Chapter 121
Chapter 121
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter Title: 120 - Small Fries Finally Become Comrades
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A week and a few days had passed.
Han U-sol visited Camilla every other day to cooperate with her and check on the progress of her research.
Today, as usual, he went to see her.
This time, with Yoon Na-rin, who had finally been discharged from the hospital.
"How's it going? Found anything out?"
"Hmm~ A little? But there's something that's been bothering me for a while..."
"What is it?"
"Your eyes are really pretty."
"...Huh?"
Han U-sol tilted his head at the sudden comment.
"Can you give me just one of those eyes?"
Camilla, who had drawn close and locked eyes with him, pointed at his vivid golden pupils.
It was a question that gave off an inexplicable, instinctive disgust.
Despite the creepy question, Han U-sol only grimaced slightly before firing back.
"...Is that necessary for the research?"
"What if it is? Would you give it to me?"
"......Let me think about it."
"Hmm~ I want to say yes just to tease you, but it's not really necessary."
"Then you know my answer. Cut the nonsense and focus on the research."
"Really? That's a shame."
"...What the hell was that."
Yoon Na-rin furrowed her brow, clearly unable to make sense of the bizarre exchange that had just taken place.
Her first impression of Camilla wasn't much different from anyone else's.
"She's just a total psycho. Can we really trust her?"
Yoon Na-rin's gaze sharpened.
"She gets like this sometimes. Last time, she asked if she could dissect me."
"No, seriously, can we trust this?"
What kind of psycho is this?
Had Anis really spent three years with someone like this?
She'd heard that Camilla had experimented on Anis's blood, and now she couldn't help but worry deeply about what Anis might have gone through.
"Don't be too harsh~ I'm pretty capable, you know?"
".........."
Maybe I should just smack her. Right up to the brink of death.
The thought suddenly crossed Yoon Na-rin's mind.
She already didn't like the woman, suspecting what she might have done to Anis, and now this teasing, snarky attitude was really getting on her nerves.
"Han U-sol? Let me have some of your nails or hair this time."
"Sure."
Whether he sensed Yoon Na-rin's inner turmoil or not, Han U-sol calmly continued his conversation with Camilla.
It seemed like this wasn't the first or second time; he didn't seem particularly fazed by Camilla's prisoner-unlike behavior despite her being a captive.
A sense of exhaustion for the days ahead already washed over her.
"Haa..."
Yoon Na-rin let out a small sigh and ran her hand through her hair.
'Anis... I wonder what she's doing right now.'
She definitely wasn't in a good state.
Maybe even crying.
It was a day when her worries about Anis deepened even further.
With the purge of the corrupt successfully completed, the humans would quickly sort out the situation. It was only a matter of time before the heroes came charging in.
We didn't have enough magic beasts left to stand against them. Objectively speaking, the situation was disadvantageous for us.
So, over the past few days, we had kidnapped villains.
They were ordinary small fries, but even those small fries were quite valuable resources to us.
I trained them alongside Han.
Even though they were criminals I personally disliked, it would be a problem if they went into battle without any unity and got wiped out in an instant.
"Huff, huff..."
"No breaks—training resumes!"
"F-Fucking bitch..."
"What? Ten extra laps around the training field."
"Arghhh!"
We worked hard to turn these small fries into something resembling proper humans.
If they endured the grueling training, they could become warriors of reversal in just a few days.
I was the leader.
The leader and commander of this rebel army made up of villains.
So what if they were small fries?
Turning even small fries into seasoned warriors was the quality and duty of a leader.
"W-We can't live like this! It's too hard! Just kill us instead!"
"Worm-!"
"Ugh!"
If any of them rebelled occasionally, I'd give them a light flick on the forehead.
Hey, you. I took in a street thug like you and personally tried to make you human—how dare you not appreciate the favor and talk back?
"Don't swing your sword blindly at the enemy! Watch your comrade next to you and swing in sync!"
"Uwaaa!"
It took three days to turn the small fry thugs into somewhat decent grunts.
And another three days to turn those grunts into usable soldiers.
Lacking stamina, mental fortitude, combat experience.
And teamwork and camaraderie too.
They grew by filling in each other's weaknesses.
The palm-sized bread that wouldn't even last a day built their patience like rocks; the rainwater barrels taught them the tenacity of weeds that thrive in filthy dirt.
If anyone coveted another's bread, they faced severe punishment as an example to others. If they crossed the line again, the butcher with glowing red eyes would unhesitatingly sever their necks.
After a storm of violence passed, they no longer coveted others' possessions. They might not care for their comrades, but at least no one eyed their fellow soldiers' belongings.
And so another three days passed.
"Everyone, you've all worked incredibly hard up to now."
――Thank you!!
"It seems there's nothing more for me to teach you. I'm truly impressed by how you cherish and respect your comrades, always striving to take one step further than the one beside you. In that spirit, I, Anis Harper, hereby declare the end of hell training!"
――Waaaaah!!
"Excellent. I'm so proud and impressed by all of you who endured that harsh training. Is there anything you'd like to eat?"
――Yes!!
"Good! Today, you can eat whatever you want to your heart's content!"
――Ooooh!!
"Forward—three seconds of cheers!!"
――Waaaaaaaah!!
A thunderous roar erupted. Those lined up in formation embraced each other, sharing their joy. The voices that had previously clashed in arguments and insults were finally directed in the right direction.
It was truly a sight to behold.
"A big round of applause for Instructor Han, who helped with the training, and Supply Officer Betty, who provided the food!!"
――Clap clap clap clap clap!!
"I'm sure none of you chose to come here. Some of you young folks must still be distraught about being dragged to a place like this. Right?"
――Right!
"I don't want to force you to fight for me. Because everyone here had their own daily lives, goals, and paths before this. How could I have the face to demand you fight for me after forcibly dragging people who were living just fine?"
The crowd fell silent for a moment.
They had been living carefree lives, doing whatever they pleased.
How did they end up here,
oppressed by rules, wasting their brief youth endlessly.
A sense of doubt even hung in the deathly quiet training field.
"You must feel wronged. Furious enough to grind your teeth. But! There's one thing I must tell you."
I raised my hand high toward them and shouted.
"Being dragged here forcibly didn't mean you only lost things. Together, we overcame life-and-death crises, shared even a piece of bread—and gained so much. Comrades you can trust and rely on from the depths of your soul! That's what I wanted to show you bottom-dwellers. That life is never solitary! That even without blood ties, you can form bonds thicker than blood! That there's always someone you can trust with your back, right by your side!"
Those who had kept silent raised their heads and looked at each other.
After staring wordlessly for a while, emotions crossing their faces, they began wiping tears one by one, until the entire training field was filled with a warm, somewhat misty atmosphere.
Bam!
I slammed my fist down on the podium to drive the point home.
"The heroes will come charging in soon. We don't know when, but that day will come. We've always fled from their eyes, hiding to survive. But not anymore! We'll overcome them! We'll fight back and seize victory! Back then, we were alone—but now, we have comrades we can trust!"
Sniff, sob.
The stuffy sobs spread softly, then slowly grew.
The pitches varied,
but what mattered was that they all shared the same emotion, recalling the same scenes, and wept together.
The hellish training where they barely held on, supporting each other.
The solemn vows to survive and return together.
The comrades who refused to abandon them even when they said they were done for, telling them to leave.
United as one, they shouted.
――For our comrades!
"Let me say it again: I won't tell you to fight for me. I'm just the villain who dragged you here by force. Hate me, resent me all you want! I didn't do it willingly either, but I won't make excuses. Instead! Fight for the comrade right beside you! For the comrades bound by blood and soul through these hellish days!"
――For our comrades!
"For our comrades!"
――Waaaaah!!
Everyone cried out loudly.
With tear-swollen, crinkled eyes wide open, throats choked with surging emotion forced wide, they bellowed about their comrades, their shared fate.
――For our comrades!!!
From worthless street thugs to grunts: three days.
From grunts to soldiers: another three days.
And from soldiers, another three days.
At last, the soldiers
became true warriors—and comrades.
"It's really strange."
"What do you mean, City Lord?"
His secretary asked Colton, who was muttering to himself.
"Violent crimes have dropped sharply lately. Not just the outskirts, but the central areas too—the entire city is free of crime. For some reason, all the villains who were headaches have vanished..."
I have no idea why. Some turf war between villains? Colton muttered.
"Either way, isn't it good news? We expected it would take time to restore order in the outskirts, even if the center stabilized."
"Hmm..."
Colton rubbed his deeply shadowed eyes and sipped his coffee.
He'd been pulling all-nighters due to excessive workload lately and was sleep-deprived.
"Good news... Yeah, it is good."
Colton was a busy man.
A pile of work awaited him even now.
He had no time to dwell on the crime rate plummeting, which was nothing but good news.
No, it was more than good—it was great.
Colton muttered while savoring his usual cheap coffee.
"Still suspicious... but good is good. Dispatch association personnel to investigate separately. And... this is an opportunity. Thanks to it, the heroes can skip stabilizing the outskirts and head straight to Sector X."
Skyscrapers pierced the heavens.
From the tallest one, Colton gazed at the city below and spoke.
"Relay this to Yeriel: The heroes will head to Sector X soon."