The World Is Mine For The Taking

When I looked at the Guardian, the entire inside was smeared with red. It was thick, wet, and dripping.

The assassin trapped within couldn't have survived that. There was just no way. The instant I saw it, I knew she was gone.

I let out a slow breath and stopped channeling into the Guardian. The moment I released it, the blood that had been clinging to its surface poured downward, streaming like a waterfall onto the floor.

The sight was jarring. The vivid, dark crimson against the sterile whiteness of the room—it almost hurt my eyes, like the two colors weren't meant to exist side by side. And yet, that was all that remained of her. No body, no flesh, no trace of who she had been. Just blood.

Her body must have been shredded into nothingness the instant that blast went off. Ripped apart from the inside out.

"W-What just happened…?" Elise's voice cracked, the words trembling as they left her lips.

She was frozen, wide-eyed, staring at the bloody remains of what used to be her subordinate.

"She exploded from the inside out," I said, my voice calm but heavy. "And the kind of explosion that powerful… it could have leveled this entire building."

The truth was brutal. The bomb wasn't on her—it was in her. The moment it triggered, she was torn apart instantly. For her to end up like this, it meant the blast had been planted deep inside her body, strong enough to destroy everything around us if it wasn't contained.

Whoever set this up didn't just want her gone. They wanted her to get caught. They wanted her to explode and take all of us with her. If I hadn't locked everything down with Guardian, the workers, Elise, every single thing inside this place would have been annihilated.

"W-Who would do something like that?" Elise asked, her voice shaking.

She was pale, her hands trembling at her sides. I couldn't blame her. To see her own subordinate—someone she probably trained with, worked with, trusted—turn into nothing but blood and fragments right before her eyes… it was only natural for her to be shocked.

But I wasn't shocked. I knew the hand behind this the moment I saw it.

"Moriarty…" I growled, my jaw tight.

I didn't know how he managed to plant a bomb inside her, but the tactic was devilishly clever. Nobody would have thought to look inside. From the outside, she was just another assassin. But deep within her body, the trap was waiting. Unless you dissected her, there was no way to notice.

"Moriarty…?" Elise repeated, her voice quieter now. She seemed to recognize the name. "So it was him?"

"He's the kind of man who's filthy enough to do this. To use someone like that—someone who didn't even know what was happening to her. How could he…" she trailed off, staring at the pool of blood with horror etched all over her face.

"I suppose it's time for me to go all out on him," I said, my voice low, carrying weight. "If he already knows who I am, then there's no reason for me to hold back anymore."

"What do you mean?" she asked, looking at me, uncertain.

"I mean I'm going to hunt him to the ends of the earth. And I won't stop—not until I kill him with my own hands," I said.

***

Meanwhile…

James's POV

In my hand, I held the object that symbolized my control. A remote. Small, simple-looking, but holding the kind of power that could decide life and death on a massive scale.

This wasn't just some toy. It was linked to the bombs I had planted across the entire world.

Right now, those bombs were already in place. And with just a single press of my thumb, I could ignite them all. Whole streets, cities, lives—snuffed out in an instant. No matter where I was, no matter who my enemies were, I could erase them just like that.

That was how easy it had become.

And just moments ago, with that same remote, I had already blown someone apart.

The weight of it was nothing compared to the destruction it unleashed.

"You really are ruthless, huh?" Claire's sultry voice slid into my ears, and at the same time, I felt her warm, naked body pressing against my back.

This woman had been with me since I started to truly settle into this world. Saying she had been there the entire time would be exaggerating, but she had been there when it mattered. She had helped me more than once.

But that didn't mean she wasn't irritating. Her constant seduction, the teasing, the touch—it gnawed at my patience.

"I'm honestly impressed," she purred, her lips brushing close to my ear. "So… are we going to conquer the world next?"

"The conquering will happen soon enough," I answered, eyes fixed on the remote. "But right now, we need preparation. That means crushing every enemy standing in our way, tearing down anyone who dares block our rise. We'll worm our way into the highest seats of power. But before that, anyone threatening to take root against us… they have to be eliminated."

"You really are such a cunning man." Her voice dripped with admiration. "That's exactly what I like about you." She pressed her breasts tighter against me, soft and unrelenting.

I clenched my jaw. It was honestly getting on my nerves.

Even though I wore the body of a man now, I hadn't always been one. I was once a woman. And having someone with a body more voluptuous than mine rubbing against me constantly—it was irritating on a level I couldn't even describe.

"Claire, stop doing that."

"Doing what?" she teased innocently.

"Pressing your breasts against me. And you're naked on top of it," I said flatly.

"Well, I can't phase through things if I'm clothed, right? Clothes just phase off my body. So it's easier to stay naked." She grinned against me. "Besides, don't pretend you don't secretly enjoy it."

"I don't," I said coldly.

"Aw, don't be so cold," she giggled.

That was enough. My irritation boiled over. Darkness wrapped around me like a cloak, and in the next instant, I slipped away from her embrace.

"Ah, you're so stingy."

"Don't pull things like that—you're wearing me down," I said, my voice sharp. "More importantly, did you get what I asked for?"

"Yup," she replied, smug. "But give me a kiss first. Do you even know how much trouble it was getting this? I thought I was going to melt out there."

"Just give it," I said, my patience thin.

"You're always so stingy," she pouted, but she handed it over anyway.

I looked down at the object now in my hand.

Something essential. Something powerful. Something that would change everything.

The bone of a Great One.