< 164. Hate to Hate (2) >
"Representative, as per the headquarters' request, we have closed all terminals around the Earth except for one. Currently, the prisoner units controlled by the headquarters are conducting operations together with the existing terminal security personnel."
The tentacled creature slowly blinked its eyelids in response to the report. Dotes understood that this gesture indicated acknowledgment.
The position of Earth's representative is primarily political, dealing with dispatched dragons and various national governments.
In contrast, prisoner control is managed directly by the headquarters through long-distance communication. In other words, directing the prisoners flocking to various terminals is beyond Del's authority.
Del's role is simply to cooperate.
"Um, but…"
"What is it?"
Dotes hesitated.
"I'm asking out of curiosity."
Evolved from avians, he fidgeted with his white feathers as he organized his thoughts.
The princess observed this and thought that such beings were preferable to mammals. Especially compared to the unbearable repulsion when seeing humans.
"If we summarize this operation led by the headquarters, it boils down to spreading the prisoners across terminals worldwide in preparation for Asif-666's arrival, doesn't it?"
Two things can be inferred from this.
Firstly, the headquarters is certain that Asif-666 will attempt to escape from Earth.
Secondly, the headquarters currently has no idea of Asif-666's whereabouts.
"This operation seems to be the type chosen when there's no way to estimate Asif-666's current location."
The headquarters does not know his whereabouts.
"I checked the protocols for escapee situations… Yes, unbelievably, such protocols do exist. According to them, other prisoners should hold out until the headquarters' military force arrives while being surrounded by them. It appears to be based on the assumption that they can be tracked unconditionally."
Dotes expected that this operation would be applied against Asif-666 as well.
Unless he was a dragon or an ancient race, he wouldn't be able to flee across Earth via teleportation.
Even if he did manage to escape in that manner, there would be numerous ways to pursue him.
However, this operation…
"I cannot understand it. Regardless of the situation, how can the headquarters not know the prisoners' current location?"
Although real-time communication monitoring or thought reading is impossible in the outer regions…
At least the location can be determined.
It's only natural.
"If they don't know where they are, they can't issue commands through the astral network in real-time. Locating them is fundamental to communication. Without knowing their location, you cannot issue mission orders."
Even with an escape, this wouldn't change. Prisoners are given artificial bodies, which essentially act as signal transmitters. Moreover, Dotes suspected that some form of identification might be attached to their souls.
The princess, who had been listening quietly, spoke.
"I don't know the details either. Perhaps… Asif-666 has the ability to evade such 'dual tracking systems,' or has found a new way to do so."
"Ah… so you don't know either, Representative?"
Dotes asked for confirmation before stepping back.
"…"
The tentacled creature fell into thought for a moment.
Pop!
It immediately executed spatial transference.
'The secrecy of the Committee is astonishing. Even low-ranking officials have core and fundamental information meticulously concealed.'
Pop!
She entered a private spatial area that only she could access.
In the center was a room she had carefully transported when dispatched to Earth.
In the middle of the room lay a sleeping homunculus. The princess approached the man-shaped figure with closed eyes. Del, unable to see souls, confirmed through devices that it was still an empty shell.
She looked at it with regret.
'I never imagined the Kabaite would go this berserk.'
As a result, the Plan A she had prepared for him, which was to collect talents and fairly win freedom, had to be abandoned.
'Then I have no choice but to go with Plan B.'
Although there had been significant changes in her circumstances, Del still didn't believe he could fight and win against the entire Committee. She didn't think he could live with constant pursuit forever either. Even if it were possible, such a life would be exceedingly difficult.
So she considered finding a way to free herself from the pursuit.
The second plan she initially conceived would be applicable.
Swish!
A thin filament sprouted like a new shoot from the thick tentacle and reached towards the homunculus's face. Just before touching the skin, it stopped and hesitated.
'Indeed, it's not like him. There's a sense of repulsion.'
Why does Endellion have an extreme aversion to mammals, especially humans, and find them disgusting?
Evolutionary biologists hypothesize that Endellion evolved in isolation from humans for an extremely long time compared to other ancient races.
The genetic memory of those beings perceives the monkey-like species as too 'alien.' Logically inexplicable, they also regard humans as small yet 'dangerous.'
Alien and dangerous.
In other words, disgusting.
The first encounter Endellion had with them in ancient times was probably much later than the experiences of Kabaite or Todd.
She thought while looking at the homunculus.
'An identification tag on the soul.'
She realized that Dotes's speculation was somewhat correct.
The Committee attaches tags to the souls of prisoners.
Yet, the fact that they cannot find him means…
'Did they temporarily overpower it to disable its function? Or did they completely destroy it?'
If it's the former, it's manageable, but if it's the latter, it's a serious problem.
The second plan was at risk of collapsing.
The princess of Endellion decided.
'I need to find him quickly!'
After finishing his meal, Min-jun looked into the void with a sense of satisfaction.
'I wonder how much chaos the Committee is causing by now.'
They must be putting all their efforts into finding him using the Earth's prisoners. He could gauge the atmosphere by checking the information network used to relay orders to the prisoners, but that method was currently completely blocked.
It wasn't all bad. Just as Min-jun couldn't check on them, they couldn't detect his location either.
He checked the time.
'Shall I head out soon?'
He had intentionally filled his stomach before heading to the meeting place.
Just as he was about to move…
=By the way.=
The frying pan, transformed into a sword shape in his hand, asked.
=You said you wouldn't be eating dragons anymore, didn't you?=
Min-jun turned his head. There lay the massive, fainted brain dragon.
On Earth, it went by the name Raymond Wong.
This dragon had been plagued by nightmares lately. Dreams of shadows piercing his entire body and a fountain of blood filling the cave. And when he woke up, he was just a limp, powerless mess.
It made sense given how much life force he was losing.
Whoosh!
When Min-jun flicked his fingers, a small shadow mass darted through the air. It landed with a snap on the dragon's neck wound, stopping the flow of blood. Min-jun cleaned up the surroundings and replied.
"The vow was to find a way not to eat dragons in the future. It's not something that can be accomplished overnight."
=But… you said you couldn't eat Jenkinson.=
"Right, Jenkinson."
It was akin to devouring Adkiel. Just thinking about it evoked a sense of revulsion.
Of course, I know. This is a decision based on abstract and emotional grounds that cannot be measured by logic.
Dragons with attachment cannot be consumed, but dragons without attachment can be?
I have pondered this once before, but there is no clear answer. I can only continue to carry out what must be done and what is necessary without ignoring it. He needed to consume dragon blood now, and in his hands was a brainwashed Elder Dragon.
If there were a dragon rights protection organization opposing the consumption of dragons, it would be an ideal mindset to label him a hypocrite and criticize him.
But such an organization does not exist in the world, and even if it did, Minjun probably wouldn't care much.
'At this rate, it will be too late.'
Minjun snapped out of his reverie and immediately moved.
Pop!
In an instant, the surrounding scenery changed. The dim lair of the brain dragon disappeared.
"······!"
Before him stretched the mountains and forests that made up most of the New Territories in Hong Kong.
It was a sight that briefly reminded him of the past. Back when dragons in their early stages of evolution were much smaller than they are now. When they would peacefully hunt, soaring over the dense forests stretching beyond the horizon.
And under the shadows of the trees stood a blond man.
"Ah!"
The man froze upon seeing Minjun. Shock was evident in his red eyes. He struggled to speak, opening and closing his mouth several times.
Finally, he managed to shout.
"Minjun!"
He approached with a mix of joy and astonishment.
The prisoner, who had thought he would not see his friend again for some time, greeted him unexpectedly earlier than anticipated.
"Hello? Jenkins. It doesn't seem like it's been long enough to say that."
"Oh my god."
The Elder Dragon polymorphed into a human repeatedly checked the barrier he had set up.
There were no cracks or breaches. It was a precaution to avoid the Committee's surveillance.
The secret meeting today must not be discovered by them.
But how did this friend appear so easily?
"Impressive. I was ready to open the door if I saw signs of someone approaching from outside the barrier, but you teleported directly inside."
Then, with a darker expression, he asked.
"Seeing that you managed to break through, does this mean the barrier might not be sufficient to evade the Committee's eyes?"
"Not quite. This should be enough."
Reassured by his words, the dragon inquired about Minjun's well-being.
"Are you okay? What's actually going on?"
If it became known that an escaped convict and a candidate for Dragon Lord were meeting like this, the repercussions would be unmanageable.
From Jenkins's perspective, it would be wise to distance himself from Minjun and cease interest in his movements. Politically, it was the right decision.
But he simply couldn't do it. How many times had Minjun helped him out of crises?
"You seem to have changed in some way."
Even when they last met in front of the shopping center, there had been something strange, but now the sense of pressure was even more intense. Jenkins instinctively sensed the difference.
Looking at Minjun, he felt both unfamiliarity and familiarity simultaneously.
What could it be?
He realized as he dug through his memories. When he was very young... the feeling he had when he first saw his mother, who was already an Elder Dragon, after breaking out of his egg, was similar.
The overwhelming feeling of witnessing a being so great that it defied his own standards.
But why does this feeling come from a friend?
'On the other hand, that strange feeling has disappeared.'
The heavy presence had intensified, but the sinister aura he had felt that day had vanished.
Looking back, Minjun's eyes had been very peculiar. There had been a trace of madness in his gaze, as if he was about to cause a major incident.
Jenkins couldn't guess the simple reason for this clear difference.
Unlike that day, today...
Minjun's belly was full.
"I have a request."
Minjun, who had deliberately filled his belly to meet his friend in a clear state of mind, said.
"Sure, just tell me. I'll prepare whatever is possible."
"I think I need to leave Earth for a while."
Jenkins was taken aback. Although it was something he had anticipated, the likelihood of it happening was very slim.
"You've seen the news, right? The terminals are completely shut down. Even the Incheon Terminal, which I have a stake in, is the same. The operation personnel cannot access it due to the surveillance by the prisoners, and the guidance equipment is locked and inoperable."
"There's still one place left."
"New York?"
Jenkins knew that soon the Committee's deployed forces would arrive there.
In preparation for that, essential personnel were at work, and the equipment was functioning properly.
"Certainly... if you manage to obtain the emergency jump code, escaping isn't impossible."
Just like the plan of the princess of the species resembling crocodiles, the Sutans.
"Understood. I will discreetly look into whether there's a way to help you escape."
Minjun shook his head.
"No, I'll find that method myself. What I need now is a different kind of help. Cooperation from you and several other dragons."
"Cooperation from multiple dragons?"
"Yes. How is the proposal to advance the Dragon Lord election going?"
This friend seems to know everything, even while on the run.
Although Jenkins was curious about why he brought it up suddenly, he answered.
"Raymond has suddenly become very friendly toward me, so if we hold an early election now, my chances of winning have increased. Therefore, other candidates are fiercely opposing it. They're sticking to the original schedule to buy time and secure more votes."
"Who are the opponents?"
Jenkins tilted his head but provided Minjun with the names of several dragons.
Then he asked what he had been wondering about.
"So you need help from the dragon kin as a collective to escape? It seems like it would be more dangerous the more people know about it."
"It would be a pity to just run away like this, wouldn't it? It's a rare opportunity."
"A rare opportunity?"
"The opportunity for the Committee's forces to be concentrated in one place."
Minjun did not forget the vow he made on the day he obtained the 'Blade'.
He had something to return to the Committee.
Jenkins was astonished and shouted.
"You don't mean!"
Minjun recalled the news he had seen today.
Terrorism?
Sometimes the media, like a mouse catching a cow's backward steps, hits the mark.
"From this moment on, dragons must secretly assist me."
Jenkins still couldn't understand.
"It was the dragons who left Inayis in such a state. It's awkward for me to say this, but... Dragons without a Dragon Lord are selfish beings who won't even look at anything unrelated to their own interests. They're indifferent to my suggestion to actively protest and take collective action against the terrible things she suffered because of the Committee. They think paying off political debts is enough."
"What if it becomes a matter of their own safety?"
"What?"
"If the dragon kin are not at a point where they can resume full-scale conflict with the Committee immediately, but they cannot simply let it go. So how about I make a scene on the water? And if the dragons need to secretly support me from below the surface? If other dragons realize that now is the time to do so?"
"What do you know?"
Minjun calmly replied.
"First, you need to understand why and at whose hands the Dragon Lord was killed."
End of chapter 164