Chapter 42
Chapter 42
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: Villain's Teamwork
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Squeak squeak squeak!
Darkness and White King suddenly perked up their ears and began excitedly circling around me.
"What? New intel? You've found Catmom's hideout? As expected of the Grimoire Empire's intelligence unit!"
The two rats nodded vigorously in unison.
Hold on. Darkness and White King had been with me the whole time. How did they discover Catmom's hideout?
"Hmm... Do you guys have telepathy or something? Just between yourselves?"
Squeak!
Squeak squeak?
Darkness and White King subtly averted their gazes from me.
"Nah, no way. Have I been reading too many comics? Anyway, great! Lead the way! It's time for the great Grimoire to make her move!"
I dashed after the rats, sticking close.
The place we arrived at was...
"A warehouse?"
It was an old warehouse building not far from the villa. It looked like it hadn't been used in years at a glance. The metal exterior walls were rusted, and trash was piled up thick on the ground.
Rooooaaarrr—!!
From inside the warehouse, cats' cries echoed continuously.
"Uh... Do cats really meow like that...?"
Squeak!
Following Darkness's lead, I moved to the back of the warehouse.
There was a small vent, and it was open. The rats must have scouted the interior through this passage.
"Ugh... Does this body have to crawl in too?"
Squeak!
White King nodded slightly.
"Hmph! Fine! For the glory of this body's great victory, a little sacrifice like this is nothing!"
I slipped through the vent with ease. Luckily, my small stature... No, this vent was unusually large! This body is a towering villain over 150cm tall! Well... 149cm rounds up to 150cm, so it's true!
The interior was surprisingly clean, unlike my expectations. Instead, it was filled with modern lab equipment and chemicals.
"What's all this...?"
On the walls hung maps of S City's upscale shopping district and apartment complexes, marked with red dots. Lotus Mall, Virgin Road Luxury Street, and even our Crown Villa...
Meoooow—
Along one wall of the lab, metal cages were precariously stacked like a tower.
The narrow, rusted prisons were crammed full of cats. Squirming furballs groaned as they stepped on and rubbed against each other in the tight space.
"This is... a cat prison?"
Darkness pointed to a research notebook on the desk. I crept over and flipped it open.
[Pheromone Manipulator No. 9]
[Growth Accelerator Feed Beta Version]
[Aggression Enhancement Experiment Report]
[Churu-Type Enhancement Serum]
White King fetched another document. The title was 'Large-Scale Operation Launch'.
[Research Objective: Enhance instinctive aggression toward humans and physical abilities through cat DNA manipulation]
[Final Goal: Raid on Virgin Road Luxury Street]
Creeeak—
Suddenly, the sound of a door opening rang out.
"Hide! Quick!"
I dove under the desk in a flash. Darkness and White King scurried to my side.
The door swung open, footsteps echoed, and a familiar voice followed.
"Mommy's home~"
The one who entered was none other than Catmom Park Ji-young!
She tossed her knockoff luxury bag aside and slipped on a white lab coat over her clothes.
"My babies, Mommy's here~ Today's a special day, so let's all do our best~"
Her tone was completely different from yesterday. Gone was the fake sweetness; now it was cold and calculating.
Nyaa—!
Meow—!
The caged cats meowed anxiously.
"Quiet down! Without me, you'd have been euthanized at the shelter ages ago!"
Park Ji-young turned on the computer and checked the data.
"Tonight, we finally launch the raid on Virgin Road Luxury Street. You all know what to do, right? Those smug lab bastards, the neighbors who mocked me, the ones who dismissed my research as 'unethical'... They'll all see! How great I am!"
Catmom approached a special cage. Inside was a pretty calico cat.
"Mimi! Where are you? You're the star today~ Mommy made special food for you."
She put fluorescent-colored feed on a small dish and pushed it into the cage. The cat initially refused to eat.
"Don't want it? Can't be helped then..."
She donned gloves, grabbed the cat, and force-fed it the food. The cat struggled desperately but eventually swallowed.
A moment later...
The cat's body began to convulse.
Meeeooowwww!
The meowing grew louder, turning into something like a scream. And then...
Its fur lengthened, muscles bulged. Claws sharpened, teeth elongated past its lips.
In mere seconds, the ordinary cat had become a monster cat the size of a large dog!
"Eek!"
I yelped in surprise without thinking.
Park Ji-young whipped her head around.
"Who's there?!"
The monster cat sniffed my scent and growled toward the desk.
"Kak! It's me! The great villain Grimoire!"
I boldly jumped out from under the desk. This body isn't a fleeing rat—I'm a conqueror!
Park Ji-young's shocked expression shifted to a sly smile.
"Oh, the horned kid from the vacant lot yesterday? The cute little villain made it all the way here."
Little? Cute again! Infuriating!
"This body isn't cute! And you're a bad person! Torturing cats like this!"
"Yeah, yeah, little villain. You've seen too much. Now what?"
Thud—
The warehouse's metal door slowly closed.
"You're really unlucky. Finding my secret lab."
"Do you even know how evil what you're doing is? You're a total hypocrite! Pretending to love cats on the outside while using them as guinea pigs!"
This body is a world-conquering archvillain, but at least I don't torment cats!
Park Ji-young's face twisted.
"What do you know, you brat!"
Her face contorted in rage.
"Could a kid like you understand? I've been ignored and belittled my whole life. Do you know how the lab treated me?"
She chuckled softly and continued.
"They couldn't recognize my genius! They even accused me of being 'unethical' and kicked me out! Manipulating cat DNA is revolutionary! It ruined my career, my life! So I decided. I'll plunge the city into chaos with cats and get my revenge. Especially Virgin Road Luxury Street! If I can't have it, I'll destroy it!"
"If you were really a genius, you wouldn't have been fired. You're just a failure."
Her eyes widened at my words.
"W-what? How dare you...!"
"I can tell from your petty cat crimes. This is your revenge? Drugging cats and letting them loose to annoy the neighborhood? Pathetic! A true villain like me would have a grander plan!"
Park Ji-young trembled with fury.
"You know nothing! This is just the beginning! Chaos with cats, and in the midst... my real goal..."
"Hmph, probably just steal real luxury goods instead of fakes!"
Her face flushed red. Nailed it again!
"You don't love cats—you love the 'me who loves cats'! You love the praise for being kind and moral! Posting cat pics on SNS for likes! You don't care about the cats! They're just tools!"
"Shut up! No more yapping!"
Park Ji-young shrieked and whistled sharply.
Grrrrowl—!
The other caged cats began transforming into monsters one by one.
The cats from yesterday's vacant lot.
They were no longer cats—artificial monsters now.
"Get it now? I'm not just a 'Catmom'. I'm C-Rank Villain, 'Cattler'!"
What did this lady just say?
"Cattler? Cat... tler?"
Repeating it made it worse. Who came up with this evil combo?
"No way, 'Cat' plus 'Hitler'? Worst combo ever."
"W-what? No, you ignorant brat! 'Cat' plus 'Butler'! Perfect cat butler!"
Butler? In that cheap knockoff coat? Hilarious. 'Perfect' is reserved for my maid Everlin!
"Butler who abuses cats! Injecting them with nasty drugs—you're worse than Hitler! At least he made animal protection laws!"
"Th-this isn't abuse—it's evolution! Unlocking their potential! What does a clueless kid know!"
Kid?
Kid.
That word again!
How many times today had this body been called 'cute', 'kid', 'child'?
Crown Villa aunties, taxi driver Kim, bread auntie, clothing store owner, fish shop uncle...
"A top-tier villain like me gets mad seeing third-rate trash like you! Now I'll save the cats and beat you up!"
"Babies, playtime! Turn her pet rats into snacks!"
"Threatening my minions? No more mercy!"
Nyaaaaaooo—!
The first monster cat lunged with sharp claws. 'Night' from the lot. Once a normal black cat, now bulging with fluorescent muscles, yellow eyes blood-red.
Swish—!
I twisted instinctively to dodge, but its claw tore the frill of my gothic dress.
"This dress is custom-made by a designer! Leagues above your fake coat!"
"Th-this is real luxury! Authentic! Bought with my lab bonus!"
Fake auntie's face turned beet red. Jealous of my wealth?
"Authentic? Kak! If cheap fakes like that are real, this body has already conquered the world!"
Bam!
While focused on talk, another cat leaped from behind.
'Tiger' with black stripes... now tiger-sized.
I spun and kicked reflexively.
"Hya!"
The monster cat flew into the wall with a thud. Too hard?
Kyaaooow—!
But it got up quickly, glaring angrier.
"Cats are born hunters! Supercharged with my special Catsrang! No match for a hero wannabe like you!"
"This body isn't a hero wannabe—villain... Eek!"
Monster cats swarmed from all sides. Mackerel-tabby clawed from the left, orange-furred bared teeth from the right.
"N-no! My dress isn't a toy!"
Another bit my dress hem from behind. Another precious frill!
And straight ahead...
"Lucky?"
The one-eyed blind cat from the lot. Once small and nuzzling my hand, now twice as big, glaring.
Its remaining eye had turned red too.
"Lucky... You've changed like this too."
A villain shouldn't get sentimental... But it's not the cats' fault. All this fake Catmom's tragedy!
Whoosh—!
Lucky's claw grazed my cheek.
"Eek! Dangerous! What now...? Can't just keep dodging. But punching full force might kill them..."
I can win. But I don't want to kill cats.
They're victims poisoned by drugs. Cats just survive; the real evil is Catmom!
I ducked behind the desk to catch my breath.
"What to do... Win without hurting the cats...?"
Then, a brilliant idea flashed. Genius inspiration pierced my neurons.
Why didn't I think of this simple solution sooner!
"Right! This body just needs to power up too!"
In hero comics I see daily, they awaken hidden power or new techniques in crises!
I looked at Darkness and White King. They loyally guarded me.
"Formation Trinity, deploy!"
When bond with minions peaks, unite powers in offense-defense harmony! Trinity combat with rats!
Time to show true villain dignity!
Squeak?
Darkness tilted its head questioningly. 'What's that?'
My heated horns cooled instantly.
"W-what do you mean! You don't know our teamwork ultimate move? The supreme tactic where we three become one to crush foes!"
Squeak squeak...
White King blinked, scratching head with tiny paw. 'Never practiced that?'
Ugh... Villain dignity crumbling!
"No, I mean... just... climb on my shoulders!"
Squeak squeak!
Thankfully, they got it and leaped onto my shoulders.
"Kak! Formation Trinity complete!"
Cattler snorted at the sight.
"Cute~ Fighting cats with rats? Real villain would use rats as bait and run."
Daring to insult my leadership!
"Think this body would do something stupid? Darkness and White King are my loyal minions! Minion loyalty essential for world conquest! This body cherishes minions—a great villain!"
No, strategically valuable! Yeah, that's it!
No time to think—monster cats charged again. One, two, three from different angles.
Squeak squeak!
Darkness signaled in my ear.
'Right flank 75 degrees, claw attack in 0.8 seconds, evade at 130 degrees!'
I twisted right.
Whoosh—!
Claw grazed my hair tip.
Squeak squeak!
White King pointed up in warning. Didn't even look, but rat cues told the threat.
Calico Mimi leaping from cage atop my head.
"Ambush on this body? Foolish!"
I rushed the nearest shelf and shoved hard. Heavy feed bags toppled like dominoes.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Feed bags and equipment blocked cat attack paths perfectly, as calculated.
As cats panicked, rats pointed to their napes.
Squeak squeak—!
"Got it!"
I dove between cats, dodging claws by a hair, striking napes precisely.
Nyaaaaak—!!
Cats dropped one by one. Not dead—just temporarily immobilized.
"Kak! That's minion bond!"
Darkness and White King nodded proudly, arms crossed.
Yes, evil organizations need this teamwork!