Ryouma smirked as he left the Yggdrasil International members to deal with the fallout of Project Ark. Much like the Beat Riders, he planned to throw them under the bus from the start, though only because circumstances made him desperate. Now he had free reign to get the Fruit of Knowledge. But what will he use it for? Of course, there was the whole 'rule over humanity' idea he had, though he began to reflect upon it. Will it be worth it?
There's a good chance everyone's now gunning for the Fruit… At least everyone who knows about it. Sid at the very least got a head start, though who knows what happened to him. Poor fool could have gotten himself caught between a rock and a hard place for all he cared. Minato is possibly a threat, but he left her for dead, so unless she makes it out of the Helheim invasion alive, she's not a threat. There's the possibility of the two kids at Team Gaim being competitors. He's not sure where Mitsuzane went, but he's pretty sure that Kouta got his ass handed to, and even if he is still alive and kicking, he'd probably kill that kid. No… Kill is too… weak of a word.
Destroy. Aaaah, now that's a better word, he thought. He would destroy that kid. And anyone else who would stand in his way. Hell, who cares about ruling Earth? I wanna watch it get destroyed. He smirked. It faded when he realized that the destruction will mean no more Earth… But he got a massive grin once he thought: Of course, what's stopping me from simply controlling the plants to invade other worlds and destroy them as well?
He shook his head. What the hell is going through his mind? Why does he fascinate about destru- There I go again. Ryouma thought. He messaged his head… right where he could feel the well hidden scars of his operation. His eyes widened. He didn't expect that little excursion outside his body would actually cause any long term consequences, but here it is, the residue of his time in Hakaider stuck to his brain like a prehistoric animal to tar.
That dreaded day when he experimented on Hakaider seemed like a hazy memory before this point, but now he can remember it clear as day. He shuddered. His mind's tainted by that robot's programming, possibly beyond any repair.
But why would I want to?
He recalled a time where Kaito declared that the Helheim Forest was there to weed out the weak. Perhaps that's what it will do, above with granting its holder immense power… But of course, there's competition… He laughed.
Yes… I'll destroy them all… Then grab the fruit for myself and use that power to destroy… destroy… destroy! Ryouma cackled as he rubbed his fingers across his scars. He no longer regretted Hakaider… He was thankful it happened. Because now it gave him leeway to go forth and destroy.
For creation of a new world for him to rule cannot begin without the destruction of the old world.