That Bastard
"What? Couldn't you at least try talking to them? Is it really okay to just kill people like that?"
At An Ga-hee's words, I turned my head to look at her. She was putting on a pouty face as she spoke, but the corners of her mouth kept twitching.
"Why the sudden act?"
"A girl has to put up a token protest at least once. Makes me feel like I've become a decent person. And our So-hye here actually seemed like she was about to stop you. Weren't you?"
At that, So-hye flinched and looked back and forth between the two of us.
"Really?"
"Th-that's… n-no. I wasn't really planning to stop you. It's just… for a moment, I wondered if there might still be room for dialogue. That was all."
Her head could entertain ideals, but her heart already knew the reality.
"You know that was a ridiculous idea too, right? You're naive and kind, but you're not a stupid woman."
So-hye nodded at An Ga-hee's words.
"…I know. I'm just disappointed, that's all."
"Right. Let's bury that disappointment deep in our chests. You know how many men are in that store right now — and you still want to try talking? Come on."
"Yes…"
Maybe later it would be different, but as things stood, fighting multiple men was impossible. If it were just me alone, I could hit and run, pick my fights — but So-hye and An Ga-hee were at my side now.
"Alright, I'll go in first. If I get spotted, you two watch for an opening and jump in. Got it?"
"A-alright."
"Yeah. Not sure if this one can actually kill a person, but I'll make sure of it myself."
"I'm counting on you."
I crouched low and made my way toward the front of the store.
Voices still carried from inside, but they weren't completely brainless. There was a man standing guard at the entrance.
"Hey, one of you get out here and take over already! I want to pick out some booze too!"
The man scowled, muttering under his breath — clearly stuck with the job against his will. He turned his back completely, cracked the store door open, and bellowed inside.
"You bastards, just a second! Hold on a little longer!"
Judging by the response from inside, they had absolutely no intention of relieving him. He seemed to sense it too, because it wasn't long before he started pushing again.
"Ah, you guys are really…!"
The moment he turned back toward the store to shout again, I kicked off the ground and closed the distance.
"Wha—?"
The man's eyes blew wide. His body locked up for a split second — then his mouth opened to scream.
"There's an attac—"
My strike landed first. The tip of the felling axe just barely reached him, slicing through his Adam's apple. He clutched at his throat with both hands. Blood gushed between his fingers and spattered onto the ground.
"Ghk, gahhk… f-fuck… I… I told them… to switch with me…"
I caught his staggering body and carefully laid him on the floor. One more chop to the neck to finish the job, then I pressed myself close against the storefront.
The entire front wall was glass, but it was plastered with decorations and signage so thick you could barely see inside.
Thanks to that, the men in the store hadn't even noticed their buddy was dead. They were still busy snickering and browsing the liquor shelves.
Now what?
Three men in my immediate line of sight. But the store was laid out in an L-shape — there could easily be more around the corner.
I hesitated a moment, then eased the entrance door open. The display racks straight ahead were empty.
The second any of them stepped outside, discovery was inevitable. Better to go in and kill as many as I could before that happened.
"Whoa. Is this Macallan? They've got the expensive stuff in here?"
"Check this out. Yamazaki too. Holy shit? This is insane."
Two voices from the right side of the store. I'd avoid that direction for now and ease my way left.
"Hmm."
Here, a single man stood frowning, a bottle of whiskey in each hand. Seemed to be debating which one to take.
I moved carefully down the empty aisle. When I reached the end of the display racks, I slowly raised myself up and peered around the corner.
Two more men over there.
So five men total inside the store. Add the one outside and that made six — more than I'd expected.
These guys might be from the youth rental housing complex.
I'd figure that out later. First, I needed a plan.
Sneaking up for a clean assassination was tough — the store aisles were narrow, and getting behind anyone without being seen would be nearly impossible.
What if I just walked right up to them?
The men in here were around my age. If they really were from the youth housing complex, they wouldn't all be friends — there'd be strangers mixed in among them.
They might not have fully memorized each other's faces. The numbers were awkwardly large for that. As proof, only those two off to the side were chatting like they knew each other; everyone else was quiet.
Worth a shot.
Worst case, I was no worse off than before. I slid the felling axe into the back of my pants, hiding it, and strode boldly down the aisle.
My breath quickened. My heart hammered like mad. I clenched my fist, then opened it again. Feeling my body go rigid, I slowly closed the distance on the man.
"Hmm…"
Even as I approached, he showed no reaction. Completely absorbed in the whiskey.
If I can just get close enough and kill him right away…
"Excuse me. Mind if I ask you a quick question?"
I'd closed about half the gap when the man lifted his head and met my eyes. I froze in place for a beat.
Did he figure it out?
His gaze swept me up and down.
"What's the question?"
He stepped toward me, still holding a bottle in each hand.
"Between these two whiskeys, which one should I take. That's what I was wonderi—!"
Crash!
Without warning, the man hurled the bottle in his left hand. I crossed my arms and blocked it. The second I dropped my guard, he reversed his grip on the remaining bottle and brought it down.
Whoosh!
I scrambled backward, dodging, and yanked the felling axe free.
"What the hell was that?!"
A shout from the side. Urgent footsteps — the other young men were coming for me.
You fucking bastard…
The man who'd thrown the whiskey was staring me down, expressionless. Rage boiled up inside me. The arm that had taken the bottle throbbed.
"I thought you hadn't noticed."
"With this few people here, you think I can't remember a face? Besides, I've got a good eye for these things."
Fair enough. Even with strangers in the mix, of course he'd remember that much. I'd been gambling on a long shot — I never really expected it to work.
In that case, finish this fast and hard.
I kicked off the floor and charged him.
Crash!
He smashed a whiskey bottle against the display rack, turning the shards into a jagged glass weapon, and swung it through the air in a threat. I didn't slow down. If anything, I poured on more speed.
The instant his shoulder and arm moved and the glass came flying, I grabbed the display rack with my left hand and stopped dead in place. Under normal circumstances it would have been impossible — but with my ability-enhanced body, the stunt was doable.
Whoosh!
The glass shards whistled past right in front of my face. I brought the felling axe down on his forearm in the same motion.
Crunch!
"Aaaargh!"
I gripped the axe buried halfway into his arm and kicked him square in the chest. He went flying and tumbled across the floor.
Thud!
I grabbed the thickest, heaviest whiskey bottle off the shelf and hurled it. It caught him dead on the head and he went down. I closed in fast and drove my heel into his skull.
Crack!
"Y-you fucking piece of shit!"
The moment both his eyeballs burst, cursing erupted behind me. I turned my head — two men were closing in, faces twisted with rage.
One held a kitchen-knife spear, the other a baseball bat. Both had serious reach.
Thump-thump—
A cramped store. Four enemies left. Anyone could see I was at a disadvantage.
I'd better hope An Ga-hee and So-hye find a way to help.
Watching the two men approach one after another, I spun around — and the instant I cleared the aisle, a bat came screaming at me.
Whoosh!
The world seemed to slow. I threw myself into a forward roll. The attack whistled past by a hair.
"Ah, fuck."
I scrambled to my feet. One man was glaring at me, brow furrowed. I quickly scanned the surroundings.
No one else in sight.
Meaning it was just this one man right here. The second that registered, I charged.
His eyes blew wide. He raised the baseball bat — but there wasn't enough time to dodge and close the gap again.
Trade flesh for bone.
Thud!
The blow smashed into my shoulder. I clenched my teeth. The pain — the first real pain I'd felt in a while — sent fury surging through me.
"You son of a bitch!"
Slash!
I brought the felling axe down on his neck. The speed was astonishing.
"Ghk, gahhk…!"
The baseball bat slipped from his grip and clattered to the floor. He reached for me with one arm. I ripped the blade free and chopped his neck again.
Slash!
Blood erupted from the half-severed neck, soaking the floor. The man convulsed, then went still.
I ducked low and snatched up the baseball bat. From the aisle I'd just escaped, two more men came bursting out.
"Th-this fucking…!"
"Crazy bastard!"
They ground their teeth and glared at me, murder in their eyes — but I could see it. Their bodies were trembling, just slightly.
I can do this.
The shoulder that had taken the hit a moment ago didn't hurt at all. Absorbing their energy must have healed it automatically.
Three enemies left.
Maybe I wouldn't need the two women's help after all.