Suspicion
"Spica said she ran into a werewolf, but do you know anything about it?"
Stay calm. Don't panic. I knew a question like this was coming.
I'd braced myself for my identity being exposed back then, but Marie passing out had let it all blow over quietly. So I just needed to play it cool and answer naturally, without tipping my hand.
"Actually, the werewolf showed up right after you collapsed."
"―――!!"
I could've just said I never saw the werewolf at all, but with a hero like Marie going down, it would've seemed fishy for a regular guy like me to escape unscathed from villains. That's why she'd kept fretting over whether I'd gotten away okay.
"At first, I thought I was done for with all those monsters swarming in. But for some reason, they started fighting among themselves, so I bolted during the chaos."
"I... see."
Marie looked a little downcast, like she was bummed she hadn't been able to help.
"Still, thanks to you, I survived the initial attack. I'm really grateful."
"Heh heh. Thanks for the consolation."
"But was that werewolf on our side? Why was it fighting the villains?"
It was a bold move, but maybe I could nudge up the public's view of werewolves a bit. A werewolf stepping in to stop terrorist villains? Could build some goodwill.
"Werewolves are enemies. They blend in among humans by day, then transform at night to devour people."
"Then why..."
"To us, anyone threatening humanity is an enemy. But even among them, there are factions and rivalries. The villain who attacked us was Bomberman, an ex-hero. He's with the Villain Alliance now. The werewolf was probably at odds with that group."
Good lord. An ex-hero turned villain? With that kind of power, why go bad?
Too bad testing the waters on werewolves being allies was a bust—Marie's reaction shut that down. At least she seemed convinced I wasn't with the Villain Alliance.
After pulling off a blatant terror attack in the city, the Hero Association was hot on their trail. Getting mistaken for one of them would be a nightmare.
"Speaking of, what's the Villain Alliance exactly? Why'd they suddenly launch a terror attack?"
"Well... the Villain Alliance is just what it sounds like—a coalition of villain groups wanted by the Hero Association. Ex-heroes like Bomberman who committed crimes and got booted, infamous wanted criminals behind major incidents... They've grown so strong lately that even the Association hesitates to poke the hornet's nest."
Sounds like a drug cartel or mafia syndicate. If the Association can't touch them easily, this is seriously dangerous.
"Online, people are saying the Association and Alliance might go to full-on war. Could that really happen?"
"I don't know what the higher-ups are thinking, but yeah, the odds are high. They can't just let a provocative terror attack like this slide, and the Alliance has been a thorn in their side forever. Up till now, intel was thin, and they didn't want to stir things up without knowing the backlash. But with the Alliance striking first, the Association will crush them for sure."
From what she said, the Alliance wasn't a unified group but a loose coalition of villain organizations with varied motives, all united against their common foe: the Association. Not one solid entity, so hard to wipe out. They'd been laying low out of fear, so the Association hadn't bothered them. But corner a rat, and it bites the innocent. Now that they'd attacked first, it was game on.
"Guess we'll have to stay vigilant. Who knows when the next incident hits."
"Yeah. So no funny business from you, pervert. Heroes are swamped as it is without chasing small-time crooks."
"Funny business?"
"Running around naked."
...Right, that misunderstanding was still hanging over us. With everything that happened right after, I'd figured it'd fade away naturally.
"I'm really not a pervert. It's hard to explain the details, but I didn't do it because I wanted to."
"You're hot enough—why run around like that?"
"Oh ho. Alone with a pervert, and you're provoking me like that?"
"Oh? Even as a patient, I'm still a hero. Think I can't handle you?"
Marie flashed a sly grin, teasing playfully. Didn't peg her for the type, but she had a mischievous streak.
She chuckled, then suddenly shoved her phone at me.
"Kidding. Gimme your number, pervert."
"Hitting on me in this situation? I know I've got charm, but a hero hunting me down? That's a first."
"What? Consider the last incident swept under the rug—but pull any weird stunts again, and I'll haul you in. Warning."
She really doesn't trust me that much, huh.
"Ugh, fine. Here."
I took her phone, punched in my number, and handed it back. Wonder if heroes should share numbers this casually.
"There. Come arrest me if I act up again."
"Got it. But you won't do anything weird just to see me, right?"
"If I miss you, I'll just call. Why go to jail?"
"If you end up in jail anyway, I'll visit weekly."
"Even I wouldn't wish for prison-date vibes."
We bantered lightly like that for a while, but overstaying felt rude, so I decided to head out. Left her with well-wishes and stepped into the hall, my steps feeling lighter as I headed home.
Glad Marie's okay. Got her number somehow, but... better not contact her. No good getting too tangled with a hero.
Heard the basics on the Villain Alliance, but it might be even more dangerous than I thought. At least for now, no transforming—gotta lay low.
Once Jeong Yuseong left the room, Marie sat alone, mulling him over.
On the surface, he seemed like a decent guy. Just an ordinary person—no red flags.
But her suspicions lingered.
She hadn't grilled him hard, but what circumstances could make someone wander naked? If he'd been assaulted, there'd be scratches from fighting back. His body had been spotless. Meaning he'd stripped voluntarily.
Just a simple pervert? No big deal then.
The real issue? If he was the werewolf.
The day she and Spica first encountered the werewolf, Marie had spotted tattered clothes scattered in that alley—rags from explosions. Judging by the size, likely the werewolf's. Roughly matched Jeong Yuseong's build.
And on terror day, after she blacked out, the werewolf appeared. With him there.
Coincidence? She doubted it.
Not enough evidence for certainty. Could be pure chance.
But just in case, she'd made an excuse to snag his number.
Marie hoped he wasn't the werewolf. Better if he was just a pervert—or had some unspoken reason, like he claimed.
But if he really was...
A few days after visiting Marie, I started my new gig at the convenience store.
Convenience store work was familiar—no adjustment issues despite the change. Back home, I'd stuck with it because it suited me as a night owl, but now I wondered: with my superior physique, shouldn't I aim for physical jobs with better pay?
To live normally, part-time gigs wouldn't cut it forever. I'd need a real job eventually.
This body's credentials—fake or not—topped out at high school grad. Picturing a werewolf in high school was hilarious. But the reality sucked.
How do you job-hunt with that?
If I could tap werewolf powers in human form, I'd hero it up proudly. But possessing a werewolf meant mundane worries piled on: career angst, real-life hassles.
Isekai'd into a novel, and yeah, I'm the protagonist by all looks—but how many protags agonize over career paths post-isekai?
World in chaos with Villain Alliances and whatnot, but I still had to work and eat.
My routine felt unchanged pre- and post-possession, making me question if this was really isekai. But the store tunes reminded me: different world.
No familiar songs, movies, comics, games, celebs—nothing. History matched up to a point, but everything else diverged.
Drift off, hear an unknown track, and loneliness hits: stranded alone in an alien world.
What about my real life?
Negative vibes swelled, but no time for despair. I shook it off, forcing positivity—when a woman strolled in.
"Oh, so this is where oppa works? No customers—total honey pot."
She scanned the store, then hit me with a chummy line.
...Who the hell?