Part 1 Chapter 11-2

July 2nd, Caspian Sea Riverside.

I, who had escaped the triple Barrier of the three executives, heard the full story from Seok Harang.

After my hairpin, which was practically my Divided Spirit, split in half-I later heard that the one I gave to Hwanryong also broke-Seok Harang said they had scoured the entire Caspian Sea looking for my traces.

“But there were no traces of you, and instead, I felt some weird, suspicious traces, didn’t I? I felt uneasy, so I pulled it out, and what do you know, someone had encased it in cement.”

I personally confirmed the video remaining on Seok Harang’s smartwatch with my own eyes. The three executives had solidified me in cement inside a drum and dumped it in the middle of the Caspian Sea before fleeing.

“That’s a relief. I couldn’t hear what they were saying inside.”

“Is that what you should be saying right now? Do you know how much chaos you caused? What were you going to do if something had happened to you?”

“Nothing happened, so don’t worry. But speaking of which…”

I pointed at the blond man standing behind Seok Harang.

“Your boss is right behind you; is it okay to show your true colors like that?”

“What kind of idiotic nonsense are you-“

“Seolhwaryeong.”

Behind Seok Harang, a blond middle-aged man, Gawain, who appeared like a drowned rat, was looking back and forth between me and Seok Harang with an expressionless face.

“If the two of you aren’t in a romantic relationship, I think you’ll need to explain in detail what your relationship is…?”

Gawain grasped my identity at a glance. I hadn’t hidden my mana while escaping the Barrier, and Gawain had realized the true nature of Cheonghwa, the Beast Tamer.

“Th-this, well. So…”

Seok Harang had the presence of mind to speak politely, but not the mental capacity to make an excuse. I took Seok Harang’s hand, shook my head, and then bowed to Gawain in greeting.

“I know you have a lot you want to say in many ways. But I also have something I want to say to you.”

“…What is it?”

“Why did Fenrir of the Gale, an executive of the Dark Legion, pop out of the British Royal Family?”

“…….”

Gawain fell silent. Gawain and I had no choice but to interrogate each other.

“It seems we…”

“…need to talk.”

Fortunately, Gawain was someone who could be reasoned with. I wanted to hear the truth about Fenrir from Gawain’s own mouth right then and there, but I missed the timing due to the continuous arrival of SS-rank and S-rank ability users.

“What happened to you?!”

“……I feel traces. Not one, but three.”

“I smell something too. A worm, a cat, and a snake…?”

“It’s an earth snake, a wolf, and a dragon. …Honestly, why did you all gather here as if something big happened?”

Many people got angry at my words. Anastasia, forgetting that Seok Harang was right next to her, grabbed me by the collar and shook me.

“Explain quickly! What happened!”

“Ah, I get it, so let go of my hand. ……First, let’s all go back to Seoul. I’ll explain there.”

I also needed a short break in Seoul to clear my head. Only after receiving my assurance that I would tell all the truths I could, did the others stop pressing me.

The Azure Syndicate, the Round Table Heroes, and others.

I invited them to Yeouido.

And I had to explain in detail about the hidden side of the world.

Of course, naturally.

That this world was actually inside a game, and that I had entered the world of the game.

And I didn’t say a single word about the existence of Azure Flame.

* * *

July 2nd, 5 PM, Yeouido Azure Syndicate Hideout Meeting Room.

Those gathered in the meeting room were enveloped in silence. The audience couldn’t help but fall silent at my presentation.

“No, how could you explain the world’s secrets so simply….”

Beacon Kim Ji-hwa seemed quite displeased with my presentation, and the way I explained the content particularly bothered them. I re-checked the screen on the monitor and asked Kim Ji-hwa.

“I tried to shorten it as much as possible because explaining everything would take too long, is there a problem?”

“You shortened it too much. Too much.”

Phantom Cheon Gaeul read my summary from top to bottom.

“December 25th, 1999. Seongju opened a dimensional gate and dispatched Dark Legion executives. ‘Bloody Week’ occurred.

2020, Present.

December 25th, 2025. Seongju revisits Earth. Brainwashed executives run wild, destroying Earth. The End.”

“Isn’t that a perfect summary, connecting the past, present, and future?”

“Your spelling’s wrong there.”

Haneulseong Ryu Cheon-seong pointed a finger and remarked. I wrinkled my nose at him once, then ignored him.

“I’m taking questions.”

“I think you should just explain from the beginning.”

Bow Master Yooishin raised their hand sharply, interrupting my progress. The others seated around the table also seemed to agree with Yooishin’s words, nodding vigorously.

“Boss. Everyone here knows some things and doesn’t know others, right? Let’s say we’ve heard things. But what about those people?”

Architect James Lee pointed at the round table in the center. Literally a round table, the Round Table officials seated there, even Anastasia, who had a deep connection with me, didn’t look too pleased.

“Hey. There’s something I really want to say.”

Seok Harang, sitting next to Anastasia, raised their hand high, requesting the right to speak. I nodded as if to tell them to speak, granting permission, and Seok Harang’s finger swept across the audience.

“Everyone here either sees each other for the first time, or they don’t know who’s who, right? Yeah, let’s say it’s not the time for introductions. Not the right timing either. But everyone’s so distracted that they can’t focus on the conversation at all, you know?”

“…….”

Seok Harang’s finger stopped at a black mask. The man in the black mask, who had unintentionally sat at the Azure Syndicate executive table, was silent, avoiding Seok Harang’s gaze. Seok Harang, as a Spirit, conveyed words to me that they couldn’t say to others.

“That person, you see.”

[Do I really have to have a tearful family reunion like this in a situation like this?]

“…….”

Seok Harang must have been imagining their own kind of family reunion, but somehow I gathered everyone and made them sit in one place. The fortunate thing, at least, was that the others didn’t know Gwanggeom was Gwanggeom.

“There’s nothing we can do, is there? They’re the most important person involved. Thanks to this man’s technique, humanity was saved. Come on, stand up. Savior of humanity.”

It didn’t matter to the others, but I clapped my hands to make the monstrous human in the black mask stand up. He seemed to genuinely dislike it, almost shaking off my hand, but because Anastasia nodded, he reluctantly put his hand to his mask.

“…….”

He took off his helmet-like mask, revealing his face. Unlike when he was alive, his hair had turned white-blonde, and his face had returned to his youthful twenties, unlike when he died.

“Who are you?”

People asked. He seemed momentarily relieved that people didn’t recognize him. I urged him to introduce himself.

“What’s your name?”

“……Dark Praetor. For now, please call me that.”

People felt a sense of incongruity at the old-fashioned way of speaking that came from the 20-something young man’s mouth. Seok Harang slumped powerlessly and buried their face in the table. Their face was bright red, looking incredibly embarrassed.

“Wait a minute. Then why did you call us?”

The Hero-side personnel raised their hands. The few association members, led by Executor Baek Hee-ah, would have been people ready to fight us directly if it weren’t for the Round Table’s mediation.

Moreover, as long as the conversation proceeded on the premise that I would reveal myself as Phoenix.

“Originally, there was no reason for me to tell you all this.”

Once I learned that three executives had awakened and were moving, I had to clear up misunderstandings and seek cooperation. Even if it meant the Heroes finding out I was Phoenix, it didn’t matter as long as the general public didn’t know.

“From now on, as long as you hear the truth about the hidden side of the world, you too will become accomplices in saving the world from destruction. Before squabbling as Heroes or Villains, let’s first protect Earth, okay? After that, we can arrest Villains or humiliate Heroes. Okay?”

Not a single person left their seat. I called for an assistant to help with the lecture for a smooth explanation.

“Alright, then, Subordinate No. 2. Come out.”

“Suddenly, I’m explaining history in front of people. Tsk.”

Jo Deokbae stood opposite the screen, wearing a suit.

“Why are you coming out from there?”

Cheon Gaeul questioned Deokbae’s position. Among the numerous S-rank ability users, Deokbae, who was merely a B-rank monstrous human, taking a spot next to me clearly seemed strange at first glance.

“What if I forget something while explaining?”

“This one calls me every chance they get and rambles on, to the point where my ears were practically bleeding.”

Deokbae is the person who knows the most about the hidden side of this world after me. But people didn’t seem to believe that very well.

“No matter if you’re an executive of the Azure Syndicate, the knowledge to explain next to our client is-“

“For your information, I heard all 16 names, ages, and even attributes, okay?”

“That’s sufficient. Good. Please continue.”

Eun Yuha, Cheon Gaeul, Seok Harang, Xiaolin, Hikari, Baek Hee-ah, Hwanryong, Park Raon.

An unapproachable aura emanated from the heroines gathered in this place, and I felt unnecessarily stung, my mouth going dry.

“Don’t say strange things.”

“You’re the one who told me.”

“……First, let’s explain how this world came to be like this.”

I changed the subject. Everyone looked at me with suspicious eyes, but as the introduction continued, everyone lowered their voices and began to listen intently.

“December 25th, 2025. The world will be destroyed. By seven monstrous humans who will obliterate Earth without a trace. And one of those monstrous humans is me, Azure Flame Phoenix.”

* * *

First, I should explain where the origin of special abilities began.

Don’t ask questions during the lecture. Hold your curiosity. You probably won’t understand half of it even after hearing everything.

Perhaps the person closest to the truth in this world is Jilpungek’s younger sister, Himeji Hikari-yang, or the hypothesis of Professor Do, a Korean ability researcher.

Was it called the ‘Otherworld Theory’? Yes. The mana we use, they say it’s power from another world.

It’s evident from the name ‘dimensional’ gate, isn’t it? A gate between dimensions. Our world, where we Spirits lived, was a planet called ‘Terra,’ but it was invaded by aliens and destroyed. Now, the monsters that come through the dimensional gates you’re familiar with are monstrous humans who have been dominated and driven mad by the aliens.

So, the aliens conquered Terra, and now they’re trying to conquer Earth with Terra’s inhabitants.

Then what exactly is a Spirit? The mana you all use is divided into a total of seven attributes: Earth, Water, Fire, Wind, Light, Dark, and Illusion. For each attribute, there’s a source that governs mana, and a Spirit is the existence that gained self-awareness and a physical form from that source. Among them, I am the Fire Spirit, Azure Flame Phoenix.

So, this one’s the guy who became the boss in another world.

Boss, you say? At your age…. Anyway, the Spirits tried to block the alien attacks until the very end. But just as dimensional gates are opening on Earth now, Terra also couldn’t withstand all of the alien invasions. They held out and held out, but eventually, they were defeated. And the Spirits became vanguards for invading another dimension.

They kneaded the brains of the seven strongest individuals and enslaved them. In other words, they became ‘Ohhh! Alien-nim’s dick is amazing!’-*cough*!

That’s true, but please maintain some dignity, Assistant No. 2. …Well, it’s actually true, so I can’t deny it. No, it doesn’t mean they were actually gang-raped by aliens. Don’t misunderstand that. Fortunately, the alien, that ‘Seongju’ fellow, didn’t have such tastes. Instead, they had slightly unique tastes in other ways.

The evil organization Dark Legion!

……Don’t laugh there. Especially the two former executives and one prospective executive. The future where Earth is destroyed by this ridiculous organization is packed full. Seongju turned the brainwashed Spirits into ‘executives’ of the evil organization.

Azure Flame Phoenix.

Snowy Night’s Rusalka.

Fenrir of the Gale.

Hydra of the Earth Wheel.

Gaetcheongwang Karna.

Dark Rock Dragon Azhdahak.

Chaos Phantom Dragon. …Right?

That’s correct. These seven Spirits were brainwashed by Seongju, and their mana was polluted, turning them into monsters. The Water Demon Dragons and Wind Demon Dragons you’re familiar with are replicas created when Spirits were turned into monsters. The replicas are S-rank, and the monsters are SS-rank.

That Chaos fellow who appeared in China, if Miss Seolhwaryeong hadn’t caught them, probably 1.3 billion people would have been devoured, you know?

They are truly strong monsters. One monster is a terrifying opponent that requires a truckload of S-rank ability users to subdue. Fortunately, I took precautions with myself and two others in advance, so now there are only four executives left. We need to break their brainwashing to completely defeat Seongju and the mastermind behind them later.

So I went to catch that Gale fellow, and oh my, three of them popped out at once? I thought I’d die alone, so I called you all here. To dump the work on you.

Would you call it a strategic joint effort? I was almost sealed away, so I was already in a foul mood, *cough*. Don’t glare at me with such a fierce expression. I escaped on my own, didn’t I? Anyway, even if it’s not me or the other two whose brainwashing I broke, the remaining four are truly living with the mindset of destroying the world. Even at this moment, they’re probably only thinking about conquering Earth. Though Fenrir being hidden in the British Royal Family was truly unexpected.

Who knows? The others might also be hiding behind some government, organization, or institution.

So, in preparation for any unforeseen circumstances, I sought the help of many of you. Ah, *cough*. Just a moment.

* * *

I moistened my throat with the strawberry latte placed in the tumbler, then raised my hand.

“Does anyone have any questions up to this point?”

Everyone raised their hands.