Ch. 15 Gray City
by AfuhfuihgsChapter 15 – Gray City
“The Faceless Ones.”
The rumor spread like a ghost story.
It first emerged in the streets of Friedenau.
Among the lower-class citizens, strange whispers began to circulate.
It was a common urban legend—a faceless ghost dressed entirely in white had appeared in the city.
But it didn’t take long for the people of Friedenau to realize that this was no mere rumor.
More and more people began to witness the white-clad figures roaming the streets in broad daylight, and the rumor became reality.
Soon, the phenomenon spread beyond Friedenau, reaching every corner of the capital.
Heckenfeld, Wilhelmsstadt, Charlottenburg, Prenzlauer Berg—even as far as Weißensee in the northeastern part of the city, the opposite side of Friedenau.
By the time the citizens realized that these were not ghosts but people in white suits wearing blank masks, the Faceless Ones were already everywhere.
A suspicious group was roaming the capital.
Citizens, alarmed by the eerie events, reported the matter to the city police.
But the police only conducted a superficial investigation and failed to resolve the issue.
The Faceless Ones had committed no crimes—they simply wandered the streets in suspicious attire.
Without concrete evidence, the police could do little more than conduct random checks.
The citizens criticized the police for their incompetence, but there was nothing they could do.
Without any tangible harm, it was difficult for the police to take action.
They had no choice but to quietly comply with pressure from higher-ups to avoid wasting resources on trivial matters.
The real problem lay with the underworld figures of Königsberg.
It started with the homeless.
As the Faceless Ones appeared, the vagrants began to disappear.
At first, it was assumed they had gone into hiding out of fear.
But it didn’t take long to realize this was a mistake.
The Faceless Ones were hunting people.
For what purpose, no one knew, but they captured people alive and took them somewhere.
They targeted everyone from street gangs to fences and drug dealers—anyone who was involved in crime.
And as the number of criminals decreased, the number of Faceless Ones grew.
Ghosts that devoured people and multiplied in number.
It sounded like an absurd urban legend, but it was happening in reality.
By the time the leaders of the organizations ruling the streets noticed, it was already too late.
The underworld of Königsberg was now filled with the Faceless Ones.
“Damn it! What the hell is going on?!”
In a secluded VIP room of a bar in Neukölln, an angry shout rang out.
The man’s face flushed red as he slammed his fist on the table, his breaths coming heavy and fast.
The others in the room, though not as vocal, wore equally grim expressions.
They were the leaders of the organizations that ruled Königsberg’s underworld, and this bar was their meeting place.
They didn’t gather regularly—only when something significant happened.
And the reason for this meeting was, of course, the Faceless Ones who had recently appeared and were expanding their influence.
The street thugs and low-level gangsters treated the Faceless Ones like monsters from a ghost story, but the leaders here knew better.
These were no mythical creatures or spectral apparitions.
They were a new criminal organization that had suddenly appeared, seizing territory and expanding their influence.
Where they came from, who they were—everything about them was a mystery.
But one thing was clear: they were no ordinary street thugs.
Whether they were former soldiers or hired mercenaries, the Faceless Ones were well-trained in combat.
The street gangs had their share of tough guys, but they were no match for professionally trained fighters.
Where these people had come from didn’t matter.
What mattered was that their territory was being taken.
For gangs, territory was crucial.
It wasn’t just about pride or dominance—it was about profit.
They could extort protection money, deal drugs, or run smuggling operations.
But the Faceless Ones were slowly taking over their turf.
Naturally, the income from protection money and other illegal activities began to dwindle.
The leaders fought to reclaim their lost territory, but the Faceless Ones were no pushovers.
It wasn’t until later that they discovered the Faceless Ones had a unique hierarchy.
Those wearing round silver brooches were likely regular members.
The real problem was the officers, who wore brooches shaped like knights and bishops.
The regular members were already formidable, but the officers were on another level.
They had combat skills comparable to knights, and the bishops—those who wore the bishop brooches—could use magic.
Why someone with such abilities would work in the underworld was beyond comprehension.
But one thing was certain: the street thugs, who only knew how to throw punches, were no match for them.
“Damn it, Kurt! Shut up, will you?!”
“What did you say, you bastard?!”
“Hey! Is now the time for us to fight each other?!”
Kurt, the boss of the Müller Gang, had been shouting angrily since the meeting began.
Yannick, the boss of the Valhalla Gang, told him to calm down, but Kurt, known for his temper, wasn’t about to listen.
It looked like a fight was about to break out until Luke, the leader of the Wilder Haufen, stepped in to mediate.
Though visibly annoyed, both Kurt and Yannick knew Luke was right and reluctantly sat back down.
Kurt grabbed his beer mug, downed it in one go, and slammed it back on the table.
The table shook, and Yannick shot him a glare but remained silent.
“So! What the hell are we gonna do?!”
Kurt’s question hung in the air as Luke sighed.
They had gathered to discuss this very issue, but the meeting was going in circles.
It was only natural.
Without knowing the identity or motives of the Faceless Ones, it was impossible to formulate a plan.
Even if the gangs united, the Faceless Ones had already grown too powerful.
By the time they realized what was happening, half of their territory was already lost.
The number of members taken by the Faceless Ones was significant.
It was too late to turn the tide.
Some suggested attacking the Faceless Ones hideout for a decisive victory, but the problem was finding it.
Or rather, they had found it, but it was inaccessible.
A massive steam locomotive, painted white to match the Faceless Ones attire, was running on the city’s circular railway.
It was their hideout.
How much money did they have to use a city train as their base?
When Luke’s subordinate reported this, he thought the man had followed the wrong target.
But after multiple attempts, it became clear: the Faceless Ones were using the train as their headquarters.
The leaders in the room believed that if they united, they could still win.
But Luke Schmidt thought differently.
Even if they had fought together when their forces were at full strength, it wouldn’t have been enough.
The Faceless Ones might have taken some losses, but whatever was behind them was not something they could shake.
There was one more person who shared Luke’s opinion.
“Madam Paul. You’ve been quiet. Any good ideas?”
Luke turned to the middle-aged woman sitting across from him.
Madam Paul represented the brothels of Märkisches Viertel.
A woman who had risen from a lowly prostitute to her current position, she looked surprisingly young for her age, which had led to rumors of her using strange magic.
She had been disinterested in the meeting from the start, fiddling with her hair and feigning indifference.
Whether she thought it was none of her business or had other reasons, her lack of interest was evident.
“Who knows? I’m not good with these kinds of things” she replied with a shrug.
It was true—the brothels had little to do with the current situation.
But Luke sensed something more in her demeanor.
Madam Paul knew something.
His intuition told him as much.
Of course, he had no intention of sharing this with the other leaders.
He didn’t want to antagonize Madam Paul, and more importantly, he had no real intention of cooperating with the others.
They were all just street thugs.
The alliance was temporary, born out of necessity to protect their interests.
If there was another way to secure his own interests, fewer competitors would be better.
So Luke decided to keep this secret to himself and approach Madam Paul later.
Madam Paul, aware of Luke’s thoughts, pretended not to notice and lit a cigarette.
In the end, the meeting concluded without any resolution.
It was, after all, a gathering of uneducated thugs.
They shouted at each other for a while before gradually leaving the bar.
Only Luke and Madam Paul remained.
In the silence of the late night, a private meeting began between the two.
It was a fateful night that would drastically alter the power dynamics of the underworld
Vrslop_translator
0 Comments