Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: The Red-Eyed Villain and the Blue-Eyed Hero
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◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Somewhere in the city center of S City, a certain cafe was open for business.
It was in a neighborhood where not many people passed by,
but customers were steadily drawn in by the quiet atmosphere and the rich, aromatic scent of coffee.
A woman was humming a soft tune faintly audible in her ears as she ground the coffee beans.
- Ding - "Welcome."
The cafe owner, with long black hair cascading down past her waist and rabbit-like red eyes, came face-to-face with a customer who had long, flowing white hair and blue eyes.
"Iced Americano. Light on the ice, please."
"Yes, got it."
The owner, dressed in a sleeveless shirt and black skirt that accentuated her voluptuous figure,
took the order and began humming again as she brewed the coffee.
"This place has quite the serene vibe, doesn't it?"
The blue-eyed customer, with somewhat exotic features, smiled softly,
praising the tranquil atmosphere of the shop.
"Yes. A lot of people who appreciate the ambiance come by."
She added a few small ice cubes to a thick glass slightly smaller than a beer mug,
then mixed in the freshly brewed coffee and cold water.
"For people like that... they might prefer the smell of dust over this coffee aroma."
The woman took the glass of iced Americano, condensation beading on the outside, sipped it gently,
and added an odd aside to the owner's words.
"Dust...? What do you mean by that?"
The white-haired woman sipped her Americano quietly, wearing a relaxed smile.
"You know those old bookstores on the outskirts of the city...
that serene feeling you get amid the dusty books."
The owner looked a bit puzzled,
but took it as praise for the shop's atmosphere and thanked the customer.
"Do you find that much coziness in our shop's vibe?"
"Exactly. I really like this place."
The woman turned her head, surveying the shop with a somewhat meaningful smile.
Her eyes caught on a single painting hanging on the wall.
It was an oil painting with an aged feel, depicting a white horse clad in black armor galloping with a knight in pitch-black plate armor.
The woman stared at it for a long while, as if she liked it.
"It doesn't have any special meaning. I bought it during a trip to Europe."
"Ah... it gives off quite a dynamic vibe."
As she admired the striking painting, only a few ice cubes remained rattling in her glass.
"All done. I'll pay with this card."
The card the woman handed over for payment bore a distinctive emblem.
An H in red, with a fist punching upward forcefully—this was the symbol of the Hero Union.
Cards emblazoned with the Hero Union symbol were provided to Union affiliates,
but they could also be seen as merchandise sold to the general public.
The owner took the card, glanced at it briefly,
then completed the payment nonchalantly a few seconds later and handed it back.
"3,500 won charged. Please come again."
"If only..."
The two exchanged light smiles.
"Well, goodbye."
"Take care."
- Ding - The blue-eyed woman opened the door and quietly stepped out of the shop.
"Looks like this place won't last much longer either."
As soon as the customer left, a door in the corner of the kitchen opened,
and another woman entered the shop's kitchen area.
She was slightly shorter and smaller in build than the owner or the customer from moments ago.
She spoke casually to the mature-looking owner, clearly an adult,
yet her petite and youthful appearance contrasted sharply.
"I told you not to come out during business hours."
The owner pouted at the woman.
"Do you know how stuffy it is stuck in there? It's way worse than where we used to stay."
A single small room beyond the kitchen.
It was spacious enough for one or two people to live comfortably.
Yet the woman complained to the owner anyway.
"Just say you're my little sister Chae-ryeong and stick by my side."
"If it were that easy, would we be hiding like this?"
"That's not wrong. But what can we do? The whole hideout burned down."
The owner, called Chae-ryeong by the woman, pointed to the door.
"Get back inside. There are a lot of eyes to avoid if we want to move to another hideout."
The woman grumbled in frustration but,
upon hearing Chae-ryeong's words, pursed her lips and opened the door.
"Wrap up business early today. I want to get to a more comfortable spot."
"Haha... Understood, Leader Kaiser."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ One office in the Hero Union headquarters.
The white-haired woman who had visited the cafe just tens of minutes ago
was conversing with a middle-aged man whose neatly trimmed beard suited his salt-and-pepper hair.
"So, have you identified their suspected hideouts?"
"Yes. Two in central S City, and one more on the outskirts—for a total of three."
Unlike her earlier sporty leggings and training wear,
she now wore a pitch-black uniform and cape that hugged her figure, like a soldier—
no, more like the attire of a high-ranking officer.
"The files I sent you detail the suspected illegal hideouts."
"Your reports always come packed with info."
The woman pulled a small chip from the pocket on her chest and handed it over.
"And this is a memory chip with data on the organization we wiped out in a recent raid."
"Oh. You found the Dark Knights' hideouts faster than the full investigation team?"
The middle-aged man, seemingly her superior, took the memory in surprise
and inserted it into a slot on a handheld electronic device about the size of a phone.
"It's quite a distance from their previous hideouts."
The location marked on the map on the man's device screen was the very cafe she had just visited.
The place where she had enjoyed a serene iced Americano.
"Isn't this a cafe? Using it as a temporary shelter while operating?"
"Yes. The first person I saw inside was suspected to be a Dark Knights executive."
The woman with long black hair down to her hips and alluring red eyes.
She spoke of the cafe owner, Chae-ryeong, with an emotionless expression.
"The cafe owner is an executive known as 'Trickster' in the Dark Knights.
From intel gathered in the last operation, she's believed to wield a 'clone creation' supernatural ability."
"Clones... A tricky power from our perspective.
No info on other executives or the leader yet, I assume."
"Yes. I'll do my best."
The woman removed her uniform cap and bowed to her superior.
She felt she hadn't achieved enough to make him truly pleased or satisfied.
But her superior's expression seemed brighter than she expected.
"No need to push yourself too hard. That's why we have the full investigation team.
I understand your zeal, but rushing can backfire."
The man stood, patted the shoulder of the bowing woman, and encouraged her.
Understanding her superior's generosity, she lifted her head.
"It's not easy finding a hero as capable as you in so many ways.
Those with supernatural abilities tend to be wildly independent and self-willed."
As the man said, those born with supernatural abilities—'supers'—often leaned toward free-spiritedness.
About 5% of the world's population was born with them.
Excluding those with such negligible powers they were hard to distinguish,
the actual ratio of practical supers was less than half that.
Supers often struggled to live normal lives from childhood,
and numerous studies showed they developed unique or twisted personalities as a result.
Even those who joined the Hero Union tended to fit that mold,
and she was no exception to an ordinary life.
In fact, among Union heroes, her life could be called one of the most tumultuous.
"That's all I can report for now."
"Very well. Good work, Miss Lu-mi."
"Please don't use my real name on duty.
Even if you know it's Seol Lu-mi."
Hero personal info was not to be mentioned while on duty, by principle.
"Haha! That's what I like about you.
Alright, you're dismissed, A-Rank Hero Ice Queen."
A-Rank Hero of the Hero Union, Ice Queen.
Seol Lu-mi saluted her superior with a bow and left his office.