A Villain Worth 100 Points -4-
“Excuse me.” I whispered to the middle-aged woman sitting beside me. “...What is it, miss?”
“I just had a sudden thought.”
“...What kind of thought?”
I pointed with my finger, one by one, at Han Yujin, Han Cheolho, and the other Enhanced Humans mixed in among the civilians.
“That person is fighting against a rampaging Enhanced Human. What do you suppose the other Enhanced Humans are doing?”
“Huh? That’s...”
At my words, the woman’s gaze drifted toward the Enhanced Humans. Their minds were already a quagmire of anxiety and fear. Give them a target to blame, and the reaction would come naturally.
—Kwaang!
“Open this! Open it right now!”
—Bang, bang!
“Kyaaah! Someone do something about that thing!”
“When the hell are the police getting here? Did anyone call them?”
“Why are they letting dangerous things like that loose in society?!”
Exactly. This kind of thing didn’t even require brainwave manipulation. I glanced sideways at the woman’s expression. Her face, a muddy mix of fear and anger, was quite the sight.
Suddenly unable to hold back, the woman shot to her feet and marched toward the Enhanced Humans.
“Hey, you lot!”
The Enhanced Humans, who had been eyeing one another warily, asked, “Us?”
“Yeah! What exactly do you think you’re doing?”
The woman screamed at the top of her lungs, her eyes wild. “Look at the person lying over there! He’s fighting with everything he’s got, and you’re just sitting here doing nothing?”
“Why are you suddenly yelling at us?”
“This is Cheongang’s busiest district, isn’t it? A street built for your sake, not ours! The city has done so much for you people! The least you could do is show some willingness to repay that kindness!”
Wow, ma’am. She’s got some fire. The moment she finished her tirade, the civilians who had been listening erupted like oil thrown onto flames.
“That’s right! That’s right!” they shouted in agreement.
“.......”
The Enhanced Humans exchanged glances, then approached the fallen Han Cheolho.
—Zzt!
A spark flew, and Han Cheolho coughed up black liquid. The barrier, which had looked ready to shatter, regained its vivid color. So they had a defibrillator or something. Still, it would only buy time.
“Satisfied?” the Enhanced Human who had revived Cheolho asked, looking at the woman.
“Satisfied? What do you mean, satisfied?”
“We helped, didn’t we?”
“Go out there and fight!”
“Why should we?”
Unable to hold back any longer, the Enhanced Human gritted his teeth. “Honestly, this is all your own fault, isn’t it?”
“What did you just say?”
“We’re human too. If you keep scratching at the same wound, of course it’s going to bleed. Huh? If the world were full of people like you, ma’am, I’d feel like I couldn’t breathe.”
“Y-you...!!”
—Thwack.
The woman’s fist connected hard, snapping the Enhanced Human’s head to the side. Everyone in the room held their breath at the sight, but the struck Enhanced Human merely looked down at her before returning to his seat as if nothing had happened.
“Aigoo, my hand...!!”
The one who had thrown the punch was the one sobbing on the floor, clutching her fist in pain. The scene was so pathetic that the tension naturally subsided.
‘Huh? That’s it?’
Tsk. Not much of a bite after all. Maybe I should have loosened one more leash.
Just as I thought that and began inching toward the Enhanced Human who had been punched, the world suddenly lurched.
—Whoosh.
‘What? I haven’t even done anything yet...’
A mysterious window appeared in midair.
> If a large amount of stamina is consumed, electrical signals can be handled with greater precision, allowing interference with another’s synapses.
The status window had underlined the part about stamina consumption, as if answering my confusion.
...Consuming a large amount means this much?
‘Damn it, this is the first time I’ve used this ability, so controlling the output...’
“Miss, why are you suddenly like this?”
When I staggered, the same woman who had just delivered her passionate speech came over to support me.
“No... I just got dizzy all of a sudden...”
Once I managed to steady myself, an odd sight entered my spinning vision. Kim Seokho. Just like me, Kim Seokho was clutching his head and groaning in pain.
“W-what’s wrong with him all of a sudden?”
The others muttered in shock at the sight. Could it be that the suggestion was wearing off? What was the reason? Had my stamina run out? Was it mixing with the side effects of Winterdead?
“Uwaaaaaah!!!”
The next moment, Kim Seokho let out a roar and struck the barrier with strength he had never shown before.
—Shatter!
The barrier Han Cheolho had just restored crumbled helplessly. Kim Seokho’s bloodshot eyes darted through the crowd as if searching for someone.
“You...!!”
His gaze soon landed on me. The way his eyes gleamed with rage made it clear the suggestion had definitely worn off.
‘I’m screwed...’
“You’re the one who...!!”
Kim Seokho charged at me in one bound, grabbed me, and slammed me to the floor.
“Kugh...!!”
The sudden impact felt like my lungs had collapsed.
“Unni!”
A floating sensation followed. When I barely managed to open my eyes, I found myself in front of the glass wall overlooking the bustling district below.
“Don’t move! Don’t come any closer!”
Kim Seokho shouted, his arm wrapped around my neck. Any movement meant he would snap it. Han Cheolho and Han Yujin seemed unable to act either.
‘What’s going on? How did the situation turn out like this?’
Why am I suddenly a hostage? Why did this guy run toward the glass wall? Hey, Mr. Kim Seokho. You’re not seriously thinking of breaking the glass and escaping, are you? We’re on the 37th floor!
—Shatter!
Defying my expectations, the reinforced glass—easily three centimeters thick—was torn apart like paper.
‘Shit!’
The night view of the darkened city felt close enough to touch. Kim Seokho began slowly backing away, glancing at the other Enhanced Humans.
“Save...!”
I barely managed to squeeze out a voice. But Kim Seokho didn’t stop retreating, as if he couldn’t hear me. Too much blood had rushed to his head; he probably couldn’t hear anything around him.
Was this how I died? No, I could fly. The only one dying here would be him. But ending the incident like this would be a problem too. How would I explain a civilian surviving a fall from the 17th floor? When was Last going to show up?
Last.
At that moment, an indescribable, bizarre sensation pierced through my brain like it was traveling up my spine. This feeling... Right. I had felt it just recently.
“Hehe...”
Dopamine flooded my brain. Ah, I was happy. How could I not describe this situation as happy?
“....What’s so funny?”
Kim Seokho, whose ears had apparently cleared, asked, puzzled by my laughter in this situation. Instead of answering, I turned my gaze toward the shutter.
—Kwaang!
The firmly closed shutter shattered along with a cloud of dust. Standing within the dust was the silhouette of a man. The protagonist of this world, who always appeared at the moment of crisis.
“Yuha-ssi...?”
It was Last.
*
Jinhyun, who had returned to the 37th floor after sensing something strange from below, was met with the sight of the emergency shutter that was designed to close automatically. Built to prepare for cases like humanoid monsters invading the city or armed groups illegally occupying buildings, the shutter was made of chrome alloy that wouldn’t budge even from most explosives.
‘Terrorism?’
At that moment, what came to Jinhyun’s mind was the safety of Cheolho and Yujin, who were still in the restaurant. They were strong enough to be classified as A-rank and B-rank in Minos, so they should be fine, but the problem was that there were far too many civilians inside.
‘They’re kind-hearted people, so they won’t be able to just stand by.’
If that happened, even Cheolho and Yujin could end up seriously injured. Once his thoughts reached that point, Jinhyun began to act quickly. First, he scanned his surroundings to check for any CCTV cameras that might be recording him. He still wasn’t ready to reveal his past to Han Cheolho and Han Yujin. That was why Jinhyun moved while avoiding anything that could record his appearance. He had the ability to do so.
Reaching the front of the restaurant, Jinhyun pressed his ear to the shutter to assess the situation inside.
“Unni!”
“Don’t move! Don’t come any closer!”
Han Yujin’s voice and the voice of the employee who had been serving them rang out in succession. They sounded urgent, as if the situation was quite dangerous.
‘Damn it...!!’
Jinhyun reflexively began channeling power into his fist to break through the shutter. But he couldn’t bring himself to swing. If he broke the shutter and went in now, the city would realize he was one of the first-generation Enhanced Humans who had gone missing. Not only that, he would be betraying the trust of Cheolho and Yujin, who had believed him to be a civilian. The place he had barely managed to return to would disappear again.
Was there no better way? A way to resolve this without stepping forward himself. Then, the word “Unni” he had just heard flashed through Jinhyun’s mind. The only person Yujin called “Unni” here was one.
Chae Yuha. The woman who had awakened memories of his childhood that he had long forgotten. The woman who always wore a smile on her lips, no matter what she was thinking.
“.......!!”
A warning bell rang in Jinhyun’s senses. If he didn’t break through this shutter right now, he would be left with a regret that would never fade.
—Bang!
Thus, the still-unripe justice and the half-formed villain met at the moment of crisis. As hostage and savior.
*
Last. He had appeared. Though not yet complete, he had clearly manifested before me in the form of a hero.
‘I knew he would come!’
Except for the part where I became a hostage, I had orchestrated about half of this situation, but seeing him appear still felt strangely moving.
“Y-you, who are you!”
Kim Seokho shouted in panic. It was understandable—the shutter that wouldn’t even scratch from ordinary impacts had been destroyed.
“D-don’t come any closer! It doesn’t matter what happens to this woman!”
Kim Seokho grabbed my arm and pushed me toward the railing. But Last didn’t stop walking. There was a kind of resolve and grim determination in his eyes.
“I said don’t come closer! I’ll really drop her!”
The pressure from the terrified Kim Seokho grew stronger. A little more and my body would tip backward and fall.
“S... save...”
I forced out a sound. And the next moment, Jinhyun’s figure vanished from my sight.
“What... Where did he...?”
An uppercut buried itself in the jaw of the confused Kim Seokho.
“Kuhk...!!”
Kim Seokho was launched into the air, slammed his head into the ceiling, and lost consciousness as he collapsed to the floor. It happened in the blink of an eye. Everyone present except me stared at the scene as if their souls had left their bodies.
“Are you all right?”
Last asked me. I smiled and answered.
“I’m fi—”
—Whoosh.
Once again, the world spun. My legs gave out and I sank to the floor. This time, for some reason, my vision seemed to be turning red. No, it really was turning red.
‘This ability... I really shouldn’t use it if I can help it.’
While trying to steady my breathing, I couldn’t even lift my head and instead surveyed the situation around me.
“Did you see that just now...?”
“See what...?”
“An ability user took down someone he was barely handling in the blink of an eye...”
Unfortunately, the foolish masses seemed intimidated by the presence Last had displayed.
‘Why are you complaining even after being saved?’
Feeling slightly annoyed, I turned my gaze toward the Han siblings. But contrary to my expectations, they too looked pale, overwhelmed by Last’s presence.
Hey, why are you guys like that too? Feeling a twinge of anxiety, I looked up at Last with some difficulty.
“.......”
At the same time, I covered my mouth. I couldn’t help it. The feeling was similar to the powerlessness one felt when facing some enormous existence. The ability to sublimate emotions into power. Heroic Force. Though he wasn’t showing it on his face, judging from the form of power rising like an aura, Last was clearly angry.
Why? What had made Last this angry?
‘Ah.’
I remembered. When Last had first used his power in front of people to save Han Yujin, there had definitely been a scene like this. Last thought of the friends who had undergone experiments with him at the research institute as family. It was only natural—having shared the same experiments and the same pain, he couldn’t help but see them as family. Then one day, with a mysterious explosion, the research institute and his friends had all disappeared. That memory remained a trauma for Last even now. Because of that, Last had nearly killed the one who had tried to take Han Yujin hostage and escape. He must have thought he couldn’t lose his family in front of his eyes again.
‘Looking at the situation so far, the context is roughly similar except that the hostage is me...’
But there was one strange point in this assumption. While Han Yujin and Han Cheolho could be considered family to Last...
‘I’m someone he only met today?’
A sliver of anxiety crept in.
‘This guy, don’t tell me...?’
No, that wasn’t what mattered right now. The current Last couldn’t yet be called the justice-obsessed pushover Last I knew. In other words, if left alone, Last might actually kill the Kim Seokho lying over there.
‘Back then, Han Yujin definitely said something to calm Last down...’
The problem was that I couldn’t remember what it was. Please, think. If things stayed like this, all my efforts so far would go to waste. It would leave a huge stain on Last’s hero debut. Then, a message-like notification appeared above my head.
> Advice: Run to Last and hug him within 5 seconds.
> [5...]
> [4...]
> [3...]
> [2...]
The status window...? Could I trust those words...? You might lack flexibility, but you’re not the type to lie...!!
‘Screw it...!’
I immediately ran to Last and hugged him tightly. Then, naturally, my mouth moved.
“Thank you. For saving me.”
‘...Right, that was it.’
The words Han Yujin had said to Last when he was about to kill someone. Now that I said it, I remembered. Was this that “the head forgets but the body remembers” thing?
‘But... did that really work...?’
Just in case, I glanced up at Last and saw that the killing intent that had been pouring out of him suffocatingly had disappeared.
“Have you calmed down a little?”
“...Yuha-ssi, are you all right?”
“Yes? Why?”
“You’re... bleeding. From your eyes, nose, and mouth.”
“Ah... this... I’m fi—”
—Whoosh.
Without meaning to, I buried my face deeper into Last’s arms.
“...I’m not really fine.”
“I knew it...”
“But I’ll say I am.”
“...Pardon?”
“Because I want you to remain the hero who saved me.”
“.......”
Last fell silent, as if he had nothing left to say. Yes, that was enough for now. The hero, Last. The small savior who would someday shine brilliantly. My nemesis. The next moment, I collapsed like a doll whose power had been cut off and lost consciousness.