Just had Miko expected, there were many who immediately objected when news that he was Tia’s Proxy reached their ears.

“What?! Are you sure?!

The one who shouted was an elder in the Dragna, and someone who arguably held power second only to the five branch leaders, Krow Dragna.

“Yes, my lord. We have the testimonies of several of our people. Also, Tiamat’s voice echoed throughout the empire announcing Miko as her Proxy.”

A servant reported.

The servant was currently speaking to Krow via satellite. Krow’s facial expression was clear on the monitor.

“This is completely unacceptable.”

Krow said with an ugly expression.

“Countless people have paid tribute to that woman, and she ignored them all. But now she chooses that abomination over all of my people?”

He gritted his teeth.

“With this, Nero has gained even more power in the clan. It’s now harder to overthrow him, unless I resort to desperate measures.”

He growled.

“That woman is as detestable as always.”

“Elder, how should we handle this?”

Asked the servant.

“Don’t do anything.”

Krow said.

“Huh?”

The servant was confused.

“What, did you expect me to order his assassination?”

Krow asked.

“Well….”

Krow laughed dryly. And then-

“Give me someone more competent to talk to. Even a retarded monkey is fine.”

“As you wish.”

Before the servant could respond, it felt something counting through its flesh.

“?!”

The last thing it saw was Krow’s cold eyes.

*Thud!*

His head soon fell from his shoulders and hit the ground. His blood slowly flowed from his severed neck, and stained the floor.

“Get rid of him. Just the sight of idiots like him spoils my mood.”

Krow said.

“Right away.”

A servant appeared behind the headless body with a short sword in his hand. It was stained with blood. The servant put away the weapon, and snapped his fingers. The headless body and its severed head immediately caught fire. Soon they were reduced to ashes, and even the blood evaporated without leaving a stain.

“I apologize for his incompetence my lord. I’m sure that he insulted you, when he expected such foolish actions from you.”

The servant bowed and said.

“Oh, so you understood why I said that he was incompetent?”

“Yes. The fact that he had thought that assassinating Miko was an option alone was enough to have him killed countless times over.”

Said the servant.

“If we had indeed tried to assassinate Miko at a time like this, it would only lead to our own downfall. Tiamat publicly announced him as her Proxy as a way to say that Miko was under her wing, and that he represented her. If we had attacked him after that, it would be like committing suicide.”

Krow looked pleased as he nodded.

“Excellent.”

He praised.

“Killing Miko would not only make the Primus Branch where his direct family belongs to, our enemy, but our goddess as well.”

“Then I suggest that we attack him indirectly.”

“That’s exactly what I had planned to do.”

“The best thing about this situation is that they are countless people who wants to kill Miko. That number should’ve increased since he’s been announced as a proxy. Find those people and lend them our support without them finding out about us. Keep an eye on them as well to make sure that everything goes as planned.”

“Yes, Elder.”

The servant said with a bow.

“In the meantime, I’ll be here with the rest of the elders and branch leaders.”

“Yes. Good luck.”

After that, the feed that displayed Krow was cut off.

“……….”

The servant stood there silently before talking out a phone and dialing a number.

“Yeah, it’s me. It’s a go.”

Meanwhile, Miko returned to the city under a disguise. The reason he did this was to avoid the unnecessary attention.

“I drew attention everywhere I went before, so I’m sure to draw massive attention now.”

He mumbled.

(Are you going to start gathering people now?)

Tia’s voice echoed in his head. Proxies shares a special connection with their God Parents that allows them to communicate telepathically with each other. They can even feel each other’s emotions if they’re strong enough.

“No. I need to carefully select them. I can’t just go around randomly recruiting others. That would destroy the quality of the group.”

Miko spoke so that only he could hear him.

(Oh, you’re prioritizing quality over quantity. That’s a good choice. No matter how much subordinates you have, it’s meaningless if they don’t serve any use.)

Tia said.

(If that’s the case, what about Momo?)

Miko shook his head.

“She’s too deeply connected to the clan. What if there comes a time when the clan and I are at odds? She’ll be forced to make a decision between us. I don’t want to put her through that kind of emotional stress.”

He said.

(But wouldn’t it be the same either way?)

Tia asked.

(Momo obviously treasures you greatly. I think it’s impossible for her to just obey an order to take your head without hesitating. She’ll be forced to pick you or the clan.)

“If I ever come at odds with the clan, I’ll make it so that she won’t have to choose. She’ll have to pick the clan in a heartbeat.”

Miko replied.

(And how are you going to do that?)

“I would push the clan to the brink of destruction, with no way out. If that happens, she’ll have to defend her home with everything she has.”

(…..Why does it sounds like you’re planning to go against the clan in the future?)

“I won’t deny the possibility of it happening.”

Miko replied.

“To be honest, I have no pride as a Dragna member; nor do I feel any attachment to the clan. As such, if push comes to shove, I won’t hesitate to turn on it.”

He said.

“I wouldn’t bat an eye at destroying this clan, or this country.”

(Well, I guess it’s understandable considering how they’ve treated you.)

Said Tia. She didn’t want Miko and the clan to be at odds in the future, but she couldn’t rule out the possibility of it happening.

(You speak as if you’re confident that you can destroy the clan though. It’s a global powerhouse you know? Even the strongest forces in the world have to think twice before facing it.)

Tia said.

(Can you really destroy it?)

“I can.”

Miko answered immediately and with certainty.

“I might can’t do it now, but I definitely can in the future.”

He added.

(Such confidence….Or should I say arrogance?)

“Call it hubris if you want. But remember that I once resolved myself to destroy the world. Even though it was a foolish and rash decision born from a spur of emotions, I had seriously planned it out.”

Miko said.

“In the three weeks that I resolved myself to do so, I killed dozens of people, all having connections to those who hold power in this Empire.”

He smiled.

“Do you get it, Tia? I was planning on making this Empire crumble from the inside and then invite vultures to feast on its half dead body, while I prepared to hunt those vultures afterwards.”

He said.

“I wasn’t kidding when I said I wanted to burn this world to the ground. I was going to do it.”

(….You’re a pretty dangerous kid, you know that?)

Tia said after a while. She knew that Miko wasn’t joking, he was definitely planning to destroy everything, all because of his mother’s tears.

Anyone who was willing to do that, the word dangerous was too light to describe them. They were simply insane, plain and simple.

“Hm?”

Miko suddenly stopped in the middle of the road.

“Hey, don’t just stop all of sudden! What if I had ran into you?!”

The person behind him complained.

Miko immediately turned around and grabbed them by the throat.

“H-Hey, what are you doing?!”

Said the person.

“…….”

Miko looked at the person in silence and crushed their neck like it was a twig.

“Kyaaa!”

This obviously caused a commotion immediately. People started screaming and shattering.

“Now then….”

Miko threw off the mantle he was wearing to his side.

“I’ve drawn a lot of attention to myself and my surroundings. Let’s see how you guys are going to attack.”

He said while looking around.

Soon he saw a group of people surround him, all while hiding their identities with masks.

“I see. So I’ve destroyed your chance at a sneak attack, and now you’ve chosen a frontal approach.”

Miko shook his head with disappointment.

“The group that tried to assassinate me when I was 6 was far better, and they were just a group of thieves.”

He said.

“How did he know?”

“Could there have been a leak?”

The masked attackers started speaking among themselves.

“Ah, that. You see, I’ve been targeted so much that I’ve developed a sixth sense for danger, or should I say my instincts became sharp through countless life and death situations.”

He shrugged.

“Any one that can make you feel better, I guess.”

He said.

“This monster is looking down on us!”

“Calm down. His teacher, the Midnight Witch was called back to the palace to discuss some important manners. There’s no one to protect him. This is the perfect chance to kill him.”

Said one of the attackers.

‘They know about Momo being called back…..They must have an informer in the clan. They’re probably working for that person as well.’

Miko thought after hearing the men’s words.

‘Should I capture them alive? No. They’re probably being helped by someone who hid their identities. I doubt they’ll know anything. Their low level of skills is proof of that.’

He smiled.

“They’re just disposable fodders.”

He spoke out loud.

The men heard that and instantly became enraged.

“Cocky brat!”

They all rushed towards him at the same time. Miko was instantly trapped with no where to run. They all drew weapons and charged up their magical attacks while approaching him. He stomped the ground and a wave of wind suddenly spread out and blew them all back.

“I haven’t fought in a while so I’m a bit rusty.”

Miko said while clenching his fists.

“How about I show you guys?”

Azure flames and electricity started dancing around his body.

“What kind of person you’ve messed with.”

He took a step and then disappeared from where he stood. The next time he appeared, he was in front of one of the attackers with his fist extending towards him.

*Bam!*

The attacker was hit square in the face. His mask shattered and the fist lodged itself into his face and instantly caused it to deform. The attacker’s body was propelled backwards like an arrow. His body instantly caught fire, while being assaulted with electricity at the same time. He died before his body hit the floor.

“……..”

There was a stifling silence among the attackers after seeing how quickly their comrade died.

“T-That’s impossible!”

One of them broke the silence after a while.

“He was far stronger than someone your age! We knew that you were a genius, that’s why we brought people who were at least twice as strong as the normal teenager!”

“Normal?”

Miko suddenly burst out laughing.

“You people have been calling me monster and abomination all my life, and you used normal means to measure me?”

He suddenly stopped laughing and put on a blank face.

“Are you retarded?”

All the attackers’ faces became hot from embarrassment when they heard that. However, they couldn’t refute his words.

“This is why I hate fodders.”

Miko started to walk towards them.

“S-Stay back!”

They all started to retreat. Miko watched them running away with ice cold eyes.

“Normally I would stop after they run away, but not now.”

He started chasing them with an unbelievable speed.

“I’m different now!”

He leaped in the air and appeared above two of the attackers. When they looked up behind them, their faces were immediately grabbed and their heads were smashed against the concrete when Miko landed.

“I’ve entered this stupid war, so I need to go to extreme measures to win it.”

*Bam!*

Their heads suddenly exploded after some electricity flowed inside them. Their blood splashed onto Miko’s face, who stood up ignoring it.

He looked at the remaining attackers.

“The world is cruel, it’s no place naïve and weak hearted.”

He stretched his hand out and the image of a black rose appeared behind him.

“In a world filled with monsters, only the greatest monster can stand above all.”

He snapped his fingers, and the chest of the men exploded. Their blood and flesh shattering everywhere formed a rose in the air momentarily before disappearing.

“Being born a monster myself, don’t you think I have the advantage?”

He turned his back and all the attackers fell dead, and bleed out on the ground. The gruesome display caused everyone around to look at Miko with fear. This time however, Miko didn’t ignore them and locked eyes with all of them.

“?!”

They all flinched when they saw his cold eyes and contrasting bright smile.

“Rejoice, "humans". The monstrosity that you’ve all been mocking has decided to finally take things a bit more seriously.”

He licked the blood that was flowing down his cheek.

“But just a little.”

He turned his back to them and started to walk away.

“Thanks for the words of encouragement over the years. They’ve made me who you see today.”

That day everyone there knew, they have indirectly caused the birth of an all new monstrosity the world has never seen before.

“It feels good to let loose every once in a while.”