Chapter 44
Chapter 44
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: Villain, Yet Not a Villain
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There were a few questions that villains harbored when they first joined the Clan in the past.
Why did the Boss dislike attacks on civilians?
Why was money still the most important issue, even after becoming a villain?
And finally. Why was the Smiling Man absent from the Seven Evils?
In terms of raw power, he didn't seem all that different from the existing Seven Evils.
The Union had officially rated the Smiling Man as Highest Danger Class.
One step below the Catastrophe Class ranking held by the Seven Evils.
But when facing him directly, he didn't feel inferior to the Seven Evils at all.
In fact, he seemed stronger than at least one of them.
So it made sense for the Smiling Man to take one of the Seven Evils spots.
A few villains harbored such doubts and occasionally voiced them aloud.
Of course, those villains soon ended up as corpses.
It was obvious who was responsible. It was Tattoos's doing.
He hated the Smiling Man. Hated him more than words could express.
Part of it was because he was the man his favorite woman had feelings for.
But the decisive reason was something else.
Despite possessing strength comparable to the Four Dragons, he showed no interest in bloodshed.
He killed heroes, sure. But only occasionally. Not every day.
If I had that kind of power, I would have turned the world into a sea of blood.
A coward not even worthy of the name villain.
An idiot who had power but didn't know how to use it.
That was how Tattoos saw the Smiling Man.
"Graaaah!"
That made it all the harder for him to accept the current situation.
Boom!
He swung his greatsword. His Ability surged his physical capabilities.
He had grown stronger—and stronger still—by drinking the blood of others all this time.
There were almost no opponents who could match him head-on.
Just recently, he'd had a massive brawl with S-Rank Heroes.
Those heroes had focused on coordinated attacks. They clearly avoided direct confrontation.
It was partly to conserve energy, but it was also acknowledgment of Tattoos's strength.
This guy's a tough opponent. Mess up, and you could die.
"I'm glad the Clan's been quiet. But the Boss seems lonely and upset about it. It'd be wonderful if she'd return now. Don't you think so?"
This was his ultimate strike, pouring everything he had into it.
A bloody haze rose from the greatsword, turning into a crimson flash.
It was a power even S-Rank Heroes with protective Abilities struggled against.
And yet, the Smiling Man stood in place, taking it all without moving.
Clang!
He didn't budge an inch. Except for one thing. His hand moved like a conductor directing an orchestra.
Mana Threads darted around, blocking Tattoos's greatsword.
A greatsword larger than a person, versus a few strands of thread thinner than fingers.
The outcome should have been obvious, yet it was evenly matched.
"Anyway, tattooed pig. What good is raw strength? You need to hone your technique to the limit!"
The Massacrer dove sharply between the Mana Threads, scorning him as she joined the fray.
Her Ability granted extreme speed. From it came overwhelming sharpness.
Each of her killing strikes rivaled the speed of bullets.
Aside from a tiny fraction of heroes, no one could even track her movements.
There was only one way to survive against this madwoman who reveled in murder.
Fill every gap completely, leaving no openings at all.
But the Massacrer never missed even the tiniest space and would inevitably break through.
"...Noisy."
If the Massacrer specialized in speed, then Narcissus excelled in attacks from angles that were absolutely impossible to read.
No illusions. No tricks. Just truly unpredictable assaults.
Even in the heat of battle, he wandered his own world, swinging his sword in his unique style.
Countless heroes had lost their lives the moment they clashed, struck by swords flying from unexpected directions.
Innumerable heroes who thought they'd grasped his patterns had died as corpses.
Three of the Seven Evils were here. Monsters who wielded their Abilities to the utmost limit.
Their combined might rivaled three S-Rank Heroes from the Union. Perhaps even more.
"Tch!"
"...".
Yet these three—man, woman, and the other—could only spit curses, sighs, and silence.
'This bastard... Why the hell does a villain live like this?!'
'I suspected, but it's real. He's been hiding his power.'
'...Noisy.'
Frontal assaults. Flanking. Rear attacks. Strikes from every conceivable direction.
No matter how much of an S-Rank Hero you were, the body's senses had limits.
Focus forward, and the sides were exposed. Cover the sides, and the rear suffered.
Pushing to the absolute extreme might make it possible for an S-Rank Hero.
But only for a few minutes. Stamina would run out first.
Clang!
Yet this Smiling Man showed no sign of crumbling at all.
Mana Threads were undoubtedly an impressive Ability. But deploying them didn't mean it was over.
Each of those countless strands had to be perfectly controlled.
And the stamina and Ability allocation required for that?
It was practically no different from wielding ten arms at once.
Impressive? What about the brain overload from managing it?
The eyes and senses needed to keep the arms from tangling?
The stamina to swing ten arms when one was already exhausting?
"Hmm. Indeed, skills worthy of the Seven Evils name. I apologize for calling you dogs."
Not mockery, but genuine admiration.
That only made the three Seven Evils members seethe with rage even more.
They weren't weak by any means, yet the fight remained evenly matched.
No injuries, not even a single step back.
"Grrrr!"
To change the tide, they needed to unleash their full power.
Tattoos instinctively realized this and gritted his teeth.
Villains were beings who hid their ultimate trump cards deep within.
They threatened without revealing the dagger in their chest.
That was why heroes couldn't push them to the brink.
They couldn't imagine how vicious the trump cards of cornered beasts would be.
The problem came after exposing everything like that.
It wasn't just heroes who learned about it. Fellow villains did too.
Once your hidden dagger was known, you became prey for all.
I have one, but the opponent doesn't? Then the law of the jungle applied.
It was something you absolutely shouldn't do unless on the verge of death.
Even the Seven Evils had never fully revealed everything even once.
Tattoos was the same. He had a hidden ace up his sleeve.
'Use it? Or not?'
He glanced at the Massacrer and Narcissus beside him, then bit his lip.
Being Seven Evils didn't make them comrades. Just villains working together.
Given the chance, they'd devour each other. This was a bad move.
"Hm?"
Tattoos's eyes narrowed after another storm-like barrage.
Come to think of it, that unidentified human behind the Smiling Man.
Cloaked in clothes, identity unknown, but one thing was clear.
Why the hell was someone so pathetically weak here?
How could he be sure? Look. They weren't hiding their presence at all.
For some reason, they burned with hostility toward this side.
Those who couldn't conceal themselves were nine times out of ten subpar.
He had no idea why the Smiling Man brought trash like that.
But thanks to it, Tattoos realized how to turn the situation around.
Boom! Crash!
Tattoos, who had stubbornly stuck to frontal assaults from start to finish, shifted position.
The Smiling Man didn't move. He still had to deal with the Massacrer and Narcissus.
No matter how masterful the Mana Threads' control, gaps existed.
The user was ultimately the Smiling Man. Without line of sight, the burden showed.
He blatantly targeted the human standing behind the Smiling Man.
Pounding with all his might, silently threatening: That's my target.
'Come on, Smiling Man. What's your answer to my question? Speak. Speak! Tell me! Why bring such pathetically weak trash? Tell me!'
Boom! Boom!
He abandoned defense. Instead, he focused on frenzied attacks.
The Mana Threads' checks were handled by the Massacrer and Narcissus.
Tattoos's body and greatsword emitted an ominous glow.
Reaching the peak. One Mana Thread couldn't handle it.
The Smiling Man surely knew that.
What would he do? Step up or retreat?
Boom!!
"...Kuhahaha!"
Tattoos laughed. His prediction had hit perfectly.
The perfectly balanced Mana Threads finally shifted to defense.
They'd come to catch barking dogs but were about to leave empty-handed.
Now that they'd exposed the weak point, where the dogs would bite next was obvious.
"Smiling Man, huh? You're really a riot. A villain... protecting someone?"
He's protecting. At that shout, the one behind the Smiling Man flinched.
Even from within the clothes, disbelief shone clearly in their eyes.
"I don't know what you're thinking, but you've exposed a spot for us to tear apart!"
"Indeed. You sniff out weakness like true dogs. I'll acknowledge that."
The Smiling Man withdrew his Mana Threads all at once and shrugged.
The Massacrer and Narcissus let out light sighs of relief.
The suffocating pressure on their hearts. The stabbing killing intent. It was gone.
It seemed this unwelcome fight was over.
Yushin chuckled inwardly as he retreated with Seo Ha-eun in tow.
Protecting? That's right. Thanks for noticing.
He'd been ready to make it even more obvious if they hadn't caught on.
You all were truly excellent colleagues.
Thank you so much. I won't forget this favor.
One day, I'll repay this debt. Of course. It will come.
I won't forget. I'll make sure to throw it right in these friends' faces!