I Became the Leader of a Villain Organization

Chapter 9: The Queen’s Rabbit (2)

I stubbed out my cigarette wordlessly and watched as my men went on a rampage.

I watched as one by one the Empire’s corrupt officials were slaughtered along with the powerful men who were supposed to protect them.

I realize, once again, that we are unquestionably evil.

“That’s enough.”

I say, the tip of my cigarette burning and bending.

At the same time, the rampaging “black snakes” cease to move.

“Yes, sir!”

“Chet, I can’t even warm up with these guys!”

“I agree, these youngsters are not up to par.”

“Hey, who’s the old lady again?”

“By the sounds of it, there’s been a lull in the hierarchy between us lately, hasn’t there?”

“Huh, I miss Aria’s organization-.”

They stopped moving and began to flirt and talk amongst themselves. As if this was nothing, they were just chatting amongst themselves after finishing their chores.

The dead have no words.

That is why it is always necessary to keep them alive to speak. For a name that no one speaks of is not infamous, but only nameless.

Too many is not good, too few is not good.

Regardless, the survivors will never forget what happened here today.

That is the name of the Black Snake that the world will know through the mouths of the survivors.

Nothing will change that. So I thought.

“─Is this enough?

No more, no less, just this much.

It’s not like it’s a blemish on our name. On the contrary, today will make it higher than ever.

I’ll close my eyes and move on, and we’ll all move on with our lives. I don’t need to see any more blood than I already have.

I’m sure the Imperial “patriots” who died here would want that. Besides, they got what they deserved.

I chuckled to myself.

It doesn’t matter what others think.

There is only one thing that really matters so I decided to ask again.

What do I really want?

*

“Elf sister, how old are you?”

“1, 180…….”

“Wow, you’re younger than you look. So, new to the Empire?”

“Oh, that’s-”

“…….”

In the midst of an auction house that resembled an inferno, there was a man who didn’t seem to mind the scenery, and was hawking his wares in front of an elf. It was the high elf who was won by the fox-mask lady.

I was dumbfounded and called out his name.

“Silan.”

“Uh, chief, was she your favorite?”

“…….Cut the bullshit and let her go.”

“Yes.”

I looked past the high elf, who was scurrying out of the villain’s grasp, to the man who had been caught.

Silan the Snake Eyes, fourth in the organization’s hierarchy.

His long, slitted reptilian eyes, aptly nicknamed the Serpent’s Eyes, turned this way. As you can see, this is a so-called ‘slit-eyed character’.

“Do you know anything about the rats of the Empire?”

“Rats? Ah, the Breton Secret Service. Hmm, what’s with them all of a sudden?”

Silan asked, scratching his head. His voice was frivolous and light, as if he was addressing a casual friend.

I didn’t answer right away and was silent for a while but the silence didn’t last long.

As the leader of the Black Snake, what I wanted and needed to do had already been decided.

“Because they’re behind this.”

“Imperial Intelligence? No, they don’t have any business with us-ah.”

I started to say, but Silan shut his mouth.

“Well, well, well. They’re even dumber than they look.”

He finally understood the situation and shrugged like he was really sorry.

“Well, at least they didn’t fool you. Haha, you’re the boss!”

I didn’t answer.

“So, what are you going to do, are you going to summon the rest of our comrades?”

“……I don’t plan on making any moves right now.”

I shook my head at Silan’s question. After stirring, I called out another name.

“Sandalfon.”

“Oooh, new orders?! I can hardly wait!”

A large man in a suit approached me as if he had been waiting to hear those words. With a body that is over 2 meters tall and bloated as if it is about to burst, the term ‘beast man’ is truly appropriate.

And it was. The face peeking out from beneath the suit was not that of a man, but the head of a real wolf.

Sandalfon of the Wolves, eleventh in the organization’s hierarchy, a Werewolf.

“Silan, Sandalfon. You two need to stay in the Empire and do what you can.”

I spoke their names calmly and gave my orders as I should as the leader of the Black Snake.

“Silan, you will gather information on them, for when we make our move.”

“Leave it to me. I have the eyes of a snake.”

Silan’s nickname, the Eye of the Serpent, responsible for intelligence gathering and exploration within the organization.

“And Sandalfon, you shall carry my words to them.”

“The words of……?”

“Yes.”

The words sounded more boring than I expected, and Sandalfon put on the face of a fully dead wolf. I said, unconcerned.

“─that we remember.”

Shit.

The color drained from the wolf’s face as he realized the implications of my words.

“Hold on to your hats, Chief!”

The Black Snake will not forget this.

What happened here, who was behind it, what they hoped for and who dared to use the Snake’s name to further their own ends.

“I will tell you this very clearly, so you will never forget.”

Their work in the Empire is more than just behind the scenes.

For now, that was enough, for there was a mountain of other work to be done.

“The rest of you will stand by until further orders.”

With that, I turned my head to dismiss the assembled members of the Black Snake and return to my work.

It was then.

“Leader, may I ask a favor?”

A subordinate with his hood pressed deep into his face spoke up. His voice sounded formal and stiff.

“I want to take this child to the Great Forest.”

She said, looking at the frightened High Elf there.

As she spoke, she carefully removed her dark hood, revealing her trademark pointed ears.

Unlike the beautiful milky white of the High Elf before her, she is pale and dark like a corpse.

A symbol of curse and banishment, ostracized from elven society─.

“Dark Elf!”

The emotions of the High Elves were no different as soon as they saw her. Open disdain and disgust, but not for long.

This was not the fairy forest she was supposed to be in. She doesn’t even want to remember the hellish days she must have gone through to be sold here, in a strange land of a strange empire she doesn’t recognize.

And there’s no guarantee she’ll make it home alive on her own.

This is not the time to stroke her ego to the only people who have ever reached out to her, because of the color of their skin.

I responded like it was nobody’s business.

“Do as you please.”

“Yes, sir.”

Selena of the Dark Moon bowed respectfully and as she did the coat of her hem clattered eerily as she tucked away all her tools.

That elf, by the way, is going to make it back safely, right?

“Ha, ha, I’m sleepy. I’m going to go back to the manor and get some sleep. I’d like to sleep soundly for a century or so.”

“… … me too. Grandpa Geppetto will be worried by now.”

One by one, the members who went by the names of Jinzo and Woodcarver retired.

Finally-.

“Wow, they’ve all gathered together and left so quickly!”

A girl in a gothic dress calmly walks up to me. Her face is filled with regret and disappointment, as if my presence is exactly where she belongs.

“Let’s go back, Alice.”

“Yes, sire!”

The blonde girl replied, smiling innocently at the words. It was a very pretty smile.

*

Aria of the Black Sword stared down at her wordlessly with emotionless eyes.

The holy maiden was lying defenselessly asleep on a bed.

Aria’s emotionless, black, dark eyes, however, were blocked by a jet-black bandage. They should be and yet, her eyes reflected all sorts of things no normal person would dare to imagine.

Even now she wordlessly focused her attention on the hilt of the black sword in her grip. She straightens the hilt of the sword that scatters black and dark chains.

It was then.

“Aria.”

The voice came so suddenly that even she didn’t feel it coming but there was no need to panic for the voice was, to her, a salvation beyond comparison.

Aria smiled, faintly and quietly so that he couldn’t see her with her back to him then she turned back to him, her expression as cold as ever.

“You asked for me, Master.”

The second in the organization’s hierarchy, the one who bore the name of the Black Sword and the leader’s closest aide.