Book 1: Records of Magus Killer – Chapter 21 - High Table (1) (Patreon)

June 2072, Somewhere in the Yokohama City. "Are you sure continuing with this is necessary?" Yotsuba Maya asked in relative distress as she

June 2072, Somewhere in the Yokohama City.

"Are you sure continuing with this is necessary?"

Yotsuba Maya asked in relative distress as she didn't find any reason to continue Project High Table after it was basically decided that they would be abandoning the Earth in the future.

"You know, after WWIII, countless crime families were destroyed, and many crime lords are dead, and the underworld is in a state of slow civil war. I have learned that it is impossible to destroy the crime, so a better solution is to control the crime from the shadows. Yes, I am aware that this may be redundant with Project Exodus, but alas, even establishing High Table would give us an edge over collecting information and obtaining influence in other nations for things and resources we need."

Additionally, many skilled and powerful magicians worked in the underworld as assassins and bodyguards or took missions for Crime Lords and Crime Families.

For example, there were rumors that one of the Triads in former China, now GAA, Azure Dragon, had under their employment a Strategic-Class Magician with incomplete Strategic-Class Magic.

Kiritusgu knew many of such people, who basically didn't have any home in the world, and only had underworld and were skilled and powerful; thus, he hoped to recruit some of them to the services of the Yotsuba.

One could say that the establishment of the High Table was no different from creating a recruitment office for the Yotsuba Clan and the Project Exodus. There were plenty of skilled people operating in the criminal underworld, and in many cases, it was rather easy to obtain their undying loyalty. 

Sometimes, one needed just a little bit of effort to promise them a better life, and it was done as simple as it could get. That was exactly Kiritsugu's plan to do, he also knew that due to the World War III many of the Magician Clans and Families have either perished or were now on the verge of bancrupcy.

Many would turn their sights to the underworld to make quick money because even weak Magician were rather good assassins with their Magic or bodyguards for some figures in the underworld.

It wasn't rather different from how he started out in the underworld.

Everything for the vision of money and riches. 

"So, who is coming?"

Kiritsugu took out the cigarette before litting it.

"Representatives from Camorra, Cosa Nostra, Ndrangheta, Azure Dragon Triad, Black Rose Triad, Bratva, Yakuza and few other... altogether 12 People, currently most powerful people in the entire criminal underworld."

He answered as he inhaled smoke, thinking about the state of the criminals, as they were hit rather hard during World War III. Not due to some crackdown or anything, but the war was so destructive when the Magicians got involved that the collateral damage was bitch.

Some of these organizations took a really heavy hit during World War III, not to mention when they were making a mess; then the nations needed to send only a few Magicians after them.

Some Magics were really useful in the crime investigation and so on, so for many it was harder and harder to sustain their lifeblood in the criminal underworld.

Till now, many of the more ambitious criminals were killed, and their organizations were wiped out by Magicians from the Police Forces or Armies around the world when they were doing too much trouble.

Especially nowadays when World War III has officially ended.

"Some old friends?"

Some of them were indeed his old friends, while some were more like annoyances or just some acquaintances. Some of them were even enemies, but as the old saying goes, there were no eternal enemies, just eternal benefits.

"Yes, if possible, in the future, I would like to recruit Azure Dragon Triad for Project Exodus."

Azure Dragon Triad was different from the rest of the Chinese criminal organizations because they had a very, very long heritage, and for one minute, they were being controlled by the Long Family.

"Why so?"

This kind of reaction was rather intriguing for the prominent Head of the Yotsuba Clan.

"Azure Dragon Triad is the most powerful and oldest among them. The Long Family, who founded this Triad more than 1,000 years ago, always followed strict conduct of honor and duty and abided by their laws. In the new world, we cannot prevent the formation of criminal elements, but we can control them. And I know Long Bai, who is a son of the current Dragon Head, and he is a good man who can be trusted. Additionally, Long Family is a very long line of Ancient Magicians with powerful potential, so getting them on our side, would only be beneficial."

In the past, he did many missions for the Azure Dragon Triad and even a few specifically for the Long Family, and from what he knew, members of the Azure Dragon Triad, while not many, were one of the better bunch from the Triads and Criminal Organizations.

Additionally, he wanted to obtain the power of the Long Family because, as the lineage of Ancient Magicians, they were very valuable.

Not to mention, they were one of the more trustworthy people who had a certain degree of honor, which was rather rare in the underworld.

Especially in the future.

And Yakuza coming to the meeting was a more or less only formality, as real control behind the Yakuza, in fact, were the Yotsubas.

In truth, shortly after the formation of the Yotsuba Clan, one of the first things the newly established clans of Magicians did was subjugate various Yakuza Families into compliance and control them from the shadows.

Though now, for that, all of them would get passage to the new world as a reward for their loyalty. Of course, they would at first need to prove their loyalty; only then would the rewards come for them...

Today was the meeting, where the most powerful factions in the underworld would discuss the current order and establishment of the High Table.

Kiritsugu chose the place of meeting to be Yokohama, on the outskirts of the city, in abandoned warehouses, which as rebuilt as underground bases by local Yakuza.

The entire warehouse was guarded by the members of the Khaos Brigade as soon as guests started arriving in black limousines.

The first one to arrive was a representative from Bratva, a two-meter-tall man bulging with muscles and rather a rough aura around his entire person. Oleg Fyodor Grigorievich, General of Bratva, who was accompanied by two Captains of Bratva.

The organization of Bratva was very similar to that of the army, as it was created by former high-ranking military officers and intelligence officers of the old Soviet Union after it fell apart. 

Most, if not all, of their members, were former soldiers from the Soviet Army or high-ranking members of the KGB, the Committee of State Security of the Soviet Union, their secret service.

The Bratva was created straight away after the fall of the Soviet Union, and its power continued to grow till this day, though its influence was mainly in the territory of the New Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, parts of Asia, and maybe in some parts of Western Europe.

Even after the establishment of the New Soviet Union, the Bratva continued its existence, this time, directly involving itself into the administration of the New Soviet Union, because many of the members of the Bratva were of the KGB, thus Bratva had rather strong influence within the New Soviet Union.

Secrets Services was always the greatest player in the territory of the USSR, Russia, and the New Soviet Union, be it then, now, or in the future.

"Emiya."

The General of the Bratva, Mikhail Grigorievich, said in broken English with a strong Russian accent, it was clear that the man didn't even bother to learn to properly speak when he was breaking one word after another.

Still, it was not like anybody dared to say something to him, or else he would freeze them to icicles with his Magic. Even though Grigorievich looked like a typical thug, he was rather powerful Magician on his own and had rather high mastery over his Ice-related Magic.

"Grigorievich."

Kiritsigu greeted him the General of Bratva, before everyone went their way as the Magus Killer didn't want to talk with the man too much.

Yotsuba Maya looked between them, and fortunately, nothing happened because she knew that Kiritsugu had killed his father. Still, it was rather fascinating for her, that most of the people that were present or were coming hated each other and were also killing each other for years.

In the cases of some criminal dynasties, one could turn the years into decades or perhaps even centuries. Some organizations had really, really deep grudges that were spanning across the time and appearance of Magic just gave them another tool they could use to kill each other.

And yet, they were able to meet in one place and cover for the sake of a better future, if it could be called that. The secrets of the imminent invasion of the Burning Legion to Earth was known only to a selected few and it was decided it would be for the best if it remained that way.

Soon enough, Italians arrived, people who Kiritsugu didn't know personally, just their names and faces, as they were acting as spokespeople for their organizations. The only notable among the Italians was Domineco Leonetti, an old man with a thin white mustache and well-groomed short beard, who was using a cane to walk and was wearing a stylish two-piece suit.

"Don Leonetti."

Kiritsugu greeted him as he knew that the old man belonged to an old mafia family, and while natural between three great mafia organizations, he often acted as a mediator between them.

"Signore Yotsuba."

The old man sighed man as they shook hands. Kiritsugu was very wary of the elderly man in front of him because even though he was using a cane to walk and there were rumors that his health wasn't as good as before, Domineco Leonetti was one of the most powerful Magicians in the criminal underworld till this day.

If not, he wouldn't be ruling the criminal underworld of Italy and surrounding countries with an iron fist to a degree when even the European Federations were wary of the man.

After half an hour, practically everyone arrived; with the last person to arrive was, the Dragon Head of the Azure Dragon Triad, Long Shen, together with his son, Long Bai, arrived at the meeting place.

"Master Long."

Now, even Maya came to greet the delegation from the Azure Dragon Triad, as Kiritsugu took her together with him.

"You have grown a lot... but you still had that broody aura around you; it is a miracle that you managed to find yourself such a beautiful wife."

Long Shen, was a middle-aged man with short brown hair and a sharp look in his eyes. While his physique wasn't overly muscular, he gave the feel of a powerful martial artist to the people who looked at him.

He was someone who spent his entire life practicing martial arts and incorporating Magic into his Martial Arts in an attempt to create a new path for Martial Artists.

It was known widely that the Martial Arts were falling into obscurity in the new age of Magic, and thus, many of the most venerable Martial Art Grandmasters were creating a new paths by incorporating the Magic into the Martial Arts or reviving the long-forgotten ancient Martial Arts that already could be used with Magic right from the start.

"It is a pleasure to meet you once more, Master Long. Not you, Bai."

He looked at Long Bai, who frowned at the greeting from his supposed friend.

"Are we the last ones?"

Questioned Long Shen as both Kiritsugu and Maya nodded as they entered the warehouse, signaling that everyone was already gathered and the meeting that would decide the future of the Earth's criminal underworld could start.

'At least until the Demons won't come and destroy everything in their path...'

Was something that both Emiya Kiritsugu and Yotsuba Maya were thinking as they went to the rest of the criminals in the warehouse so Kiritsugu could start the meeting.