Noxbell (1): Legitimizing the Empire
First off, after making peace with the Blood Mafia—no, after practically merging with them—there was work that needed doing.
"Werewolf gang bastards. Bring 'em all under us. You can go aggressive this time."
There were no more factions left to keep the werewolves in check. Soon enough, we started absorbing the other gangs one by one.
"Disgusting scum who hooked up with vampires! How do you plan to face your ancestors in the afterlife?!"
Of course, there were some who stubbornly refused, blathering on about their damn pride.
"Shoot 'em all."
Just a few dozen at most. Once we made an example of a handful by gunning them down, the rest crawled over on their own.
"The organization's gotten massively bigger. Can we really feed all these guys...?"
"We're taking their districts too, so of course we can."
It took about two weeks to subjugate all the other gangs this way. Cleaning up their territories and setting up nice, shiny shops took a full month.
Werewolves really are excellent laborers. They eat a ton, sure, but they've got insane strength, are tough as nails, and are hooked on manual labor.
"Use the funds however you like... ♥︎ All my assets belong to you, Asmodeus."
"Yeah, I'll do that."
The money came straight from the vampires' vaults. Turns out bootlegging that moonshine of theirs is pretty lucrative. Solid profits.
Of course, I planned to launch a beverage business that would dwarf even that.
"Listen up—this is called cola. It's a sweet, fizzy drink..."
"Huh? No alcohol in it?"
"Right. Even kids can drink this."
Mixed it up exactly according to the recipe from my status window, and boom—perfect cola.
Whoa! This is so damn convenient!
The ingredients were ridiculously easy to source, so mass production was a breeze.
"Blast ads everywhere. Especially the broadcast stations."
"This isn't illegal... is it?"
"Nah. Everything in it's totally legal."
I'd heard old-school cola used coca leaves or something. Mine's clean, of course.
Time to shut down all the illegal ops for good.
It's not like I grew up in a 21st-century democracy and suddenly grew a conscience about shady businesses.
Drug dealing, bootlegging, and running gambling dens? Great ROI, sure. But they breed more crime.
And that cop... She's gonna find some excuse to come at us eventually.
I needed to eliminate any leverage they could use. Make it look like a legit business.
Oh, don't get me wrong—not saying we're going straight-arrow or anything.
"Uh... what's this supposed to be?"
"Aphrodisiac from my body."
"Oh, that... What happens if you drink it?"
This was the real moneymaker.
"Women get all tingly and feel great. Super addictive too."
My rank-up boosted the aphrodisiac's addictiveness and production volume massively.
Which meant it could be productized.
"Coke and weed? Not profitable anymore. Aphrodisiacs are the future."
"Ooh..."
"Why do you think I built up that commercial district? Everything's got a reason."
Death and taxes—you can't escape 'em. Spot on.
So we fabricate 'income' whether we like it or not. Show massive revenue on the books, pay massive taxes accordingly.
"That's what they call money laundering."
Modern crime syndicates don't open laundromats for shits and giggles.
If you launder it perfectly, it's no longer dirty money.
"Genius...!"
"Be honest—you guys were already doing it."
"W-Well, yeah."
"Then you handle the laundering. Got it?"
"Yes...!"
Vampires opening bars? Money laundering too. Everyone knew they brewed moonshine, so they must've shoveled mountains of cash at the cops.
"This'll give us some breathing room. Perfect."
I handed aphrodisiac distribution to the werewolves. They're pros at this shit anyway.
Man, the workload's piling up. I can delegate, sure. But still...
That's why I gotta take down Noxbell.
It's all that woman's fault I'm stuck with this hassle.
"Can't let some bitch mess with my operations."
Time for special measures. She should be coming for her payoff soon, right?
Hmm... Perfect. I'll set it up then.
"But sharing you with that Noxbell woman... feels kinda off."
"Oh? Are you scared that flat-chested dark elf might steal you away? Hehe~ No confidence as a woman?"
"What?!"
Morgana giggled, poking at Rasca to rile her up.
"I'll win, obviously! No one beats these tits."
"But women don't win with tits alone. It's right here that counts..."
She patted her own ass. Come to think of it, she seemed awfully proud of that side too.
Rasca trembled, shooting me a pleading look like a rain-soaked stray dog.
Even with eyes like that, there's nothing I can do for you.
Hmm... Well, Rasca does crave affection a bit desperately. Kinda understandable.
If things go smoothly and Noxbell joins my collection, that'll be a nice sight.
Watching them bicker like this? Adorable. Really...
Corrupt police chief Noxbell Seladrin steered her car toward the vampire district today as well, intent on collecting her 'rightful' cut.
"Chief, do you really need to come personally? We could just have them bring it..."
"You want those bloodsucking creeps slinking into the elf district? Hah—what if they cause an incident?"
That was why Noxbell herself ventured into vampire turf, despite her rank.
She was one of the hardline types among the elves.
"My cousins will just preach their hypocrisy anyway. 'Don't bully the poor sub-species' or whatever... while filing complaints behind our backs. Hate that shit."
"Ahem, yes... Looks like we're here."
Noxbell sighed deeply. The vampire district reeked, the vibe all dark and gloomy.
For a noble elf like her, even setting foot here was an insult to her pride.
Damn it... If I'd bet on 3 back then, I wouldn't have to come here.
A gambling addict, she'd blown her entire inheritance and ended up broke.
In elf society, losing face meant being looked down on. So Noxbell supplemented her upkeep from the underworld criminals.
"Wait here. I'll be quick."
"Yes, ma'am!"
Rubbing her temple, she stood before a rather impressive building.
Heard they allied with the werewolves... Business must be booming. Even buying up places like this.
Compared to elf district buildings, it was downright shabby, of course.
Should be able to squeeze a decent haul today.
As Noxbell entered, she spotted Rasca and Morgana at a table.
In the center sat a short imp—the man she'd seen before.
That imp led the werewolf-vampire alliance? Hard to believe.
Werewolves and vampires were lowly compared to elves, but imps were bottom-of-the-barrel—not even fit to share a table.
For a racist like Noxbell, seeing one in such a prime seat was just baffling.
"Any reason you called me here? The old spot would've been fine."
"Sorry for the inconvenience. We wanted to build our new relationship here."
"Hm?"
"First, please accept this."
Click.
The massive black briefcase popped open, stuffed to the brim with thick stacks of bills.
"It's heavy as hell. I'll have it loaded into your car."
"Ahem, much appreciated."
Way more than expected! Noxbell was already picturing dumping it all at the casino.
"Ah! Better head out then. Chief, all food and drinks here are on me."
"Hm? Stick around, have some fun."
"No, no. Can't impose on you..."
This actually pleased her. She despised sharing space with sub-species.
Quick on the uptake. That imp... definitely got business savvy.
Of course, all of this was...
You can now invade Noxbell Seladrin's dream.
...just a meeting to plant the mark.