Chapter 331: No, I Said Let’s Just Enjoy the Festival Normally! (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 331: No, I Said Let’s Just Enjoy the Festival Normally! (3)
I haven’t had the chance to explain, so I’ve never mentioned it before, but the Hero Association is divided into four factions.
Well, technically it’s five, but one is a secret organization that officially doesn’t exist.
Anyway, first, there’s the Benevolent Faction, the faction that follows the Association President. They’re trash who only care about their popularity.
Next is the Justice Faction, filled with stuffy fundamentalists. They’re idiots who do nothing but engage in armchair theories.
Then there’s the Salvation Faction, full of lunatics. They’re a bit better than the first two, but if it were up to me, I’d call them the Villain Slaughter Faction instead.
And finally, there are the bastards of the Honor Faction, who I suspect are the culprits behind this incident.
If I had to pick the absolute worst out of the four, surprisingly, I’d choose these guys over the Benevolent Faction, which includes the Association President and Flash.
It’s not that the President’s faction is decent; it’s just that these guys are such utter trash.
In the future, the few awakened heroes would call them “Fallen Honor.”
And the villains would call them “Money-Crazed Pigs.”
They are the quintessential corrupt heroes who believe that doing anything for money—and then using that money to deck themselves out and expand their influence—is what “honor” is.
I could talk until my throat is sore about all the trouble they caused in the 1st Timeline, but to mention the most prominent examples…
They staged incidents using villains or even teamed up with villains to muscle into profitable businesses.
Right now, they’ve partnered with the Twelve Zodiacs to turn the “Hero Drink”—which is already a potent beverage—into something as addictive as a drug. In more extreme cases, they even engaged in something akin to human trafficking using demi-humans.
…You might wonder why such people are positioned as heroes instead of villains, and why the other factions don’t punish them.
The reason is simple.
It’s because they use the money left over after indulging themselves to fund relief efforts.
They stage incidents with villains, but as long as they aren’t caught, the public supports them.
They sell something that is practically a drug but lacks physical side effects, so it isn’t legally classified as one. Then, they use the massive profits to build hospitals and treat those suffering from actual drug addiction.
They sell demi-humans, but the format is surprisingly legitimate.
Regardless of the truth, on paper, they take individuals who have supposedly committed crimes and put them to work in “special facilities” under the guise of “labor” to fulfill their “sentences.”
Then, using “donations” sent by wealthy benefactors moved by these actions, they establish orphanages and actively rescue orphans.
They always put themselves first, and their methods are incredibly filthy, but they produce enough results using only the scraps left over from satisfying their own greed.
Setting aside whether that’s “heroic,” they are hypocrites whose “pluses” are just slightly larger than their “minuses.”
That is the Honor Faction.
Well, that’s how they are on the surface. In the end, their methods are nothing but a series of crimes devoid of any justice. Eventually, they start crossing the line for real and transform into a social evil with no “plus” side whatsoever.
Anyway, the point is they’re bad news.
In the past, I clashed with them once because they were financially entangled with the Twelve Zodiacs, once because they caused a major incident, and one last time because some punk from the Honor Faction picked a fight with me.
And back then, as I was snapping all their necks, I made a certain vow.
Having finished my preparations, I pulled out the Pure White Demon Mask for the first time in a long while.
If the day ever came where I had to fight those sons of bitches again…
[Terrorists never negotiate with heroes.]
I’m going to ignore all their bullshit and just kill them more efficiently.
Putting on the mask made me feel like a different person.
Well, since I feel like a different person, everything that happens from now on is just an unfortunate accident caused by a third party, completely unrelated to Kang So-hyun, right?
Even if they all die, it won’t be my fault, will it?
* * *
At that moment.
The old man who had been releasing demonic energy inside the Academy was quite flustered.
The moment he tried to spread the demonic energy of Sloth, it ignored his commands and moved as if being sucked away somewhere.
Why on earth was the demonic energy escaping his control and moving on its own?
Of course, Leilan Academy might have prepared countermeasures against demonic energy after the devil incident.
If the demonic energy was simply vanishing, he could at least understand it, but this was the first time he had experienced it defying his orders like this.
Well, his original intent was just to help out by tarnishing Leilan Academy’s reputation; it wasn’t a task he had to complete. Still, he couldn’t help but feel an inexplicable sense of unease.
…This almost makes my early infiltration of the Academy meaningless, but since things have turned out this way, perhaps I should look for some pawns I can use in advance.
As he turned his head with that thought, he suddenly felt someone with a familiar aura approaching him.
“Hmm, it seems my granddaughter has managed to sense my presence.”
Then again, since he could naturally feel her approaching from this far away, the reverse must be true as well.
He considered avoiding the hassle, but seeing her approach so desperately made him feel like seeing his granddaughter’s face for the first time in a while.
It was also true that he needed a usable card now that he couldn’t spread the demonic energy far.
A brief family reunion wouldn’t be so bad.
After some time had passed…
The granddaughter who finally found him had a fierce expression, looking as if she were ready to bite him at any moment.
“You…!”
“Do you no longer intend to call me Grandfather?”
It didn’t matter if she looked fierce.
It was impossible for his granddaughter to rebel against him anyway.
With her parents held hostage, what could this foolish girl possibly do?
“You’ve come at a good time. I was planning to look around the Academy my granddaughter attends, but having only one cadet to help me was a bit inconvenient.”
Come to think of it, he couldn’t even understand what she was thinking, showing herself before him like this.
Unless she was just acting on raw emotion, it would be logical to assume she had prepared something. However, seeing her unable to do anything even after coming face-to-face with him, it seemed…
“You haven’t changed at all.”
“Hmm? What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“I mean you’re someone who interprets situations to suit yourself, looks down on and belittles others, is certain that your own thoughts are the only answer, and is ultimately careless.”
“Your manners have worsened. It seems you’ve been hanging around bad friends. This is why I didn’t want to send you to the Academy.”
Well, seeing her so confident, she must have made some preparations, but he could easily predict the extent of the tricks his granddaughter could pull.
The son of the Yuseong Group.
She must have wagged her tail for that brat who ruined his plans last time.
“I’m sorry, but that boy you’re relying on won’t be of much help.”
“…What?”
“This place is about to be turned upside down. The Yuseong Group and that boy are scheduled to be at the center of that incident. So, he won’t have the luxury to worry about you.”
His granddaughter stared at him for a moment with an absurd expression, as if she had just heard something nonsensical.
She must be in despair now that the card she trusted has become useless.
“So, come here quietly…”
“Pfft.”
It was an irritating sound.
The sound he hated most: someone mocking and looking down on him.
When he looked ahead to see where the sound came from, he saw his granddaughter looking at him with the very expression he despised most.
“So-hyun won’t be able to move? The Academy is going to be turned upside down?”
“…What’s so funny?”
“It’s just pathetic. If you had actually seen what he’s done so far, you wouldn’t be able to think like that.”
Of course, he knew the boy was extraordinary.
But what could a single cadet possibly do? She was likely only saying that because she didn’t know the Association was backing him. Still, he found it hard to tolerate her mocking him after she had dared to betray him.
“Fine. It seems my education was lacking. It is my failing for not teaching you your proper place.”
He would have to show her exactly where she stood.
“I’ll let you see them after all this time. Why don’t we have a nice family chat?”
Even if manipulating the demonic energy released externally was difficult, those he had already brainwashed did not escape his influence.
He was glad he had brought them along, just in case they proved useful as hostages.
“Go on, say hello. I’m sure you’ve missed them dearly.”
His granddaughter, faced with the sight of her parents soaked in demonic energy, stood frozen, unable to say a word.
She surely knew.
A human so thoroughly saturated with demonic energy could never be returned to normal unless a Demon King was brought in.
It was a state of addiction on a completely different level from simply removing a seed of demonic energy—a level where, even if removal were successful, they would suffer from lifelong aftereffects.
The best way to maintain a semblance of a normal life was to follow his orders while continuously receiving the demonic energy he supplied.
“Now, do you understand your situation?”
They were fools.
If they had just followed his words obediently, it wouldn’t have come to this.
His family was nothing but a bunch of useless weights.
“If you understand, then—”
“…Is that really all?”
“…What?”
“I mean, didn’t you prepare anything more thorough while you were on the run? I naturally expected you to cause a much worse mess, but you really just brainwashed them with demonic energy exactly like last time?”
The sight of his granddaughter bursting into laughter as if she were dumbfounded was somehow alien.
“Wow, seriously. I got nervous for nothing. Ah, no. Thank you for being more careless than I thought. I mean that sincerely.”
“It seems you need to see your parents in pain before you change your mind. If I reduce the demonic energy I supply by even a little—”
“…Please.”
“…Suddenly?”
“So-hyun, Ga-eul. I know I have no right to ask, but please help me.”
…Hmm? Did she bring that boy with her? That would actually make things easier for the Association’s side, so it didn’t matter, but who was Ga-eul? A friend?
Why would she suddenly bring a friend to a place like this…
As the old man reached that point in his thoughts…
“Ah.”
He could not maintain his composure in the face of the surreal sight that appeared before his eyes.
“Aah…!”
Gods were there.
Beings who had fully accepted a god into the vessel he had so desired—and not just one, but two.
They had appeared right before his eyes.
But, but why? And why did the completed beings he longed for have to be the ones hostile to him?
What should he do? Hostages. Yes, first, use the hostages…
“Hey.”
“…Yes?”
No, he shouldn’t have shown such a weak side, but the honorifics had slipped out far too naturally.
“I really hate it when pathetic villains in novels take up screen time acting like they’re something special. So.”
The moment the boy reached out, the old man was certain.
That was the reason his demonic energy had escaped his control.
No matter what he did from now on, no matter how he resisted, it would be utterly meaningless.
“Don’t think about showing up again later. If you have something to do, you’d better do it now so you don’t have any regrets.”
It was a method of manipulating demonic energy that was utterly impossible for a human to perceive.
It was a skill in a realm he was simply not permitted to understand.
It was shocking enough that the boy could remove demonic energy that had completely seized another’s body without causing any additional harm, and that he could nonchalantly transfer that demonic energy to another god. But what was most shocking was what happened next.
For someone harboring demonic energy to clothe themselves in divine power.
The aftereffects that remain even after removing addictive demonic energy—something even high-ranking priests were reluctant to treat—were being reversed so easily. The sight was so surreal it made it impossible to process the situation correctly.
However, he snapped back to reality at the sight of the boy turning toward him, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
He had to do something.
Combat was out of the question.
He instinctively tried to fire off demonic energy, but the demonic energy of Sloth flowed into the girl called Ga-eul the moment he tried to use it. He had to find a way other than fighting.
They’ve recovered, but they’re still collapsed. Should he hurry and take them hostage?
No, it’s impossible to move faster than that thing.
Better to negotiate. Yes. It would be better to emphasize how he could be useful.
“Why don’t we talk for a moment…? Seeing the blood on your mouth, it seems you’ve overexerted yourself a bit.”
Seeing as the boy said nothing, he seemed to realize that his current situation wasn’t great either.
There was likely room for negotiation.
“Unless you have multiple bodies, you won’t be able to handle the incidents occurring today alone. If you just guarantee my safety—”
“…Are you for real?”
…Huh? He’s not looking this way?
Where is he looking?
…Aisha?
“Hey.”
Ah.
Room for negotiation? He had been a fool.
“I clearly told you to do whatever you were going to do right away.”
He didn’t even know when the boy had approached, but he couldn’t breathe because the hand gripping his throat had lifted him off the ground.
To think he had tried to apply human rules and human common sense to something that wasn’t human.
“You should have just run away. Why did you have to pathetically bare your teeth and try to use your head?”
Could there be any greater stupidity than this?
“I happen to have a very fair personality, so I don’t go easy on adults, even if they’re old.”
The moment the boy’s purple-tinted eyes pierced through him…
The world turned upside down.