I had vaguely expected this would happen. The Red Eternity bastard had used trickery to create a passage, saying he would cross over. Would the other outer gods just stand by and watch?
There would be some who would watch. But there would be more who wouldn't miss that opportunity. Besides Red Eternity and Cthulatlap, there were signs that other outer beings had entered inside. The Gray Fungus was a representative example.
With those bastards having gone in, there's no way other outer gods would just sit around twiddling their thumbs. Cthulatlap had said that many bastards were targeting it and Osian never took that warning lightly.
'So this is the result.'
The conference hall had become a complete mess. Well, it had to be that way. When one person becomes a red balloon and sprays blood in all directions, who would just laugh it off?
What's more, another executive who was touched by that blood went insane and tried to kill other people. Mental contamination, madness, and even physical transformation. It was a typical process of erosion.
'The point is that its form is different from Red Eternity.'
Red Eternity turned things it touched into indescribable lumps of flesh. Like the flesh monsters from cheap 70s-80s SF movies.
This bastard was different. More ridiculous. That didn't mean it wasn't grotesque. In a different sense, there was something that made people feel bad.
Osian wasn't the only one who felt this.
The conference hall became chaotic. Due to the brief but intense incident, even the 1st-grade fixers couldn't suppress their emotional turmoil.
"Quiet!"
That's when Ishaq stepped forward. With his bulging eyes, he glared at the ruined conference hall and said.
"First, we'll adjourn. Everyone, withdraw."
The conference was over. After something like that happened, continuing would be something only a madman would do. But that didn't mean the situation itself had ended in confusion.
Osian, along with Ronan and the Violet Fox members, were facing Ishaq. The location was his private office.
Although it wasn't as spacious as the conference hall, this place was also sufficiently wide. Wide enough for other branch chiefs besides Ishaq to come and sit down.
"First, before we talk, I want to say I'm sorry."
Ishaq apologized honestly.
"We tried to expel you due to external pressure. That part was clearly our mistake."
"Huhu, what mistake is there to speak of? Everyone moves according to their own interests."
Ronan also knew. If he hadn't proven himself sufficiently in the conference hall, Ishaq would have coldly kicked them out.
The executives taking massive bribes and pocketing back money? He would have handled that on his own. And as a bonus, he would have decided on Violet Fox's punishment.
"Moving according to interests. That's what today's fixers do."
Ishaq wore a bitter smile. What Ronan had said was something he himself had failed to uphold the most.
To protect the affiliated fixers, the broker deliberately took risks and acted as a figurehead. What benefit was there in that? Of course, it wasn't without merit. He could win the hearts of such tremendously skilled people.
But calculated actions cannot draw out sincere hearts because fixers can distinguish whether it's acting or not.
What Ronan did was not taken under calculation. It was a pure result of following his honest emotions. That's why everyone followed him here with one heart and one mind.
"I'm envious. And I miss it too."
"Excuse me?"
"No. I was just talking to myself. But the situation has become quite troublesome. It was good that we caught the rat bastards gnawing at the organization from the inside, but those bastards experienced something absurd."
He was talking about Howard who had become a balloon. It was a sight that made even Ishaq, who had experienced everything as a fixer, gasp in shock. Who could witness the sight of a person becoming an inflating balloon in their lifetime?
"The witness disappeared, is that okay?"
"There are several other rat bastards besides the dead Howard. We've detained them all."
Ishaq briefly summarized the current situation.
There was an external force trying to drive out Osian. They had a considerable scale, enough to put external pressure on the Broker Union. It had to be that way. There wouldn't be just one organization, and those with aligned interests would have joined hands to combine their power.
They had expressed their will to the Broker Union. However, the branch chiefs of the Broker Union were people free from that influence.
"Even if outsiders try to oppress us, we haven't just been sitting idle all this time."
The Broker Union was one giant organization. It had the disadvantage of being shallow in depth, but its scope was vast. When they faced difficult situations, the city government departments would likewise face difficulties. In already chaotic times like now, if problems arose with the Broker Union that handled all the troublesome work at the bottom? The city government didn't want that.
"We also have means to protect ourselves. That's why they targeted not us branch chiefs, but those below us."
Rather than the heads of each branch, they targeted the executives working below them. Among the executives, there were plenty who wanted to become the next branch chief, those who wanted to connect with external personnel, and those who wanted to enjoy more wealth.
They enticed the executives, and through internal meetings, they tried to crush Osian.
That goal was the dissolution of the Starlight Knights, which could be called the greatest threat.
"Well, we can't deny that we also agreed to that part."
Ishaq confessed honestly. What Bartolomeo and other branch chiefs had said wasn't just acting for show, but was somewhat sincere.
However, they were seasoned branch chiefs.
In the flowing situation, they realized what was more important and immediately turned the ship's wheel to the side. In other words, they grabbed the right rope.
"I was planning to catch and imprison all those who had colluded, but a problem occurred."
This was the important part. The slightly unpleasant incident between the Broker Union and Violet Fox? That could just be dismissed as a happening and passed over.
But what happened in the conference hall through Howard couldn't be laughed off.
"What was that, exactly?"
Ishaq asked Osian. It was he, not anyone else, who had first noticed Howard's suspiciousness at that place.
At first, when he called him a rat bastard, I thought he had noticed that Howard was a collaborator. But even so, Osian continued to stare at Howard until the end, or more precisely, at what had possessed Howard.
"Did you know I had noticed?"
"The position of branch chief isn't obtained by being good at poker."
"But uncle, you're bad at poker."
Branch Chief Linia interjected from the side. Ishaq glared at Branch Chief Linia and then coughed.
"Anyway, the fact that you reacted so sensitively means you felt something. So I'll ask. What was that exactly?"
It was Basilio who answered instead.
"An outer being. A monster that crossed over from another world."
"Basilio..."
"And that was similar to the bastards we faced in District 17. Do you understand?"
"...Weren't all those monsters in District 17 dealt with?"
"Those bastards come in various types. Their aims are diverse too. The bastard that appeared this time seems to be a smaller scale but more vicious case."
Basilio had the same thought as Osian about the outer being that appeared this time.
The bastard presumed to be an outer god was a very cunning one.
"It didn't openly reveal its power, but infused power into a person and detonated it at a crucial moment. If it hadn't been discovered, it would have hidden longer."
Probably Howard himself didn't know that such energy had been infused into him. To trigger erosion at the desired moment? The erosion of outer gods is a process that occurs as naturally as breathing. Controlling that is more troublesome than deliberately controlling one's breathing.
Ordinary outer gods don't do such things. Why bother with troublesome breath control? Just inhale and exhale naturally.
'But that bastard didn't do that.'
This was dangerous in a different sense.
An outer god that acted cunningly, using its head without any pride.
'Of course, it wouldn't be the main body. The crack Red Eternity made wouldn't be large. That bastard must have crossed over as a split body.'
Of course, if that split body hid in the city and gradually began expanding its influence, the story would be different. Even if it's a split body, it's still an outer god.
'That bastard even blatantly targeted me. As if greeting me.'
The outer being was aware of Osian. Whether it was just that bastard or if other bastards were the same was unknown. What was important was that he had been marked by a troublesome bastard.
'In a situation where the city has fallen into chaos like now, an outer god trying to exploit that has interfered.'
Wasn't this the perfect situation for things to go to hell?
'To prevent that, I need my own force.'
No matter how strong an individual was, they couldn't do everything alone, unless the opponent fairly challenged them to a one-on-one fight. If they're pulling all sorts of tricks from behind while you stubbornly step forward, it's no different from just taking it.
'Well, all I do is hold a sword and fight.'
What needed to be done didn't change. Just that some changes would be added to it, like increasing colleagues who would handle important work in other areas.
The Violet Fox members and the Starlight Knights he was raising were like that. But that alone was still insufficient.
'I need to create my own force.'
What's this? Before, it was just something he did thoughtlessly to continue the lineage of knights. After receiving a blatant warning, he ended up doing such things instead. From the Broker Union's perspective, they'd think what kind of contrarian this was.
But they would understand too. No, from the beginning, the people Osian would have in the future were precisely the current Broker Union.
"You brought down Inspector Howard, who had transformed, with one strike of that sword."
Branch Chief Linia stared clearly at Osian. In that chaotic situation, she seemed to have watched everything. I thought she was just a plant-eating person who only slept, but her guts were remarkable.
"The incident in District 17 too. That power has a compatibility that effectively brings down monsters from other worlds?"
"Something like that."
"Is it possible to transfer that power?"
"I can pass on the spark. But kindling it is entirely up to the person themselves."
"...I see. I understand."
Branch Chief Linia nodded. She realized that it was impossible to deliberately grant power to mass-produce those with similar abilities.
"As long as such monsters cross over to this world, you alone would be overwhelmed. You'd need at least people with similar power."
At those words, the other branch chiefs raised their eyebrows. She was someone who didn't react to most issues and always maintained neutrality. It was rare for her to voice opinions so proactively.
"Why are you looking at me with such eyes? It's a crisis situation. With such monsters appearing, we can't fight among ourselves about factions and politics."
Power struggles existed among the branch chiefs too. Normally, regarding Linia's assertion, other branch chiefs would have engaged in debates while trying to divide the interests among themselves.
"This is a matter that the survival of the Broker Union depends on."
Branch Chief Linia spoke with conviction.
"I think so too."
Ishaq also supported Branch Chief Linia's words.
"That monster. As you saw, it caused even greater damage to the surroundings despite other fixers' attacks. It was nothing short of a disaster."
Branch Chief Bartolomeo said. A person had turned into a balloon, and that balloon had infected another person. He had seen it with his own two eyes. It was absolutely not a matter to ignore and pass over.
Branch Chief Bartolomeo's gaze turned toward Osian. He was a cyborg made of machines, but that didn't mean he lacked human emotions.
The reason he sat in the position of branch chief even after becoming such a body was the same as Ishaq's. To lead the organization called the Broker Union by sacrificing this body.
"I'll ask. Can you stop that monster? Can you face that bastard?"
Could he stop it? There was no need for words.
"No matter who it might be."
"...I understand."
Bartolomeo nodded slightly.
"I, Branch Chief Bartolomeo, will declare at this place. I will give unconditional and full support to fixer Osian and Violet Fox."
He who had opposed Osian's actions the most had stepped forward to help Osian. Though his voice was mechanical, it had strength and an unbending conviction could be felt.
When the branch chief who seemed hardest to persuade took the lead, surprised reactions flowed from the surroundings. But the bewilderment was brief, and the other branch chiefs quickly weighed the gravity of the situation and reached conclusions.
"Kaiser Schultz. I agree."
"Ariana Bell. I'll agree."
"Branch Chief Linia. I agree."
"Branch Chief Ishaq. I'll agree."
There were branch chiefs not yet present. But they weren't worried.
"Leave their persuasion to me. We have witnesses, so persuasion won't be difficult."
Ishaq's gaze, having organized the situation, turned toward Osian.
"That thing called the knights. Try to increase their numbers as much as possible."