Chapter 101 Kronos Schiltz
The Boosting Incident happened back when the first wave of superpowers appeared on Earth. Of course, not anyone wished to be a superhero even before the superpowers surfaced, but that's not the only point why villains appeared in the world.
The establishment of a new order, of an invisible hierarchy, occurred in an instant, leaving those with and without superpowers to fend for themselves while lawlessness spread throughout the land. There were no rules regarding humans with superpowers so the government couldn't do anything about it. The least they could do is rewrite some laws and alter human rights as the governments see fit. Needless to say, there was chaos, and for a brief moment, it's as if the world is plunging directly into another world war.
Riding the waves of chaos, of course, were ambitious villains who wanted to make a name for themselves before they were stopped by superheroes. By then, the SAO was hastily formed, keeping the known superheroes in check and passing laws to the government for approval. SAO was rather busy back then— a perfect chance for villains to strike.
Now, there were villains who were small-minded no matter what they do. Pillaging, stealing, breaking traffic laws— they tend to break all these simple crimes as if that would make them popular. They didn't even think that humans with no superpowers do those things on a regular basis. They were no different from normal criminals who plagued the land.
Then there's a small percentile of villains that have a bigger goal in mind. In secret, like the black market just to make an example, powerful villains started making underground deals and blogs, releasing a little information about themselves so they could get odd jobs. From assassination to mass murder, there were a plethora of jobs in the underground so the villains were having the time of their lives. Pretty soon, large-scale crimes were being done, making the SAO have a headache. And this is just in Japan, all the other countries faced difficulties dealing with their villains as well. It was so serious that for a few years, not a single country managed to help another since their internal problems were too much to handle. Even the current prime minister of Japan stepped down since he couldn't solve a single problem no matter what he did.
Oddly enough, the villains were much more structured than the governments and superhero associations. It was really an incident to behold. Nevertheless, things got worse by the day, and Japan entered martial law for a few years while they try to get back on their gear. It took at least a year before the SAO was finally cemented as a legitimate organization with laws under the government. Laws for humans with superpowers were passed as well, hastily to be honest.
Just when things were improving, and the people were already seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, the abyss opened up once again and a name appeared out of nowhere.
Kronos Schiltz.
Born from a normal family with two working parents, Kronos never experienced the attention of his own parents and so he decided to attract attention by causing mischief. From his earliest memories, he could still remember being a bully, then becoming a leader of a small gang that terrorized a few streets. And then, once he reached middle school, his name was known far and wide due to his wild reputation. Of course, he never did major crimes...
... those were saved for later.
Well, Kronos Schiltz was getting the attention he wanted because of the little troubles here and there. For a time he was content, bothering teachers and students alike and creating another group of bullies in his school. Because of their influence, Kronos Schiltz delved into the world of gambling, larceny, and extortion. Of course, those were just petty crimes and Kronos Schiltz was slippery enough to not get into any trouble.
But as a young man, and an ambitious one at that, he decided to get into the more dangerous spectrum of crimes. Murder, arson, and assault were included in his bucket list that was easily fulfilled. And even after all that, he was doing so well in school— too well in fact that he was always number one in everything.
He was having the time of his life, and because no one dared stop him, he aggravated until he reached the point of no return.
Then his superpowers awakened. It's as if fate gave him everything he could ask for. When one reached that state of rottenness, there was no stopping him or her. As they continuously ride the waves of fate with blood on their footprints, they would reach a point where they'll try to achieve the impossible— to become an absolute ruler.
Kronos's superpower was Blood manipulation. He could manipulate his own blood, form it into anything he could think of. And what's even scarier is that he could manipulate someone else's blood as long as a single drop of his blood touches the blood of another.
In just a few months' time, Kronos claimed through the ranks of villains in the underground as he delved into the black market and other fishy websites on the internet. Killing someone became a walk in the park for him and he gets to earn a few extra bucks as a bonus. He didn't have problems with money since then, not to mention his influence in school and his good grades.
Everything was going smoothly. Then... Kronos was introduced to something that he once disliked and sworn that he'd never involve himself on the subject. And yet there he was, diving headfirst into the world of quietus— into the world of substance abuse.
"Kronos?"
p
"Am I going in? Or are we going to stare at each other?" Kronos asked, cutting his wrist with a knife. Blood then poured forth from his huge wound and slowly dripped onto the ground.
Shiiiing!
Before the guard could blink, the blood on the floor suddenly disappeared as it shifted into a sharp spike, pointed at his neck. "I'm in a good mood today, I might just kill you right here and now," Kronos said in a lighthearted manner as if he was greeting someone with a good morning.
"I'm sorry," The guard bowed his head and opened the door behind him
Slash!
"Then do your job properly next time so it wouldn't cost you your life. Seriously, why waste my precious seconds without thinking twice?" Kronos clicked his tongue as his blood turned into liquid form and went back to his system. His wound closed in an instant as well as if he didn't just cut his wrist like a maniac.
"Oh, you're here," A guy from the other side said, tipping his cap towards Kronos. He didn't bother standing from his seat since he was quite snug sitting down there.
"Yep, did you bring the money?"
"Of course, why do you think I'm here for?" The man smirked, grabbing the suitcase by his side and putting it on the table. "You know I never buy anything in the black market but this one seems like a good deal. I've seen your promotionals and I don't think they're edited. How about side effects? Are there any side effects?"
"None so far, but overdosing would make someone lose their minds— I mean, they'll get high." Kronos shrugged.
"Sounds like any other drug to me. I guess you're going to hit the underground market soon?"
Kronos shrugged for a second time. "No, you just spread the word. People will come to me in all four corners of the globe."
"You're right about that. But what's in it for me?"
"You get first batch every single damned time." Kronos extended his hand for a handshake to which the man responded with the same gesture.
"It's a deal then. You've come to the right person. I'm not the leader of the Silver Spoon Gang for nothing."
With a nod, Kronos put the suitcase he was holding and slammed it on the table. Holding his breath, he opened the suitcase, revealing ten vials neatly lined up together on foam. At first glance, the vials contained blood... but alas, it wasn't blood. Not in the least bit.
Recently, Kronos had been working on a certain drug that would amplify the powers of superhumans in exchange for their sanity if they get overdosed. He accidentally stumbled upon it while studying his own blood and its properties. It was not for naught though since he could use it to cause more chaos and earn more moolah's in the near future.
"Ten vials for five million yen. Quite a bargain, don't you thin?"
"You can sell them for more, just say the word and I'll sell you more vials." Kronos shrugged. "Those Boosting Drugs will change the world, you know." He continued.