who can beat a transcendent corporation?

—But then what about Dark? Are that guy in black and that red superpowered person all on Anlomann’s side?

—How would we know? That part isn’t exactly clear.

—Idiot. The red superpowered one escaped in the helicopter with Anlomann, didn’t they lol

—Then what about the black one? The one who used that firebolt and smashed everything up. Wasn’t it actually him who destroyed the museum?

—...Huh? That’s true.

—Exactly. If you think about it, Anlomann and the red woman only exposed the museum shell, right? The disguise?

—...Right?

—Anyway, this is going to turn into total chaos lol

—You psycho, how are you laughing right now?

—Then what, should I cry?

—Fair point.

==============

While all sorts of comments flew around, a few people watched Transparent Co.’s spokesperson with rather strange expressions.

“...Doesn’t it feel like Transparent is trying to skate past the important parts here?”

“You felt that too?”

“Yes. They’re only focusing on the museum explosion, but they’re not saying a single thing about the museum disguise, or the identity of the exposed building, or why Anlomann acted like that in the first place.”

“Exactly. And one of those mysterious people clearly said his faction was called Dark. So why aren’t they mentioning that at all, while openly going after Anlomann?”

“Exactly. This feels like—”

The political world, the business world, the superpowered guilds, and everyone else who was watching this incident more closely all realized something.

“This is strange.”

“It is.”

Transparent Co.

A giant transcendent corporation with influence over not just Roan, but the entire Third District.

It claimed to want “severe punishment,” yet its actual behavior was oddly passive.

“And in something this big, they only send out one media spokesperson?”

“Exactly. I don’t think that spokesperson ever came out for something this huge before.”

“...I think we need to dig into this.”

A strange current was beginning to form.

Cale lowered the tablet and looked toward the TV screen.

The spokesperson was still talking about something, but Cale opened his mouth.

“Looks like this is inconvenient for Transparent too.”

“Of course it is. From their perspective, it’s better to focus on going after Anlomann alone.”

Alberu set down the teacup in his hand.

“Hmm. Still, I didn’t expect them not to mention Dark either.”

Choi Sun Hee, president of Sun Co., shook her head with a dissatisfied expression.

“Maybe they can’t carelessly expose the existence of the God of Chaos.”

Rosalyn said that with a faint smile.

At the moment, the four of them were enjoying a brief tea time in the top-floor office of the Sun Building.

“Well.”

Choi Sun Hee still looked unconvinced.

“I don’t know about Honorary Chairman Han Taeksoo, but I thought Han Seo Hyung, the executive director, would step forward.”

The current chairman was little more than a puppet for Han Taeksoo.

It was an open secret in business circles that the true successor was Han Seo Hyung.

Rosalyn spoke.

“The hunters probably don’t want the public to know there really is such a being as the God of Chaos. And if they bring up the God of Chaos the wrong way, it’ll obviously create problems inside their own ranks too. Rather than announcing it like this, they’ll probably try to gather proper information behind the scenes.”

“Hmm.”

Choi Sun Hee fell silent for a moment, then continued.

“Even so, they can’t just let this pass in vague terms. Kang Geunmok betrayed them, and they know we took the information. If they simply leave all of this alone—”

“It only benefits Anlomann’s side.”

Alberu said that and picked up his teacup again.

The cup hid his mouth, but everyone could tell he was smiling.

“Transparent isn’t made of amateurs. They know that well.”

Swallowing down a shallow smile, he continued.

“That suspicion stays suspicion. And that truth can sometimes get buried beneath the voices of the people who shout the loudest.”

“Ah!”

Rosalyn’s brow tightened slightly as she realized something.

At times like this, she was reminded that she was not suited for politics—

and that Alberu Crossman was, in fact, someone of royal blood.

Then—

“There he is.”

The silent Cale pointed at the TV screen.

The scene on the screen was growing noisy.

Because someone had appeared.

Executive Director Han Seo Hyung.

Known publicly as the grandson of Honorary Chairman Han Taeksoo.

And the Young Master of the Transparent Blood family.

The man Cale had greeted had now appeared on screen.

“This is his first time appearing in a setting this official.”

Just from Choi Sun Hee’s comment, it was clear how significant the appearance of the executive director was.

Han Seo Hyung looked into the camera with a stiff face and spoke.

“As Transparent is a corporation that began here in Roan, we have tried our best not to create more chaos than necessary. But now that actual violence has occurred, I felt I had to step forward and tell the people both one truth and the reason Transparent came under this attack.”

“Executive Director!”

“Executive Director, you can’t step forward like this. Later, first we should—”

“No. I can’t simply remain silent like this.”

The media spokesperson and a secretary approached to stop him, and the whole thing was transmitted live.

“Oh, he’s acting pretty well.”

Alberu admired him sincerely.

And as if responding to that, Han Seo Hyung became even more youthful and impassioned—

like a capable man who loved Roan and cared for Transparent’s future.

Each word was solemn, yet filled with fervor.

“President Anlomann is currently colluding with the cult of the God of Chaos, and has been behind acts such as the murder incident at the closed elementary school involving Senior Aide Mary. Furthermore, working with them, he seeks to seize Roan and destroy Transparent, which has been trying to stop them. That is why he committed what happened this morning!”

His voice, which had been trying so hard to remain calm, gradually rose until in the end Han Seo Hyung was practically shouting in desperation.

“We must stop that ruthless Anlomann, who wears the mask of a hero, and the force cooperating with him—Dark! If we fail, horrible chaos will descend upon us!”

Wow.

President Choi Sun Hee let out a sound of admiration.

“If he comes out that boldly, then even if Anlomann tells the truth, people will still end up uncertain.”

“Hm.”

Rosalyn let out a low murmur and glanced to the side.

Cale was staring fixedly at the tablet.

“Young Master, is there something?”

“As expected—”

Grin.

Cale smiled.

“People really are smart.”

“What?”

While Rosalyn was left puzzled, Cale switched off the tablet screen.

The last page he had been looking at was the NaSoJeol community.

==============

<But haven’t we heard the name Dark somewhere before?>

Why does that name sound so familiar to me?

—Holy shit! Wow, I just remembered! The Western Empire! They’re the ones who hit the Order of the Sun God in the Western Empire!

—Huh?

—...Seriously?

—Yeah!! Wasn’t that place also attacked by a group called Dark that worships the God of Chaos?

—...Wait, not only is the name Dark the same, but even the God of Chaos is the same?

—Hey, hey! Even the clothes are the same!

—(link)

—Holy shit, the symbol on the clothes is the same too!

—What the hell.

—Is this even possible? Doesn’t it feel like we just figured out something huge?

—No way.

—That kind of “no way” gets people killed.

—Then what, are you saying there’s some group connected to both NaSoJeol and reality? lol How does that make sense?

—And everything showing up on TV right now makes sense to you?

==============

Cale pointed at the TV screen for the confused Rosalyn.

“Anlomann will be coming out soon too.”

That had already been arranged between Cale’s side and Anlomann’s side.

Soon, the anchor hurriedly delivered breaking news.

“There will be an emergency statement from President Anlomann!”

As Rosalyn watched the screen change, she felt a slight twinge of worry.

‘He’ll handle this properly, right?’

Anlomann—

would he really be able to handle Han Seo Hyung and Transparent properly?

It would not be good if this dragged on too long by turning into some endless truth-seeking battle.

Glance.

Alberu and Choi Sun Hee sat side by side.

The moment Transparent Co. staggered, those two intended to move swiftly and somehow exploit the gap and devour Transparent Co. whole.

To do that, Sun Co. was currently sitting on all its money and refusing to move.

Rosalyn pressed down her unease, decided Anlomann would do well, and kept watching the TV.

“Hm.”

Then she let out a low sound.

“......”

Anlomann on the TV screen was silent.

He was simply standing there wordlessly.

But no one could urge him to speak.

His eyes were bloodshot red.

His lips were clamped shut.

Both fists were tightly clenched.

Anyone could {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} see he was consumed by enormous fury.

His whole body was trembling with anger.

“Yes.”

Alberu said calmly.

“You can’t just sit still after seeing that.”

Cale had shared the stolen materials with Anlomann’s side.

‘Can I look at what’s inside?’

‘Yes.’

Anlomann had looked at the contents.

Rosalyn had nearly gagged the first time she saw them.

Anlomann had seen that miserable, horrific material.

“......”

Anlomann remained silent.

It was completely different from the desperate way Han Seo Hyung had shouted.

But not one person who saw him could carelessly open their mouth.

Sometimes silence conveyed greater emotion than anything else.

Anlomann.

And the close aides who stood with him.

They were the people who had been with him since his days as a superpowered fighter, and their expressions looked much like his.

Furious, sharp-edged.

As if they had returned to the days when they fought countless monsters as active superpowered fighters.

“......”

The silence stretched on.

And yet the broadcast continued to air that screen, filled with nothing but stillness, for a long time.

Then at last, Anlomann opened his mouth.

“Please come in.”

He said only that.

“!”

“Huh?”

“What the hell—!”

Even the veteran reporters were so shocked by what happened next that they blurted out words without meaning to.

Tap. Tap.

Someone walked in through the opened door.

He was someone many people knew.

He had never stepped into the spotlight himself, but he was far too famous as someone else’s shadow.

“...Kang Geunmok!”

That name burst from one of the reporters like a groan.

The man who had served as Honorary Chairman Han Taeksoo’s secretary since the very beginning of Transparent Co., and had been there through the company’s entire history.

The person who ought to be busier than anyone else working for Transparent was standing here.

“......”

“......”

An even greater stillness descended over the room.

Everyone realized that something enormous had just happened.

This was not some simple matter.

Kang Geunmok, with his withered face like an old dead tree, stood beside Anlomann.

Several minutes of silence.

Then Kang Geunmok.

With only those two things, Anlomann had already shown a great deal.

And there was one more thing he would show.

“These are experimental research materials taken from Transparent Co.’s secret laboratory.”

He held up an external memory card.

“Mr. Kang Geunmok and Senior Aide Mary will explain everything in it, step by step.”

Because the contents were so extensive that it would take a long time to go through them.

“I will say only one thing, and then I will step away from this podium.”

Unlike his bloodshot eyes and trembling body, Anlomann’s voice was detached.

“Ah, so he was a different kind of man than I thought.”

Alberu murmured as though he had realized something.

His voice reached Cale’s ears.

“He’s a hero.”

“Looks that way.”

Cale nodded at that as well.

The two of them felt like they knew what Anlomann was about to say.

That detachment.

Its meaning soon flowed from Anlomann’s mouth.

“I don’t care if I never become president again. No—I won’t.”

Hmm.

Rosalyn let out a low sound and said,

“Was he originally supposed to say that?”

“No.”

Choi Sun Hee shook her head.

“!”

“......!”

The stillness shattered, and it was obvious that the press conference venue on screen had erupted into noise.

Whether that happened or not, Anlomann continued.

He openly stated the reason he would never become president again.

“Transparent.”

He raised a finger and pointed at the screen.

“I’m going to wipe those bastards out myself.”

......!

The room stirred.

The calm Anlomann looked nothing like Han Seo Hyung.

And yet from that calm figure came brutal, vicious words.

“Ah—”

Without thinking, Choi Sun Hee breathed out.

“...He’s like he was when he was young.”

Like back when people had only just begun calling him a hero.

Like the Anlomann who had slaughtered every monster no matter what it took.

Like the man he had been before he became president.

The aides and close associates shown on screen did not try to stop him.

If anything, the emotions on their faces were similar to Anlomann’s.

Especially those who had been with him since his active superpowered-fighter days—

Mary among them—

their faces were full of a fierce rage that looked as if it would smash anything in its path.

Looking at Anlomann’s bloodshot eyes and the savage heat inside them, Rosalyn murmured,

“...So he wasn’t just someone who would pour everything into politics and revenge.”

The office of the next president.

Revenge for his parents.

Listening to Rosalyn, Choi Sun Hee replied with a strange look on her face.

“If he were that kind of person, he would never have spent so much of himself fighting monsters all this time.”

She, too, had read Transparent Co.’s research materials, just like Anlomann.

And she too was someone whose hometown was here in Roan, in the Third District.

“Ha. Well, this is something.”

A hollow laugh slipped from her.

“He really does have a talent for setting people on fire.”

The anger and drive she had been trying to bury were now beginning to blaze in Choi Sun Hee’s eyes.

The people who still knew nothing would probably only be confused right now.

“This is going to turn into a long, exhausting battle from here on.”

Even if Anlomann held the truth in his hands, the fight against the transcendent corporation Transparent would not be easy.

Even if the majority stood on Anlomann’s side, Transparent possessed overwhelming money, power, and influence enough to crush all of that.

Yet unlike her pessimistic words, Choi Sun Hee’s gaze only grew sharper.

Watching that, Alberu said calmly,

“There’s nothing more frightening than sincerity.”

His gaze turned toward Cale.

“Did you give the materials to the mediators too?”

“Yes.”

At that moment, Kang Geunmok was speaking on the TV screen.

“Transparent Co. has carried out human experimentation using people all this time.”

And at that same time, Aurora—

the only bloodline of the previous Demon King and the head of the mediator group in the Demon Realm—

was holding the very same information in her hands.

‘The Demon King carried out demonfolk experiments using demons.’

The Third District.

Anlomann and Transparent Co.

The Demon Realm.

Aurora and the current Demon King.

In the hands of those who had been fighting great enemies, a cause called evidence and truth had begun to take shape.

And—

===================

—Hey, I think NaSoJeol’s Dark and this Dark really are the same thing.

—Hey, hey, Kang Geunmok, the chief secretary, is saying Transparent joined hands with the God of Chaos. He says President Anlomann didn’t.

—Not joined hands with the God of Chaos, joined hands with the group that worships that god, obviously. Come on, where would an actual god come from?

—Anyway, Senior Aide Mary says the red mage is an ally they’re working with. She says they were able to steal the materials with her help. And that Dark guy? Apparently they plan to capture him too.

—Holy shit. What is this? NaSoJeol is virtual, and Earth is reality, right? Why am I getting this confused? Is this actually making sense?

===================

===================

—...Hey... they’re revealing the experiment details... holy shit... is this for real...?

—...No... this can’t be right—

—...They really did that? They killed people and ran experiments to trap their souls inside the game?

—...They staged it to look like monsters had raided a neighborhood... and then used everyone in that neighborhood as test subjects?

—They’re saying the closed elementary school was one of the graves Transparent used? And that there are dozens more? How is that even possible?

—No, what the— wow, they’re saying some of the souls were offered to a god?

—The God of Chaos?

—Hey, am I actually in reality right now? Stuff like this can happen in the real world?

===================

“What exactly is happening right now?”

The saint of the God of Chaos.

He shut off the NaSoJeol community board and twisted his face.

“Your Holiness, the situation is moving in a strange direction. Contact Transparent.”

The Order of the God of Chaos.

They too had realized things were moving in a strange direction and began to act.

The things Cale had been scattering little by little throughout the Third District, the Demon Realm, and New World were beginning to gather together and form a massive whirlpool.

“For now, we can just let them fight each other on their own.”

And at the center of that whirlpool.

At the eye of the storm.

Cale spoke leisurely.

“Let’s go to Eruhaben Miru’s Birth Ceremony first.”

To make the whirlpool even bigger.

Cale was simply handling the tasks before him, one by one.