Chapter 532: Other People
On the vast cave floor of the Dark, a green Ghost Gate flickered, and a girl clad in a ghost robe slowly walked out of it. Her face was filled with a dark, incomprehensible expression. Her deep gaze looked towards Kurokawa Iori, who was slowly emerging from a mass of black and red flesh in the distance, her mind replaying what Kurokawa Iori had said to her mid-air earlier. Kurokawa Iori’s mind was not normal.
This was, of course, beyond doubt. Or rather, none of those who had managed to reach the upper echelons of the [Dark] organization and whom she had come into contact with could be considered normal. Even so, as her boss with whom she had been interacting for so long, everything her companion Kurokawa Iori said still held a certain degree of credibility.
Kazumi felt that she had speculated about the [Dark] organization, a gathering place for lunatics, with her greatest malice, but she truly hadn’t expected that such a meeting would lead her superior to earnestly tell her something that carried the possibility of not returning alive.
It couldn’t possibly be some entertaining battle royale event, or a plot straight out of a novel where an unpredictable higher-up would kill anyone they took a disliking to, could it?
But such things were mere plot devices in novels. In reality, even a mentally unstable person like Kurokawa Iori, or Snake Cang Gui, could still communicate and exercise a certain degree of restraint. Otherwise, if people were killed on a whim, who would do the menial tasks for you? Working also required time and energy.
So, was the meeting itself inherently dangerous for her? Or was it because of the reason the ‘Master’ Kurokawa Iori had mentioned earlier wanted to speak with her privately?
Quickly dismissing the two slightly far-fetched possibilities from her mind, Kazumi silently followed Kurokawa Iori’s footsteps ahead, lowering her head and pondering her current predicament.
It was impossible to have had a conflict with Kurokawa Iori. For a girl with barely any work experience, she understood the minds of those riddle-speaking leaders all too well. The reason they didn’t explain things clearly was to enjoy the subordinate’s attempts to decipher their thoughts, or to fulfill their wish for “smart” subordinates. If you naively went up and asked a question at that moment, you would receive a set of downgrades in evaluation. As for the specific reason, Kazumi had already pinpointed [Extreme Cold], the higher-up who wanted to speak with her. After all, even if Kurokawa Iori and the others accompanying him went too far, it wouldn’t extend to taking her life. However, this high-ranking official, who was sealed away and belonged to the general’s ranks, might have some strange preferences. From Kurokawa Iori’s words, this general was above him in both combat power and organizational status.
“After all… I did save his life…”
Letting out a sigh of helplessness in her heart, Kazumi stopped her useless mental deductions.
The main reason was the immense gap in combat power. If it were someone like [Takeru Kamikami], who was foolish, she would still have the trump card of hiding in her territory if she couldn’t win. But for a top five elder like this, whom the Heroes Association could only seal, who knew if he possessed the ability to break through space like Gen Shun.
However, attending this meeting was unavoidable. On one hand, this General [Extreme Cold] had specifically requested her presence, and on the other hand, she had just returned a significant favor to Kurokawa Iori, so she really had no way to refuse.
“I’ll take it one step at a time.”
Kazumi truly hated this feeling. This feeling of weakness and powerlessness truly made one want to go mad.
Kurokawa Iori was very familiar with the area and walked purposefully towards the entrance of the huge, dome-shaped building.
An eyeball wrapped in blood threads met the iris scanner at the entrance, and the two successfully entered the interior of the massive building.
Pure white metallic glass walls were covered with futuristic light membranes and tubes, making one feel as if they had traveled to a world of the future.
The girl slowly followed Kurokawa Iori down the corridor. The empty corridor only echoed with their sparse footsteps.
It was like traversing a maze. The surrounding identical corridors seemed to block any retreat. After five minutes, the two finally arrived at a huge metal door. Just as Kurokawa Iori flipped his palm and extended a tentacle towards the sensor by the door, a deep, ancient voice slowly emanated from the wall.
“Lord Kurokawa.”
The sudden voice caught the attention of the two. The previously smooth metal wall distorted, and an old man, wearing a suit with white hair and beard, emerged from the wall as if walking on flat ground, revealing half of his body.
“Lord Kuromon’s intention is that accompanying personnel are not allowed to participate in today’s meeting.”
The old man emerged from the wall, looked at Kurokawa Iori, nodded slightly, and spoke again.
“Huh?”
The old man’s words made Kurokawa Iori frown. He raised his right hand, pushed up his glasses, and hesitantly looked at the other party.
“Because several Lords are present today, Lord Kuromon has temporarily decided to change the meeting content. Please understand, Lord Kurokawa.”
The old man’s gaze swept over Kazumi behind Kurokawa Iori, then looked at Kurokawa Iori, a hint of a helpless smile appearing on his face as he explained.
After a moment of silence, Kurokawa Iori also nodded and turned to look at the girl behind him.
“I’ll call you after it’s over then.”
“Okay.”
At this moment, Kazumi knew better than to ask more questions. She simply nodded obediently and watched Kurokawa Iori walk into the slowly opening metal door.
After Kazumi stood in place for a while, the wall beside her distorted again, and the old man emerged from the wall, looking at the bewildered girl.
“Lord Kurokawa’s subordinate, [The Hall]?”
“Yes, it’s me.”
“Please follow me to the lounge. This time, I can only ask you to wait there.”
“Okay, thank you for the trouble.”
The old man made an inviting gesture, and Kazumi nodded and followed. Although his tone was cold, he maintained the necessary politeness.
The path to the lounge was still a complex and repetitive corridor, similar to before. Soon, the two arrived at a metal door almost identical to the previous one.
“Then, please, Miss [The Hall], rest inside. You can also interact with others. After all, being able to come as a deputy means you are a future executive.”
The old man’s words sent a flicker of caution through Kazumi’s heart, but she quickly felt at ease.
After all, even though he appeared to be an elderly man who was like a butler for the underground headquarters, the ability to easily pass through walls with just his hand was evident. Coupled with the experience brought by his age, it was impossible to tell her gender even if he could see through the protective cloak.
However, the latter half of what the old man said did pique the girl’s interest. She nodded without saying much and walked towards the slowly opening door with her head lowered.
“Others?”
