Let's Become Trash
The protagonist of Death Dinah of the Blue Sky is an exceedingly heroic figure. A hero who returns to his homeland to save the world, despite being hurt by people and betrayed by his country. A superhuman who truly deserves the word 'hero'.
So, what position should I take against that hero? How should I act from now on to survive?
The conclusion I reached after three sleepless days agonizing in the magma was singular.
'Let's become trash.'
Act like in the original story, but become a villain beyond the original.
That resolve solidified when I realized the current timeline was a full five years ahead of the original.
'Not just a factory producing monsters and Kaijin. Lead a real evil organization.'
To collect the fragments scattered across the world, I needed a massive force. No matter how strong Phoenix was, fighting the entire Earth would take too much time.
'A villain organization lurking in Korea's underworld, the main stage.'
But as I said before, five years isn't that long. So I made my decision.
To become a true 'villain'. To survive in this hellish world.
No matter what it takes—I wanted to live.
"Oh my. Why so surprised? I'll give lawyer Kim Sang-ah one chance since you're smart. Normally, no answer means instant death."
"Don't talk crazy!"
Sang-ah screamed until her throat cracked.
"What? Make that guy your subordinate?! Listen up! He's human trash! The kind who drugs people, rapes them, and sells them for money—fucking bastards! If you mess up, even you'd get handed to those beasts...!"
"That didn't happen. So what can you offer me? Oh, since you're a lawyer, should I draw up a contract? Want to sign one and become my subordinate?"
"......Shut up. You psycho bitch."
Sang-ah spat curses laced with venom and pulled a small orb from the bundle in the corner, tossing it at Phoenix.
Slurp.
Vail snatched the orb midair and slid it onto Phoenix's palm like a playground slide.
"Ooh, a monster core?"
"D-grade. Worth about 30 million won."
Sang-ah pointed at Deok-bae with trembling fingers.
"Isn't that what ability users like you love most? Better value than that trash, right? So kill him with it. Like you said—the most painful way in the world."
"Hmm."
Phoenix held the orb up to Deok-bae.
"Do you think your life is worth more than 30 million won?"
"...Fuck if I know. Just kill me if you're gonna."
"See! Even he wants to die! Kill him!"
Phoenix toyed with the orb on her palm and leaned against the wall.
"No matter how I think about it, 30 million for one ability user like him feels like a loss."
"What?"
Sang-ah asked blankly, her face drained of life.
Phoenix pocketed the orb in her school uniform, wiggled her hand around, and pulled it out again.
"Ta-da! Orb magic. One monster core became four in an instant."
Orbs were wedged between each knuckle—larger and more vibrant than the one Sang-ah gave.
"Do I really need to take the monster core you've been hoarding, lawyer Kim Sang-ah?"
"Then what the hell do you want?! That's all I have!"
Sang-ah bellowed in rage, her bloodshot eyes on the verge of bloody tears.
Phoenix wiped the smirk from her face. Her eyes held genuine pity.
"It's sad you can't see something more valuable. Well, nothing to be done."
Phoenix pocketed the core again and approached Deok-bae, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Too bad. Lawyer Kim Sang-ah sold your future for 30 million won."
Deok-bae closed his eyes silently.
Whoosh.
As Phoenix patted his shoulder, blue flames erupted across Deok-bae's body.
Fizzle.
The flames consumed him in seconds. He offered no resistance, collapsing to the floor.
"There. Done. Well, goodbye."
Phoenix turned to leave with a lighthearted expression.
Sang-ah lunged, grabbing Phoenix's shoulder and spinning her around.
"What the hell?! You said you'd kill him—the most painful way!"
"That's one thing, but I'm high-class help. I burned him for what you paid. A hundred million per second? That's 30 million worth."
"Bullshit!!!"
"Ugh, seriously."
Phoenix pushed Sang-ah's arm aside and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"H-Hik?!"
Having seen Deok-bae's death up close, Sang-ah trembled in terror.
"Why do you keep bothering me, Kim Sang-ah...? Makes me want to erase you."
" "
Sang-ah's face went pale.
Phoenix drummed her fingers on Sang-ah's shoulder like piano keys, then smiled again.
"Kidding. I never kill 'needlessly.' So smile. Smile! Why act like I'm gonna kill you?"
Sang-ah's lips quivered as she forced her mouth into a grin.
"Hey, I'm not some psycho who can't kill. Right now, even. Human traffickers in 21st-century society—deserve to die, yeah? Oh, that's a question, so answer."
"Y-Yes! Yes!"
Sang-ah nodded until her chin hit her collarbone.
Phoenix straightened Sang-ah's slipping clothes and laughed.
"Right? They weren't even human trash. Just cleaning up. For the beautiful, peaceful world ahead. Love and peace!"
Phoenix pulled an orb from her pocket and pressed it into Sang-ah's hand—the D-grade monster core she'd offered for Deok-bae's life.
"So I won't take this. You don't pay for sweeping street trash, right? In a world with people."
Sang-ah laughed along with Phoenix. Not laughing felt dangerous.
"Y-Yes!"
"But hey."
Phoenix gripped both of Sang-ah's hands tightly.
"What would've happened if you'd hidden that monster core in your bundle and boarded the bus~?"
"......Gasp?!"
Sang-ah struggled to pull free, but Phoenix's grip was like a noose.
"Monster cores are tasty bait for other monsters. They absorb the power directly. Hiding's useless. Cores without mana barriers—even weak monsters sniff 'em out like crazy. They swarmed crossing the airport."
Phoenix released her hands. Sang-ah recoiled into the wall, grabbed her bundle, and bolted for the door.
Thud! Thud!
The door wouldn't open. A blue flame barrier sealed it.
"D-grade monster core, right? Imagine boarding a bus with that—fun accident on the highway. Yeah? You wrapped it so tight, scared the smell would leak. Even with a hero aboard, monster hordes would've overrun it."
"Aaaah! Aaack!"
Thud, thud.
Phoenix stepped over Deok-bae's corpse toward Sang-ah.
"Question time. Compared to human traffickers, is someone who nearly fed a bus full of passengers to monsters also trash who deserves death?"
"Shut up! That never would've happened!"
"Oh? There's no 'never' in this world."
Phoenix stood right behind Sang-ah. She abandoned the doorknob, crawling to the room's center.
"Answer me. I'm seriously curious."
"Cut the crap! You're not even human!"
"...Pfft."
Whatever amused her, Phoenix burst into mad laughter.
"Ahahaha! Haha! Khuh, not human, huh! Ahahaha!"
She clutched her stomach, shaking like a deranged musical actor overplaying insanity.
"Aha, haha. Haa...."
Phoenix laughed for seconds, then panted. She gripped the sofa, straightened, and snapped her fingers at Sang-ah.
"Who's not human?"
Snap.
Sang-ah was engulfed in blue flames. She flailed, trying to extinguish them—futile.
"Aaaah...."
Like the others, she gurgled and collapsed. The flames burned exactly as long as Deok-bae's.
"Well then...."
Phoenix picked up the fallen smartphone. Despite singed edges, it was still recording.
"Even filming? Quite the collection."
She stopped the video; it saved to the gallery. Besides the fresh Sang-ah clip, countless photos and videos filled it.
"Ugh."
Phoenix grimaced and closed the gallery.
'Format it later when I have time.'
Couldn't risk being mistaken for someone carrying illegal vids, but until she got a proper phone in Seoul, it'd do temporarily.
Beep beep beep.
"Huh?"
The alert showed the battery was dead.
"Damn."
Red battery icon. Phoenix rummaged drawers for a charger and plugged it in.
"Fast charge: 1 hour?"
She checked the time: 4:12 PM.
Already late to rush to Seoul, yet time dragged.
'Should've left without messing around....'
Phoenix twirled Vail on her finger. Leave now, or wait the hour?
'...Bored anyway. Better to have it.'
She brainwashed herself: perfect chance to browse world info en route. Phoenix set the phone on the table and stretched.
"What to do for an hour...."
Twirling Vail around her neck, her gaze swept the room and landed on Deok-bae's corpse.
A simple body enhancement ability, but high potential. A local villain never in the original.
What if she made him a Kaijin?
"......."
Phoenix quietly pulled out a monster core.
Jo Deok-bae.
A name that rang vaguely familiar—randomly given by parents.
Product of a day laborer and fishwife's one-night fling. Deok-bae's life began with orphanage abuse.
But even rats see sun. On aging out, homeless on station steps, Park Ho-cheol took him in.
Impressed by his build, Ho-cheol made him manage operations. Deok-bae obeyed blindly.
Then the turning point: ability awakening.
Body Enhancement triggered fleeing monsters on Yeongjong Bridge—meant as a blessing, but another chain.
'You? A hero? Hilarious. A shoulder-for-hire as humanity's savior? Country's doomed. Drop the pipe dream, collect debts. Wanna find your parents? Earn big bucks.'
Ho-cheol, also awakened, expanded using Deok-bae's power. From local thugs to Incheon's underworld lords.
Amass cash before Incheon falls, flee to New Seoul, join top org 'Villain Alliance' with tribute.
Deok-bae was Ho-cheol's loyal dog. No lust for girls, but infamous as 'Skinhead'.
Lately, his growing strength drew underlings, straining ties with Ho-cheol—but he amassed wealth.
'All pointless.'
Up in flames by bad luck and a psycho killer.
His life sold for a cheap 30 million won.
'Lucky it was that much. My life's worth.'
Couldn't price a human life, but Deok-bae chuckled agreeing it fit his trash existence.
'Reborn, make it worthwhile. Not rich kid, but happy family. Annoying little sis too.'
'But ain't I fucked?'
Blue flames blinded him amid unprecedented pain. His 30-million-won death.
'Afterlife?'
"Jo Deok-bae. Jo Deok-bae."
Thrice named, dragged to underworld? He responded to the sweet voice sarcastically.
"Which hell am I stuck in?"
"Reality, Deok-bae."
A blue-haired girl smiled brightly. Shock stopped his heart; he blacked out again.
"...What? Why'd this bastard faint again?"
I poked the unconscious Deok-bae's cheek.
His rock-hard skin felt inhuman.
'Rock monster, huh.'
I examined the monster core embedded in his heart—the one Sang-ah left.
Dull gray glow turned his body to stone.
'Should've used one from Incheon Airport.'
Cores stuffed everywhere from airport kills—all C-grade or higher.
'D-grades were rarer.'
B-grade scent drew A-grades thinking weaker, B's matching, C's game. Lower hid.
Too lazy to hunt, walked to terminal.
'Damn curiosity again.'
Curiosity killed the cat. Second unplanned Kaijin after Sea Fog Weapon—I scratched my cheek.
'How to handle this?'
No original cadre turned heroes to Kaijin—impossible.
But curiosity shoved a core in the corpse... and this happened.
'Didn't expect real revival as Kaijin.'
Kaijin? Human? Zombie? Hero-Kaijin? Villain-Kaijin?
'Whatever. Kaijin it is.'
Splitting hairs on goblin vs. villain wasted energy. Leave hero-to-Kaijin naming to scholars someday.
I shook Deok-bae's face.
"Jo Deok-bae. Jo Deok-bae. Mr. Jo Deok-bae?"
No sign of waking. Fine. Wait for phone charge. If not, kill again.
"99%...."
"Unfamiliar ceiling."
Deok-bae stirred. I marveled at the fateful timing.
"One percent later, and dead again."
"???"
His face full of confusion. I cleared my throat, spread my arms in a welcoming smile.
"Welcome back to the world. My second servant."
"...What the hell's with the cringy tone? Drunk? Burned me for 30 mil, now haunting the afterlife. Fuck."
Kill him?
I smacked my cheeky subordinate's head.