D.I.O

Chapter 204

*** Change and Conflict ***

The Masters eventually suppressed the mechanical robots’ massacre, with the users appearing after being sent a new mission request two hours into the attack. However, by that point, the damage was already done. The number of people who died worldwide was close to 100,000. These weren’t casualties from a war zone or an underdeveloped country; they were from the epicenters of the modern world. The mechanical robots targeted and attacked areas with high [population densities], such as Seoul, the Liberation Monument Square in China, and the Eiffel Tower in Paris, which Merlin had visited in the past. Hence, most people couldn’t push aside the losses and reality as a [distant matter].

The world fell into a state of shock.

Outside of the mind-blowing number of losses, the most shocking aspect for most people was that they didn’t know or understand the identity of their ‘enemy.’

National organizations had retrieved the mechanical robots that invaded their respective countries and initially tried to contain the release of any information regarding the assailants. They knew that the level of technology possessed by the robots was beyond modern science. However, since many people got their hands on the mechanical robots’ parts during the chaos of battle, the truth was soon unveiled by various news organizations, and countless reporters began to write numerous articles on the subject.

Existence of mechanical robots that seemed like futuristic weapons… who was their creator?

There were many opinions, ranging from aliens to the deployment of a covert United States experimental war machine. Yet, nothing was clear, so all theories were pure speculation.

“And the Masters showing up presents another problem.”

At first, signs showed that some countries attempted to control the media narrative, but there were too many eyewitnesses due to the dense, high population levels where the robots attacked. Moreover, DIO Masters were often well-known individuals like professional athletes, so they were easily recognized by the general public. Furthermore, the Masters remembered what they had done, so it was impossible to hide what truly transpired.

As a result, Yongno watched the following news broadcast on his television.

/[Apologize Noblesse! Apologize!]

[The Noblesse, shrouded in so much secrecy, should reveal all the facts and compensate the victims!]

[Aliens, leave Earth!]/

On his screen, Yongno saw countless people demonstrating in front of Noblesse office branches spread across the globe. These people had assumed that the mechanical robots’ attack was related to DIO. Since these protestors possessed limited information, they couldn’t come to any other conclusion.

“Well, actually, they’re kind of right.”

After hearing Eunhye’s comment, Yongno nodded in agreement. She was correct. The protestors had reached their conclusion by luck, like a cow stepping backward and unintentionally killing a rat, but, in truth, if the Noblesse hadn’t launched DIO, the Legion’s terrorist activities wouldn’t have occurred.

“Although, if someone was truly concerned, they should have mentioned this issue from the start. Wasn’t the whole idea and execution of the futuristic virtual reality game shrouded in mystery? Shouldn’t people have spoken up sooner?”

The virtual reality game DIO, and virtual reality at large, was a concept humanity couldn’t have realized with its current level of technological and scientific development. It was strange that the United States and other powerful countries didn’t push or pressure the Noblesse organization to discover their secrets. As he reached this point in his thoughts, Yongno frowned.

‘Hmm. Perhaps… it could be that Noblesse did something to keep everyone quiet and at bay until now. There’s no way of knowing if they conducted mental interference like I did, right?’

An essential question remained.

‘Then why is it becoming an issue now? Even with such a massive population, running mental interference shouldn’t be impossible or challenging for the Noblesse… unless… perhaps….’

Yongno raised his head and looked at Eunhye, who tilted her head. Yongno felt that Eunhye’s response and expressionless face were cute, but he soon shook his head and said, “Eunhye, I’m going to use Magic Eyes on you and ask you to do something. Can you try refusing?”

“Refuse?”

“Yeah, say that you don’t want to do it.”

“That shouldn’t be difficult.”

After obtaining permission, Yongno began to gather magic power. Unlike in DIO, gathering and circulating magic power in reality was complicated. After activating the ‘Heaven’ seal engraved on his forehead, Yongno could mobilize the mana in the magic circle drawn on the back of his right hand. Then, he needed to exert his intended effect back through the ‘Heaven’ seal.

Ting!

With reddened eyes pulsing with aura, Yongno looked at Eunhye and stated, “Oh Eunhye, kiss me on the cheek.”

“…”

Eunhye stared at Yongno’s Magic Eyes without any reaction. Yongno couldn’t help but feel confused.

‘Did it work, or did it not work?’

Although Eunhye wasn’t refusing, Yongno couldn’t draw any conclusion because there were no tell-tale signs of Eunhye being affected by his Magic Eyes. However, when Yongno had thought up to here, Eunhye raised her arms.

“E-Eunhye, what… huh?!”

She grabbed Yongno’s head and kissed his lips.

“…!”

Completely taken aback, Yongno struggled to free himself from Eunhye’s grasp, but he couldn’t shake her off. Since he could use internal energy, he should have been able to easily subdue Eunhye with one hand, but for some reason, he felt overwhelmed.

“Uhm, uh, Eunhye, wait a minute… uh?!”

Yongno’s body suddenly became rigid; the soft feeling between his lips overtook him.

“Uh….”

Yongno’s body shook. He tried to resist, but his efforts weakened and then stopped altogether. His widened, surprised-filled eyes were slowly closing.

It was then that Eunhye stepped back.

“… It didn’t work on me.”

“W-what?”

“Your Magic Eyes didn’t work on me.”

“Oh, it didn’t? But… you… but… why….”

Thoroughly confused, Yongno stuttered, but Eunhye just watched the ongoing news broadcast without a change in expression.

“Uhm. Well. Okay. I guess my Magic Eyes isn’t working; it seems something is blocking it. Martial arts and other abilities don’t seem to be affected, so the fact that my Magic Eyes and its mental interference attacks aren’t working means….”

Yongno continued thinking… about the soft sensation he had felt moments ago.

‘No, that’s not it.’

Yongno shook his head to escape from his current thoughts. He had to focus on the party that was preventing mental interference but allowing talents and abilities. He thought it might be the transcendent he had previously met, the one that passed judgments like a judge. That transcendent was as deadly as Eunhye’s tongue, which could push past his lips and….

“Ah!”

“Yongno? Are you alright?”

“Hahaha! Uhm… hmm. Critical… a critical hit….”

Yongno muttered incomprehensible words and noises before he took deep breaths to control his chaotic mental state. Fortunately, his Golden Pill Immortal Technique had the side benefit of stabilizing his mind.

“Uh, anyway, can you help some more?”

“Sure.”

With Eunhye’s aid, Yongno learned about the newly created [Restrictions]. It was still possible to hypnotize people using his Magic Eyes, but it was limited to the realm of illusion; he could no longer control other people’s memories or minds. Since planting false memories was now much more complicated, Yongno concluded that it would be practically impossible to overpower each country’s influential figures to protect himself and Eunhye, as he did before.

‘The important issue is whether the memories and thoughts that I’ve already implemented are still in effect or if they’ve been released.’

Yongno began to organize his thoughts. It didn’t matter if his previous mental suggestions and effects were released, but if the people he had previously influenced remembered being [hypnotized by Yongno], Yongno would have to face severe backlash. The various powers that had protected him and Eunhye until now would likely start to strangle their necks.

“Then….”

Crackle!

Just as he was about to think of countermeasures, his television screen became distorted with static. It wasn’t a mechanical breakdown. Instead, a powerful jammer of some sort forcefully blocked the existing broadcast signal and took over the screen.

/[Ah. It's the first time I’ve spoken in public like this. Nice to meet you all. My name is Tan. You could say I’m DIO’s chief operator or president.]/

The new image on the screen showed a man in a bowler hat sitting on an antique-looking wooden table. Tan had never exposed his face to anyone aside from Yongno and a few other Masters, and he was one of the original founding members of the Noblesse Senate. Consequently, he wielded considerable influence among the Noblesse.

“What’s going on….”

Yongno never expected Tan would publicly present himself, so Yongno watched the television screen with a sense of nervousness. Eunhye also frowned, perhaps feeling the same way.

/[It’s been a bit noisy lately, but most of your assumptions are incorrect and unfounded. To say that we, DIO, orchestrated this attack is outrageous. Rather, I am saddened that you humans died in such large numbers.]/

Though Tan was explaining his side, the atmosphere he exuded and his tone of speech didn’t quite fit with his act of explaining something or commiserating with people who had lost loved ones. Instead, Tan’s preachy attitude likely enraged the victims’ families, no matter if the deaths were caused by Tan or not. As he watched Tan, Yongno gritted his teeth.

‘He’s completely abandoned the idea of hiding behind the scenes! The restraints are much looser than I thought!’

Once he understood that anything other than directly influencing humans was acceptable, Yongno modified his thinking about the Enforcers, the transcendent judges he had seen previously. The only thing that still puzzled Yongno was that the Enforcers had prevented his Magic Eyes’ mental interference.

‘No. I can’t be sure of this. I’ve only experimented on Eunhye… I guess I’ll have to widen the scope of my testing.’

Regardless of what Yongno was thinking, Tan continued.

/[Ah, there is one thing you all got right.]/ josei

Tan laughed.

/[We are aliens.]/

“He’s really exposing everything….”

It looked like Tan was highly entertained. His laid-back attitude and casual remarks were to the point of being dismissed as a joke. Yet, even so, no one watching the broadcast took his words lightly. The aura and energy that Tan’s image emitted weighed down on everyone watching.

/[Anyway, I need to get to the main point. Humans, especially Masters, listen carefully. This is an announcement.]/

The pressure Tan transmitted through the television screen was so powerful that it was hard to breathe properly. It wasn’t just a feeling; it was a clear, tangible pressure.

‘As expected, if someone is a transcendent, they don’t need spiritual pathways to utilize their powers. Well, those guys were able to use their powers freely on Earth when I saw them before, so it’s not too surprising.’

When an individual reached the level of a transcendent and gained a basic mana control ability, they could control mana itself in the natural world or materialize the power deep inside them. Thus, transcendents literally transcended Earth’s environmental penalties. This phenomenon occurred because transcendent beings were basically [Complete] existences.

/[There will be more attacks. This can’t be helped as long as DIO operates on Earth. If it is desired, we can close all DIO’s services immediately and leave. If that happens, my ‘enemies’ will no longer target you all.]/