Ikebukuro.

Mitsui Arashi had hidden the Group's office in this almost completely Chinese-dominated area.

With his financial resources, he should have been able to live somewhere more expansive.

For instance, the Mitsui Family's estate in Shikoku, where hiring hundreds of people to protect himself and building his own private kingdom wouldn't be a problem.

But he didn't choose to do that. The greed in his heart for Paradise made him stay in Tokyo, fantasizing that one day he would suddenly possess Superpower, and then everything would change.

A force more powerful than authority or wealth would be bestowed upon him.

Mitsui Arashi very much wanted to ascend to Paradise.

Ever since he learned of Paradise's existence, it had become a significant dream in his life.

Only those who ascend to Paradise could obtain eternal happiness.

This sentence was deeply engraved in his heart.

Yet, without a clear way to ascend to Paradise, he would never give up his current wealth and still needed to deal with the Group's myriad affairs every day.

It was just that his office wasn't as spacious as before; rather, it was above a Chinese Restaurant.

Probably, no one would think that underneath was a restaurant, and what should have been considered the restaurant owner's residence above had been converted by him into an office.

To avoid drawing attention, he didn't employ too many people inside his office, simply staffing other shops on the street with security personnel.

The dining guests were bodyguards; the shop owners were bodyguards.

If Dio showed up, these guards would naturally be useless. They were tasked with dealing with the martial artists who were gradually gathering in Tokyo.

This was to prevent himself from being harmed by those people.

And then there were the folks from Takizawa Group—until he snuffed out their last breath, he had to prevent them from launching a counterattack.

Mitsui Arashi finished a document about a company acquisition and stretched lazily.

He picked up the teapot to pour himself a cup of tea. Smelling the tea's fragrance, a relaxed expression appeared on his face.

Mitsui Arashi leisurely sipped his tea and was about to continue working.

Suddenly, the space in front of him twisted and then, in an instant, it opened up as if a butterfly emerging from its cocoon.

A Monster appeared before the space.

The Monster stood over two meters tall, with a dragon's head and a human-like body. Its upper body was muscular, its skin a yellowish-green, its eyes red as lamps, and its thick tail swung behind it.

It wore green shorts.

If I were a transmigrator, and well-versed in the anime world, I would have recognized this Demon's name as Holy Lord. Mitsui Arashi thought, though he wasn't, and thus didn't.

Given Dio's aloof attitude towards the conglomerates, showing up in that persona was simply too much trouble for Aozawa.

Aozawa decided to advance this event with another identity.

First, he used Will-o'-the-wisp to hypnotize the entrance to the Different World. Then, using time stop, he canceled Element Replacement, positioning himself, transformed as Holy Lord, at the entrance to fake an appearance from the Different World.

「...」

The space closed, but the dragon-headed, human-bodied Monster still stood there.

Sitting in his chair, Mitsui Arashi felt his limbs turn cold, and he couldn't even manage a scream.

Although the button to call for security was right under the table, he couldn't move an inch, fearing that any slight movement would cause the being to smash his head.

"You are one of this world's rich men, are you not?"

Aozawa deliberately spoke very slowly, feigning that he had just learned Japanese.

Mitsui Arashi, scared pale, nodded repeatedly. "Yes, whatever you desire, I can provide."

"Listen, I like powerful bodies. You have three days to gather a group of strong humans to fight each other."

Aozawa strode forward, his slow voice hammering at Mitsui Arashi's heart.

It made him dare not slacken in the slightest. He nodded. "No problem, I guarantee I'll complete your task!"

"I do not like it when people break promises."

Aozawa grabbed his shoulder.

Mitsui Arashi felt the dragon claw on his shoulder was as heavy as a mountain, almost crushing him; he didn't dare move an inch.

"If you dare break your promise, I shall extract your soul!"

Aozawa, intending to scare him, released the sound of Marked Detonation, instantly blasting Mitsui Arashi's clothes to shreds, leaving him bare-chested to face the air conditioner's cold draft.

"Yes! This humble one will surely do everything in his power to serve you!"

Mitsui Arashi was instantly chilled to the bone. He responded loudly with an unprecedentedly respectful attitude and carefully observed the over-two-meter-tall figure, his body shivering uncontrollably.

"Conversely, if you do well, I will reward you."

Aozawa casually made a grand, vague promise. Waving his right hand, a simple gesture reopened the entrance to the Different World.

He pretended to walk toward the entrance. Just before entering, he used his time stop ability, then used Element Replacement to turn himself into an invisible gust of wind.

The time stop lifted, and the space abruptly closed, vanishing into thin air.

To Mitsui Arashi, it appeared as if the being was directly swallowed by the entrance, returning to the Different World.

「...」

The office returned to normal.

Mitsui Arashi picked up the teapot on the desk, his hands still trembling uncontrollably, unable even to perform the simple action of pouring tea.

Tea spilled outside the cup.

He didn't care; I just want a sip of warm tea to calm my nerves, he thought.

Was that a new Angel Envoy just now? Its appearance has already departed from the realm of humans. Did it seem truly... terrifying?

Recalling the creature's appearance, Mitsui Arashi felt a strong obsession surge within him. If I fulfill that great one's request, would it be equivalent to establishing a connection with Angel Envoys other than Dio? In that case, will I have the opportunity to take refuge under this great one's command in the future? If there were a chance to surrender, I wouldn't want to struggle against a monster like Dio to the bitter end. I would much rather be Dio's dog, basking in wealth and longevity. Unfortunately, Dio didn't give us the chance to be his dogs. But this one might be different.

Thinking this, Mitsui Arashi found the powerful beauty of that physique all the more captivating—a priceless treasure indeed.

He sipped his tea, his heart filled with anticipation for the rewards of completing his task.

WHUMP-WHUMP-WHUMP.

The sound of a helicopter suddenly erupted overhead.

A moment later, a series of THWACKS sounded as Morimoto Chiyoda swung into the office on a rope.

Okayama Buji and Kitanotake landed behind her.

Several red dots suddenly targeted the three of them; they didn't open fire because they were waiting for Mitsui Arashi's orders.

Mitsui Arashi snapped out of his reverie, his expression stern. "What brings the special task force here?"

"The CIA detected interdimensional spatial fluctuations here. What happened?"

Morimoto Chiyoda could feel the chill in the air and glanced again at Mitsui Arashi.

This influential magnate was shirtless, his greasy, flabby belly exposed.

The fat on his chest made it more prominent than Emily's.

Though Mitsui Arashi tried hard to maintain a dignified appearance, such a physique made it quite challenging for anyone to feel respect.

Stripped of his glossy, glamorous clothes, the ruler of the conglomerate was just an ordinary, portly, balding middle-aged man.

Morimoto Chiyoda stepped forward. "Mr. Mitsui, I believe it's necessary for you to cooperate with our investigation. Tell me, what happened here?"

The look on Mitsui Arashi's face grew unpleasant, but he didn't lose his temper. He knew the special task force had become mere pawns of the CIA.

"Don't aim at my guests."

First, he ordered the snipers to cease aiming, then he spoke, "A suspected new Angel Envoy from a Different World entered my office. Over two meters tall, dragon-headed, human-bodied, with crimson eyes. He didn't introduce himself, only spoke in halting Japanese, demanding that I offer up humans. Within two days, a competition for martial artists must be held, and the strongest will be his target."

Mitsui Arashi recounted what had just happened.

Morimoto Chiyoda frowned slightly. "Why did he know you are the chairman of the Mitsui Group?"

Mitsui Arashi explained, his face grim, "I'm not sure. Judging by his halting Japanese, he must have met other people before me. If you're done with your questions, you can leave. And remember to compensate me for my window."

With the Mitsui Family's wealth, he wasn't concerned about the cost of the window; his request for compensation from the special task force was intentional.

Mitsui Arashi was very dissatisfied with Morimoto Chiyoda's tone.

Especially that look in her eyes when she stared at his belly, as though she were observing a pig in a sty.

Such contempt enraged him.

Mitsui Arashi was well aware that his physique was unimpressive.

But in my view, power and money are everything. Those brainless fools who only know how to train their bodies are nothing but slaves to money. I can summon them with a call and dismiss them with a wave.

"What happened to your clothes?"

"He destroyed them as a threat. I don't know how it happened. He just placed his dragon claw on my shoulder, and my clothes vanished."

"No black Chrysanthemum pattern?"

"None."

"Regarding the compensation, we will have someone contact you later."

Morimoto Chiyoda didn't linger. She grabbed the rope and quickly climbed back up.

When out on an operation, she naturally wore trousers and wasn't concerned about accidental exposure.

Okayama Buji and Kitanotake followed her out.

Seeing the three climb out, the helicopter ascended.

Okayama Buji shouted, "Do you believe what he said?"

"Mm, his expression didn't look like he was lying."

Morimoto Chiyoda responded, her mind replaying Mitsui Arashi's words. A creature with a human body and a dragon's head—is it a Monster? What is its purpose in seeking humans? To eat them? Or does it have other intentions? The tricky part is that the creature commands the ability to travel between the Different World and this one at will and knows how to manipulate human authorities. Completely different from Dio. Dio's attitude toward the corporate elite is one of utter indifference, like sheep left to roam free on the grassland.

Dio's methods and attitude fundamentally precluded the emergence of a Surrender Faction, forcing those at the top into a desperate, do-or-die struggle, which ultimately led to the birth of the Takamagahara Project.

If this new arrival possesses the strength to contend with Dio and is willing to cooperate with those in power... Morimoto Chiyoda knew with chilling certainty that humanity would be betrayed in an instant. Expecting those conglomerate figures to have any backbone is more preposterous than expecting a pig to climb a tree. Given even a one percent chance, those bastards would willingly sacrifice ninety-nine percent of humanity in exchange for wealth and glory.

Morimoto Chiyoda murmured, "The situation has become particularly dire." Her expression grew unprecedentedly severe as she imagined how the higher-ups would react upon learning of this development.