The Foreigner on the Periphery - Chapter 152

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“Minjun?” Jenkinson asked Minjun, who remained silent, once again, with a puzzled expression. 

Minjun barely answered. The voice grew harsher. “I was concentrating on thinking about whether I had seen anything similar.” 

Minjun could not tell his friend what he was thinking and what conclusions he came to until now. Even though Jenkinson was an important reason for the decision. ‘It’s better if you don’t know yet.’ 

He tried to put on a calm expression. “The bottom line is, I don’t know. It is a pattern that cannot be interpreted.”

“As expected.” Jenkinson murmured in pity. Minjun looked at his profile and thought. 

He couldn’t imagine the old dragon… that he himself could have been an opportunity to drastically change the fate of his own people. Minjun naturally judged that. Even though he was only one of the primitive races, his choice could have a great impact on resetting the relationship between his fellow tribesmen and the dragons. The thoughts flowed without question. 

*** 

On the way back home after parting with Jenkinson, Minjun sorted out the complicated thoughts in his head. It was good that he had set guidelines for future action, but the immediate task was not finished. He thought of Rod’s whereabouts. 

‘That dragon was truly concerned about the fate of its people.’ 

The unit of time Lord had in mind was great even by dragon standards. He left a message without knowing when the primitive race would return. Even though that point could be a distant future, he was concerned about even distant descendants. Minjun felt his thoughts sink. 

‘Were Inais and Jenkinson right? Perhaps Lord wasn’t building a new body.’ 

It was a little different from what the tribes of the beginning left for the management of livestock products. Older ranchers let the data naturally oxidize when the animal’s blood was messy. This was because there was no need to interpret it anyway. It was meaningless to analyze the lineage of hybrids released into the wild and non-existent slaughterhouses. 

However, Lord’s message was different. The genetic information combined with dragon magic had no significant effect on the appearance or ability of offspring and remained in the base sequence like dark matter or a dummy. However, instead of being expressed externally, this information would survive for a long time. For a very long time. 

‘Raymond’s hypothesis doesn’t sit well with Rod. This is not something a dragon who works so hard for his people would do.’ 

Leaving a letter in his DNA was an act of thinking after his own death. Even if he passed away, the genes would carry on. The more children you leave behind, the more manuscripts you would have. 

‘It’s like…’ 

Before Minjun contacted the committee, he knew what was going on in civilizations that developed all-space aerospace technology. They would try to find aliens and send messages into space. It was written in easy-to-understand symbols, loaded onto spaceships, and then launched out of the empty atmosphere. 

It was for an unknown recipient. Rod seemed to have carried out such an attempt at the genetic level. 

‘It’s not like they made offspring just for that. Although there is a limitation that this language is expressed only in hemolysis… There are many ways to leave a letter other than childbirth. As INais said, it may have also served as the purpose of reproducing a dragon that can be sympathized with.’ 

His head hurt. ‘Then you are looking for a way to avoid death…’ 

There were many types of death. ‘If he wanted as many children as possible, Lord shouldn’t kill himself. That’s because he still had the ability to reproduce.’ 

Then his death would have to be a homicide. ‘I’m looking for a way to escape death…’ 

Raymond had understood Lord’s words like this. ‘I’m looking for a way to transcend the limits of my lifespan and live forever.’ 

Lee Minjun felt that it was interpreted differently. What if the death he was referring to was not a suicide, but a homicide? ··· In fact, what if Rod was looking for a way to avoid being killed by someone himself? What if what he said to Raymond was a secret request for help? 

‘I need to see Lord’s body!’

Returning home, Minjun opened the door roughly. Kentius, who had been spread out leisurely, turned his head. “Oh, are you back?” 

“What about the reply from the representative office?” Dell temporarily stopped the dragons from checking the body because of the Hong Kong terminal incident. His reason was that he needed time to move him to Korea and build a new barrier while strengthening and rebuilding the defense system. 

Minjun inquired through Kentius when he would be able to see Rod. If contact with Dell was absolutely necessary, he had taken the official route, like this one. It was a very common and official request that the seemingly direct heir, 

“No answer yet. After talking, try calling again…” 

“…!” 

It was then… –

 Phat! 

Minjun felt a familiar mental wave. He was of the kind he had come into contact with for the third time since coming to Earth. He had been to Incheon’s terminal once and Hong Kong’s city center twice. It was telepathy expressed in the manner of Endelion.

‘Dell?!’ She only had direct contact with Minjun once after coming to Earth. Even then, he had done too much to avoid the eyes of the committee, and since then, he had been avoiding direct contact as much as possible. 

This wasn’t Dell’s behavior. Thoughts containing only very simple information, probably to avoid being tracked. It stabbed Minjun’s mind sharply. 

-Danger! 

*** 

“This is so ridiculous.” Dell glared at the Todds in front of him. It was an ancient race that formed the backbone of the Council along with Kavite and Endelion. The person who visited the district representative today without prior notice was a person working for a notorious organization among them. 

It was the Tax Collection Command. A fire of rage burned in the eyes of the tentacle monster. The Toads smiled leisurely. The face, indistinguishable from whether it was rock or creature skin, had deep wrinkles. “Even though I haven’t been appointed for a long time, I have been formally appointed as the manager here. You’re making a dimensional jump without notifying me? That too, for audit purposes? Do you think it makes sense that I’m only now aware of something so important?!” 

The Toads tried to soothe her, telling her not to get excited. Compared to his size, he did not flinch or faint even in the face of a gigantic building or a creature close to a landmark. “This was unavoidable. I am belatedly visiting and begging for your understanding.” 

“On what basis?” 

“This is the basis.” The Toads spread out their stubby fingers. Light leaked from the index finger, which was connected by webbed tissue and was not completely separated from the middle finger. It drew strings in the air. It was a commission order. 

Seeing that, Endelion’s eyes widened. There, the Toads calmly watched as her pupils, which seemed like they couldn’t get bigger, widened even more. Dell recognized the name of the person who signed the order. ‘He…!’ Read the most updated version of this novel and other amazing translated novels from the original source at – “ ”

It was the Grand Commissioner who signed this exceptional and unusual order. The species were the Kavite. “We know. Originally, the protocol was to secretly notify the representative office manager of the operation a few days before the tax investigation and to coordinate before entering the country. However, this operation required the highest level of secrecy, so there was no choice. That’s why the Commissioner also granted special permission.” 

Dell glared at the man who introduced himself as the head of the command’s offshore tax evasion unit with fierce hostility. Her heart felt like it was burning. She knew the reason why they came here. 

“A prisoner’s tax evasion attempt was discovered?” 

The Toads repeated what they had just said. “Yes, there seems to be an inmate who tried to secure talents in an unusual way. Members of his unit have already been dispatched to the scene.” 

Endelion exploded an intense mental wave. For a human, it was a response that sounded like screaming. “Are you only notifying me after you’ve already moved your military force?!” 

“Look at the orders again. Even that part was approved by the rank of captain.” He acted like he was furious, but Dell’s mind was spinning faster and more coolly than ever. It was surprising considering her temper when she got excited and her eyes came to naught. In particular, she couldn’t let go of that temper even when she was a prisoner, but at this moment, she thought her thoughts were as cold as the Kavite. 

‘I never thought it would come out like this.’ This was an act of destroying Endelion’s face. If Carbite abused his authority in this way, Endelion’s side would also come swinging back in. 

This would create a political burden. 

‘I’m here for him!’ Was the support to get Minjun released early? 

That was not it. If that was the case, he couldn’t have treated her kindly. And so far, Dell had only leaked a few pieces of information to Minjun, but he hadn’t been of much practical help. 

“Where is your area of operation?” The tentacle creature asked where the task force had raided. “Here and here. It seems that the person living here at these coordinates has offered an illegal deal to the inmate. They are accused of conspiring to launder talents to evade the special gift tax accompanying the transaction.” 

The Toads trembled as she paused her mind wave for a moment and fell silent. “Oh. sorry. I heard from the adjutant that he was about to go out for a while… I must have interfered with his schedule.” 

They then spoke in a meaningful tone. “I heard that you became the custodian of the body of the recently deceased Dragon Lord, and were about to stop by the new burial place.”

“···That’s right.” 

“It is a rare thing. I don’t understand why monsters are so involved in the mayhem of fighting over legacy. Before the dragon died, he must have promised something great in return?” 

“It is personal. I don’t see the need to explain.” 

Dell changed the subject in a rather hasty tone. She asked with a sharp mental wave. “He said he got intelligence, right? It’s not that you have a contingent of troops in such a frontier dimension… When did you come to the earth and work on such information?”

It was kept secret even from Dell before the start of the operation and during the execution. Knowing that the records would be disclosed to the representative office after the operation was over, the Todds answered the truth obediently. Upon hearing this, Dell was speechless for a moment. 

‘Have you been on Earth that long? Away from my eyes?’ 

The Tax Collection Command had infiltrated Earth without Dell’s knowledge, just a day before the day she declared that she would show up in Hong Kong and fulfill her role as body custodian in accordance with her will. 

*** 

– Lastly, I recommend. Suspects should stop resisting and be taken into custody.

Deep in the jungles of the Amazon… In a huge glass dome with a radius of several kilometers, the venomous dragon Inais glared at the uninvited guests outside. They showed up a few minutes ago. Those who teleported through space and surrounded the dome were not a species residing on Earth. These were the people who have a rare chance to face in this frontier dimension. toads. 

Inais was a generation that had never experienced war, but he knew the notoriety of that race. If Endelion was mainly in charge of military affairs, they took on the role of an air strike unit that poured firepower on the front line. 

‘The space has condensed.’ 

After they appeared, it became impossible to create a new subspace or escape by teleporting. It was like a rat in a poison. Todd’s magical voice echoed through the jungle. –

The Extraterrestrial Treaty for Criminals and Criminal Suspects concluded between the Pan-level Intelligence Relocation Committee and the Earth United Nations. And based on the armistice agreement reached between the Council and the Balaur, the Tax Collection Command reserved the right to arrest anyone suspected of engaging in or participating in tax evasion. 

The suspect, Inais, immediately stopped resisting… There was a list of unfair treaties that the Western powers of the 19th century on Earth would cry for. Sparks flew from the dragon’s eyes. Screams and protests ensued.

“Tax evasion, what nonsense!” 

Urgent thoughts flooded her mind. ‘How did you know?!’ 

– The act of handing over the talent to an inmate without paying the special gift tax, as well as the act of helping the inmate to obtain the talent in an illicit way is also a violation of the tax law! Under the treaty, the Commission and Tax Command have the power to investigate and punish dragons who violate those laws according to our statutes! 

It was very much a ridiculous treaty, but all the world’s inhabitants living within the framework created by the Council were bound by it. 

-If you follow us obediently even now… 

Inais felt hopeless. ‘Are you following me? Do you plan on emptying the rare?!’ 

-I know you are hatching an egg. Be mindful of what you say, or we will take action… 

The moment she heard those words, Inais felt as if something was disconnected from her. 

‘Take action? My eggs? Somewhere other than here?”

Her eyes turned white. The instincts of the dragon brooding her egg dominated her. The safest place for her eggs was in her arms. Crossing dimensions with eggs? It was nonsense. What protected the contents of the egg was a very fragile layer of shell. They could never get out of the lair. It was even more impossible for her to be taken away, let alone her egg, here. It might be enough to visit Hong Kong for a few hours like the last time, but the investigation process of the Tax Collection Headquarters was famous for being harsh and for taking a long time. It will last at least a few years. Inais could not compromise. 

“Sounds funny, I can never move from here! Either bring clear evidence to prove my charges or get out of the way!” 

The scuffle continued for a while, but the expressions on the faces of the troops were relaxed. The Todds informed in an emotionless manner. 

– I can’t help it. If you reject the peaceful way… A complicated magic circle spread around them. 

Inais widened her eyes as she prepared to fight. The instinct to protect the eggs made her blood boil. She knew the other dragons wouldn’t help her. 

‘I can’t lose my egg…’ She erased the option of surrender from her mind. Her eggs would be targeted by her other heirs in her absence.

She knew this well because she was a dragon. Dragons were such creatures. That said, carrying an egg on a jump ship and crossing a dimensional wall was no different from exposing a fetus to radiation. 

What if, inside a jumpship where unauthorized use of magic was sealed, the egg received the recoil as it was? There was a reason no one traveled like that with them. 

Watching her move exactly as expected, the Todds exchanged mental waves with her. 

=It’s been a while since I’ve grilled a dragon.= 

=There’s also the presence of an egg.= 

At this, the Toads chanted in unison. 

Quarreureung! A rain of flames poured down over the dome that made up the barrier wall.