The west district of [Fumetsu] was the smallest of the five, as well as the worst in every aspect.
Here, the [White and Black Corps], along with their closest affiliates, were all led by the same person: Muzan. A 25-year-old with black hair, red eyes, piercings in multiple parts of his body, and a disturbing tattoo on his neck depicting a child without skin, as if it had been torn off, with no eyes.
Calling such a situation strange was an understatement—an euphemism. There were many laws that prevented a single individual from wielding such power in their hands.
Even Goto, normally never considering leaving someone with such authority outside his reach due to his paranoia and caution, found it hard to believe. After all, that part of the island was difficult to access because of poorly maintained roads crossing the high mountains forming the natural border of the district.
Yet, the uncontested leader of all the [Black Corps] had allowed such a situation. Only for a simple reason: Muzan was not interested in the power he possessed or could potentially gain. No, his goals were far simpler and more twisted than mere strength.
Moreover, the so-called "leadership" left much to be desired. Kaori's father had nothing to fear; even if Muzan gathered all his forces for battle, he wouldn't be able to do anything with his irrational, crazy orders. At worst, they'd cause some chaos, like a crowd of drunken people after a long night, before being crushed by their colleagues' forces.
Before the arrival of this young [mage], the previous leader of the [Black Corps] had managed to bring order to the chaos that was the west district after several decades. Unfortunately, he died of unknown reasons just before he could choose a successor. His departure was so sudden that no one saw it coming.
Following his death, various factions secretly clashed across this part of the island to seize control. Goto allowed this to happen, confident he could determine the outcome. Mutually destructive conflicts.
With no clear candidate, the entire island was soaked in blood, and the only survivor was Muzan, who had little trouble taking the place he held today, as he was the only one dangerous enough to silence the few remaining [Black Corps] members after those events.
In less than two years, everything his predecessor had tried to build was destroyed and corrupted. The district gained a terrible reputation because of him.
A few months after taking his position, Muzan had a confrontation with the leader of the [White Corps] and his vice.
"Muzan-sama! Please take your position more seriously! You can't let your subordinates fight in the streets just for fun!" (White Corps vice leader)
"I can't spend weeks trying to cover up all the damage caused by you and your subordinates! You're even allowing criminals, previously condemned, to be part of the [Black Corps]! This is unacceptable!" (White Corps leader)
"How boring. Why should I listen to you? I'm the one in charge. If you don't like it, do something about it, cowards! You talk all day but are hardly active—like old politicians. Why don't you retire, you old bastards?" (Muzan)
His twisted smile and provocative attitude made the two [White Corps] furious, prompting them to decide on drastic measures to restore order amidst the chaos Muzan had created.
"You! Stupid kid! Just because Goto-sama lets you sit there doesn't mean you've earned your position!" (Leader)
The leader drew his katana, which was strapped to his belt, followed immediately by his vice. Muzan, seeing their weapons, merely smiled and pressed a button beneath his desk.
In an instant, his office was sealed, with the three of them trapped inside. The windows were covered by people made of pure anti-mage metal, and the only door was barred with metal bars that extended from the floor, made of the same material as the window protections.
"Well... let's play a little!"
"Goto-sama won't mind if we kill a reject like you!" (Vice leader)
The two [White Corps] members rushed in, both blades stained with Muzan's blood, who continued to smile, amused by the whole situation. After less than three minutes, screams erupted.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!"
"PLEASE... NO!!!!!!!!"
For hours, those were the only sounds coming from the room. Everyone inside the building could only shudder at such horror.
Hearing the screams and pleas of two adult men, who had faced the worst this district could throw at them—without ever ceding, without knowing what Muzan was doing to them—was terrifying. Their minds conjured increasingly disturbing scenarios with each passing minute.
The weaker minds couldn't stay there for more than a few tens of minutes.
About six hours later, the seal on the office was broken. The 23-year-old Muzan emerged from the room as if nothing had happened.
His body bore multiple cuts from katana blades that had stopped bleeding hours ago. His twisted smile sent shivers down anyone who saw him.
"Eh? Something's wrong? You all look terrified... Oh, and someone clean up this mess in my office."
When a [Black Corps] member summoned the courage to follow his orders, he couldn't help but vomit at the sight of two dismembered human bodies.
Pieces of eyes, flesh, internal organs, teeth, fingers, nails, and many other parts of their bodies were scattered around, with blood covering the room.
It took days to clean up the disaster.
After that event, Muzan had a brilliant idea following his "experience" inside his office.
"Any [White Corps] wishing to become leader or vice must pass my personal 'test.' Until then, the group will be under my command."
Poor fools tried to challenge fate. Their bodies were almost never found, and when they were, it was usually just scattered pieces tossed in the trash in plastic bags.
In a short time, everyone started calling the leader of the [Black Corps] with a fitting nickname: [The Torturer].
With the two top positions of the [White Corps] always vacant, Muzan could easily indulge in his increasingly twisted tendencies—taking random people from the streets to suffer, satisfying his rampant sadism.
The two groups under his command fell into chaos more and more each day. Eventually, they degenerated into large gangs of delinquents and criminals, with flashy uniforms.
Due to the lack of capable members and a leader—whose deficiencies could be considered an insult—the [New Dawn] easily infiltrated more squads throughout the district.
Unbeknownst to Muzan, he had many enemies right under his nose.
All it would take was an order from Yukihime, and in less than a day, the west district of [Fumetsu] would capitulate.
With the natural defenses of the place, the [New Dawn] could easily hold this part of the island for years if they used all their members.
But freeing just one of the five districts wasn't their goal. Their aim was the liberation of all [Fumetsu].
This meant planning and preparing plan after plan.
For the different squads in the district, it was a torture to watch a sadistic monster torture and kill anyone he wished, knowing full well they could stop him at any moment.