Chapter 77 - The Darkness of the Night 2
Sanji suddenly closed his holo-screen and frowned slightly.
"Well, this is troublesome. Those little girls have been captured by The Cardinals."
When Sanji mentioned the name of that group, everyone's expression changed, even Draco.
Naturally, he knew of The Cardinals. They were the number 7 top mafia group in the city. Of course worldwide, they weren't much, but still, a top mafia group in one city was quite the headache, especially a city as large as this one.
The Sanguigno Brothers became solemn and looked to Draco to see what he wanted to do next. Akainu frowned as well and sighed while scratching his temple.
Draco simply smiled and raised a hand up. Everyone's eyes sub-consciously followed that appendage, wondering what he wanted to do with it.
However, when they saw scales erupt over his hand as it transformed into a reptilian caw, they were astounded. Control was one thing, but metamorphosis was another!
So he was a superhuman!
Of course, this was just a rudimentary transformation. If Draco wanted, he could transform into a Dragonoid, but doing so would consume too much energy. After all, his bloodline's potency was too high.
If a normal Lucifer Lineage member was a Mitsubishi Eclipse, Draco was like a Koenigsegg Agera. While it was faster, better and overall more powerful than an Eclipse, the Agera also had extremely high consumption of fuel, as well as requirements.
A normal Lucifer Lineage member would have to consume a lot of food to refuel their bloodlines, making their appetites and metabolism atrocious. It went true for every Lineage member probably.
However, normal food wasn't pure enough for Draco. Similar to how an owner of a Koenigsegg would use the best and most suitable fuel for his engine - lest he damage it - Draco required something better than what others took.
NuSmoothies! He had to subsist on just those from now on!
Unlocking the Bloodline came with heavenly benefits, but it also had its limitations and costs.
This further buttressed how badly Draco needed money. It was why he used only Control to penetrate this base. The same went for Eva and Local Lord probably.
With their high Bloodline purities, normal food had limited effect on them. Their Lineages probably provided them with the best 1st Grade NuSmoothies on a daily basis.
Otherwise, why would Eva use Control much more often than her Bloodline, if the Bloodlines were so overpowered?
Transforming his hand took little no energy, enough that his powerful vitality could replenish it almost immediately. If we were going to give the Bloodline a stat, we 'd call it Mana, or MP.
Mana had a base, quantifiable stat as well as a stat for MP regen. If Draco's mana was say, 950, his MP regen would be 9.5 points per second, which was not too bad. After all, the normal Lineage member would have between 100-200 points with a regen of 0.5 per second.
However, the problem was that Draco's 'spells' were too costly to cast. That was why he needed NuSmoothies to recover it quickly. So we could classify NuSmoothies as MP recovery potions.
He flicked his finger, and a sharp sound echoed in the surroundings. Before anyone could see what exactly happened, they heard a melting sound. When they looked back, they blanched when they saw a thick green goop of acid melting the walls like it was sugar in hot water.
What a potent acid! It was even stronger than most types of toxic compounds that were currently known. One should know that the material used to construct this house wasn't just simple stone, but a specially developed mixture that could make these relatively thin walls as dense as a fort's wall.
Of course, Draco was only displaying some rudimentary tricks. He had much more he could do, but to waste it just for a demonstration wasn't worth it. This was more than enough for now.
The Sanguigno Brothers took a deep breath and their eyes glinted with resolve and ferocity. Draco hadn't said anything, but the saying 'actions speak louder than words' wasn't simple.
By displaying what most people would hide desperately to they, The Sanguigno Brothers, this displayed trust as well as confidence. Trust, in that he believed in their dignity and quality of character well enough to freely share such a secret without hesitation.
Confidence because he was showing them that Cardinals or not, top rank mafia or not, they would perish under his feet if they did not submit like the dogs they were!
This lit a flame in the heart of The Sanguigno Brothers and their eyes became red. As they looked at Draco, there was no longer any reservedness or hesitation! In their eyes, he was no different than one of their own!
Draco's heart moved, although his scalp tingled a bit. To be stared at in such a way by so many dudes was… truly, one could describe the feeling, but only experiencing it would allow one to understand.
Akainu put out his cigar, slowly. "Ready up the cars boys. We have a job to do."
The fellows roared with excitement and passion, rushing out to gather weapons and equipment, as well as prepare the transportation and other miscellaneous items.
Draco drank his whiskey quietly, content to wait it out. The reason why he wasn't in a rush to rescue the twins was that he had realized something startling about Jada's clairvoyance.
It could be called a weakness in a way. It seemed she was unable to ascertain percentile probabilities involving Bloodlines. Why did Draco think so?
Firstly, she had stated that he had a 100% survival chance. One might think that it was Draco's bloodline that allowed him to survive, but it wasn't. The Mysterious Boss was long aware of his intrusion, probably chosing to play with him in such a way in order to invoke his rage.
The end goal was the same as what the AI had been assisting him with previously, which was breaking his Bloodline seal. He was never set to die, that whole creepy saga was just a bunch of theatrics.
Secondly, his success rate was 100%. Naturally following the above mentioned logic, the AI and the Mysterious Boss did not mind sharing the source code with him. He had faced the decision to ravage Amber and turn her into a plaything, sp naturally he would be able to take everything from the lab as he wanted.
But he didn't.
Hence his 100% failure rate, which was self-imposed. It had nothing to do with circ.u.mstances, but purely his own choice. After having his Bloodline freed, it could be said that right after Riveting Night, the AI and its mysterious developer were Draco's greatest benefactors and supporters, though they were strongly impartial in the game world.
How could he have the face to share the source code around after that? Could $3,000,000 really be compared to the favor that was done for him?
Not only that but the fanfare from breaking his Bloodline seal was negated, since he was arguably in another world at the time. As it stood, not even Eva was aware that he was now back in power.
This was a even greater boon, because it allowed Draco to increase his control over his Bloodline.
For comparison, in terms of raw power, he was a 10 while the main family line of the Lineages were a 2. However in terms of skill and control, he was a 0.1 while they were all a 5.
Another comparison is comparing an Agera to an Eclipse. In terms of raw speed, the Agera would leave the Eclipse so far behind that it may just fall through a wormhole in time and return to the past.
However, if the race track was made into a circuit that had difficult turns and maneuvers, the inexperienced Agera driver could only walk the road of afterlife after he crashed the car.
It was the same here. He could muster an insane amount of raw power, but majority of his prowess would be spread and wasted, a lot of energy needlessly consumed to do less.
Draco's mind returned to his previous train of thought after this silent musing. He believed Jada was unable to see anything related to the bloodlines because one of her predictions was wrong.
It was neither the success rate or the failure rate but… the survival rate!
It wasn't 100%!
It was only 100% if one considered the special relationship that was building between the mysterious developer and Draco.
However, when his body had been rebuilt by his bloodline, there was a 10% chance that he would never have woken up, not due to the Bloodline's weakness, but due to the weakness of his own mind.
It was his Bloodline that communicated this to him, so he was totally sure he wasn't wrong.
His true chances for survival were 90%!
Yet Jada said 100%!
What else could that mean except Draco's current conclusion? Of course, it might be something else, but Draco felt really sure about this.
The real world didn't have something like State of Being, but Draco reasoned that he - or any member of the Lineage - had a far higher State of Being than a common human.
Even special people like Jada and Jade were far below them. It was like trying to use the Divine Eyes of Caelo to peek into the mind of Qiong Qi or the Elf King. It was impossible!
"Brother Draco, we're ready to go."
Akainu's voice roused Draco from his analysis, as he noticed that the boys were strapped with the best weapons available to them. They all had ferocious smiles on their faces, as if they couldn't wait to get into battle.
Normally, when a weaker force moved out to attack or defend against a stronger force, they would be incomparably nervous and hesitant.
However, these freaks looked like despite their respect for Draco, they might just leave him behind if he didn't hurry up. Seeing their enthusiasm, how could Draco be a mood killer?
He downed the rest of his whiskey and stood up with a smile.
"Let's move out."
The fellows cheered again and set out to the convoy that was arranged in front of the house. All the other mafia groups that were based on the same street were abuzz with activity.
Meetings were held and satellites were activated. The Sanguigno Brothers hadn't moved out in a long while and seeing the whole crew mobilize like this, made everyone feel like a storm was brewing.
That wasn't even considering the fact that just an hour or more ago, a fellow had performed inhuman feats and broken through their unparalleled defense with ease.
Obviously, these mafia groups weren't idiots. For Draco to break into their base first, and then for the whole group mobilize like this, it was obvious he had taken over the group as his subordinates.
To this, these other groups could only feel envy and depression. A powerful figure like Draco leading them would easily see them rising the ranks, even surpassing some global crime groups that were almighty under heaven.
Just what was good about those bunch of idiots who loved themselves more than others?
.........…
Jada and Jade were in a comfortable room with expensive furnishing. Based on the floor they were located in, they were probably in a castle. It was probably one of those old castles from the medieval era that was bought out by the group to use as a base.
The design was extremely modern though, with the latest tech as well as the latest interior design implementation for its aesthetics.
On a sofa sat Jade, who was meditating quietly, her breathing measured and her mind calm. Opposite her was Jada, who was fidgety and downcast.
They had been captured by The Cardinals. These were a group of religious terrorists that used this mafia group as a source to acquire funding for their purposes.
They had once tried to force Parkins under them, but had been taught a heavy lesson. Realizing they could do him no harm, they decided to let matters drop on the surface but the truth was, they were always seeking a chance to get even.
The only problem was how to either destabilize Parkin's business or gain a hold over him. The first was extremely difficult because it wasn't Parkins alone who was scary, but the mission providers.
Imagine if they tried to mess with Draco and led him to fail the quest. The 'Vernitia Alliance' would report upwards, and by the end of the week, this mafia group would no longer exist.
Gaining a hold over him had also seemed next to impossible since his only family, his twin sisters, were always present in his fortified base.
The Cardinals had to stew on their anger for the longest time, biding and waiting for a chance to pop up.
Lo and behold, the twins came out with a fixer to do a mission. Since they hadn't officially signed up for the mission, the providers would do nothing to them if they captured them.
As for the fixer, he could only stew in his anger and foolishness. It was not their concern.
Despite being in a seemingly comfortable reception, which was no different from what was given noble guests, Jada and Jade were not so foolish to think that their fates would be anything good.
On the lower end of the scale, they would probably be used a ransom for Parkins in order to damage his business. At the high end, they would be tortured and killed.
Neither was a preferable outcome.
With Jada's prediction earlier, it was clear that the later was more likely. How could the passionate and emotional Jada be calm at such a time?
Jade realized all this and more. However, minus her neutral demeanor, majority of her calmness stemmed from Draco's powerful promise. She wholeheartedly believed that they would be fine and without a scratch.
Since she had nothing to do, she might as well meditate in the meantime.
Jada too felt the same, which was why she was mopey and not hysterical with fear. She was mostly worried about Draco. The Cardinals were a strong group that wouldn't necessarily bow down to a Control master.
She couldn't remain calm at the thought of anything bad happening to Draco while rescuing them. The fact that Draco was the cause of all this didn't even cross her mind.
She had placed herself as the trouble-invoking party while Draco was the trouble-resolving party. It was their fault that he would have to go through all this.
Sigh, the thinking of some girls was truly…
A knock sounded on their door and Jade's eyes opened slowly. Jada's expression changed as she remained quiet. After a few knocks, the person on the other side of the door called out.
"Are madams Jada and Jade available?"
Jada's expression became frosty as her tone became unwelcoming. "No! Get lost!"
Instead of getting angry, the voice behind the door simply entered and it was revealed to be a… woman! It was a young woman their age, who was extremely busty, yet of medium height.
Her looks were extremely good and her body was curvy. She wore a tight black dress that further outlined her curves, invoking the raw l.u.s.t of any onlooker.
Her skin was pale and her eyes were like almonds. Her blond hair was shoulder length, yet tied into a short ponytail. Her eyes were a light hue of black, making her face look attractive in a bizarre way.
She giggled as she walked into the room, her voice a light tinkle that sounded mischievous and girly. When Jada's expression landed on her, an expression of utter loathing showed up.
Even the immovable Jade frowned heavily when she saw this girl.
That was because, she was the daughter of The Cardinal's mafia boss. She was above everyone else but below one within this group, and her power as well as her privileges were unmatched.
Truth be told, she hadn't even harmed a hair on Jada and Jade's heads, yet for them to hate her so much, one could only wonder what she had done.
"Hey there, beautiful sisters. Is there room for one more?" the black-clad girl asked with her hands held behind her in a cute pose.
Jade simply ignored her, but Jada didn't have such high self-control. When she was with Draco, her fiery nature was suppressed due to her attraction and his status.
In front of this girl she loathed, her suppressed powers were boosted 100 fold!
"Dog-like bitch, why do you disturb us so? Can you not see that the smell of your shit is preventing us from respiring? Do everyone a favor and bath in a pool of acid, you piece of f.u.c.k."
One would never ever dream that such a cute and pretty girl like Jada, who looked so lovable and refreshing, would be able to spout such dirty vulgarities. Even some hoodlums would blush with shame.
Her words were absolutely venomous and even Jade watched Jada with a bit of surprise. Damn, her sister was really incensed this time.
The black-clad girl didn't seem bothered in the least. She chuckled and sat right beside Jada, her soft and smooth hands beginning to caress her body.
Jada pushed her off, but it seemed like the black-clad girl was unwilling to let go. Her hands began to roam Jada's body and her face became slightly intoxicated.
"LET GO OF ME!" Jada screamed while using all her force to get rid of the black-clad girl.
Eventually, the black-clad girl managed to restrain her l.u.s.t and retreat, but not too far. She sniffed the scent of Jada's body like a shark smelling blood, her drool beginning to leak.
One could see her n.i.p.p.l.es harden on her huge chest, telling of her immense arousal.
Before she could pounce on Jada again, a lackey burst into the room with a panicked expression.
"T-This is bad! Y-Young Mistress, the Sanguigno Brothers are here to fight us to the death and the brought out their full arsenal!"
Instantly, the l.u.s.t was beaten from the black-clad girl as her expression became slightly fearful and difficult.
"Damn, how could this happen? Are the Sanguigno Brothers mad? They might be able to bring us down, but it would be a pyrrhic victory at best!"
The black-clad girl couldn't understand this. Just what were those fools thinking?
However, the lackey became even more fearful here. "N-No Young Mistress… that isn't the worst part… The Sanguigno Brothers are being led by…by a young Control master!"
"WHAT?!?"