Chapter 3
Chapter 3
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: Taming Ignition
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A-Rank Hero to that pathetic grunt? No way!
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Uwaaah! I really thought I was gonna die. Whew!"
I bolted out of the hideout with everything I had, running and running until my lungs burned.
Luckily, the spot where I jumped from wasn't high enough to kill me.
My legs felt a bit wobbly, sure...
But hey, I'm alive. Time for a drink!
The Dark Knights' hideout was a rundown factory on the outskirts of S City, renovated into a base.
It was a long haul back to the city where my studio apartment was.
"Ah."
I stepped out to the roadside hoping to hail a taxi, then caught sight of myself in a road reflector mirror by chance...
No matter how I looked at it, I was the spitting image of the villain mugshots from the news.
The real problem? Under this villain suit, all I had on was a single tank top and my underwear.
Still, getting arrested as a villain was worse than just gritting my teeth and dashing out in my undies, right?
Or should I just roll up like this and bluff that I'm filming a hero promo?
As I agonized over it, a brilliant idea hit me.
"This should... work better than those other options, at least."
I'd ditch the mask and rip the suit in half—top and bottom.
That way, it'd look like I was just wearing a tank top and tight pants.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Thanks! Drive safe!"
"Take care getting home. It's cold out there."
Somehow, I made it back to my studio apartment without raising any eyebrows.
The pitying look the taxi driver shot me nagged a bit, though.
"Never thought I'd come home like this."
The place I'd returned to after months felt eerily quiet and empty.
Since I'd only rented it for crashing during the rare days off, it was just a few changes of clothes, a computer, a bed, and a fridge.
"Am I dreaming or something?"
Everything that had happened in the last few hours was a ridiculous string of coincidences.
For starters, a hero raid—something that hadn't happened in years—suddenly going down.
Hundreds of organizations operated in this, the most populous city in Korea, yet ours got hit.
And when I went for backup, the Supreme Commander and Leader Kaiser had already bolted...
Getting captured or killed on the spot wouldn't have been surprising.
But thanks to that gem I snagged in the command room, I got something like a supernatural ability.
And with it, I even neutralized an A-Rank Hero.
"St... Status window? Status window!"
I yelled "Status window!" like in some comic, trying to pull up that screen from before.
-Whirr-
"Whoa! It actually works. Crazy."
Sure enough, a similar screen materialized in front of me.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Owner of the <Corruption System>, Ha Si-yoon, welcome.] [No imprint targets currently available for commands nearby.] [Owned Imprint Targets: Yoon Do-hwa (Stage 1 - 13%)] [<Locked>] <Corruption System>.
Corruption—like the English word for "degeneration"—combined with "system," meaning a framework that carries out orders from its owner, me.
The main screen showed nearby imprint targets available for commands or ones I already owned.
"What's this <Locked> thing? Not unlocked yet?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [The <Locked> section will unlock upon reaching the final stage of an imprint.] When I focused on Yoon Do-hwa in the imprint target list, her info popped up like before.
Seeing the <Locked> part suggested more features would unlock as I used the ability.
I wondered just how far this power could go.
Filling up the corruption levels to raise stages—what else might become possible? Excitement bubbled up.
For years, I'd survived on stamina alone, with no powers.
Looked like some god with twisted tastes had finally handed me one.
The condition—just physical contact—was simple yet tricky,
but leveraging strong ones like Yoon Do-hwa would make it doable.
And with the Dark Knights smashed, perfect timing.
Time to strike out on my own.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ I finally got a solid night's sleep—something I hadn't had in ages.
"How long was I out?"
If memory served, the hero raid hit around 5 a.m.
I'd gotten home just shy of 7.
I rarely slept more than six hours a day, always running on fumes.
No more of that—felt great.
"Not even 6 yet..."
I'd told Yoon Do-hwa to meet at the university back gate near my place at 6 p.m.
Still ten minutes to spare.
"What to wear? Just throw on anything?"
Since starting my villain gig, I'd spent most time at the base, so barely any street clothes.
Before joining Dark Knights, I'd hung out with friends plenty,
but while I was grinding as a lowly grunt, they'd moved on to real adult lives.
Now, outside rare days off, we never met, and even texts had dried up.
"What are those guys up to these days? Maybe hit 'em up since I'm out?"
I threw on my least shabby black hoodie and slacks, then headed out.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ In front of the convenience store by the back gate of Sun-nam University.
The school I'd briefly attended before dropping out for "business studies" as an excuse to my parents.
"She's late, huh?"
6 p.m. came and went—no Yoon Do-hwa. I glanced around.
"...Hey."
Someone poked my back with a finger.
"You made it? Hero 'Ignition'?"
"Sh... Shut up! That's why I came all the way here!"
Hero 'Ignition' stood there in a white tee and jeans, hat pulled low.
Probably to hide her identity in public.
"You could've dressed up a bit. Follow me."
"Ack! My body's moving on its own again...!"
Too risky for that in a crowded spot, huh?
"How about here?"
A narrow alley between two 'For Rent'-stickered buildings near the back gate.
A few steps in, and the busy street was visible, but the dim narrowness kept it hidden from outside.
Back in school, friends joked ghosts lurked here.
"Wh-what are you gonna do to me?!"
"What? Heh! Kill me or something?"
"K-kill... you...?"
"Nah, too valuable. Besides, I couldn't even if I wanted to."
True enough.
Her kick last time crushed my raw physical stats.
So, I'd go for dirtier, sneakier tactics.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Target: Applying arousal to 'Ignition' Yoon Do-hwa.] "Hngh?!"
The moment I applied the arousal command, she doubled over, clutching her waist.
"What's wrong all of a sudden?"
"N-nothing!"
Lifting her chin revealed her flushed, panicked face.
"Don't tell me you're getting excited thinking you'll get it on with me here."
"As if! I'm not some pervert like you!"
She fidgeted, body trembling faintly—arousal confirmed—but her desperate denial was kinda cute.
"Hnnngh... I swear... I'll kill you...!"
Curious how intense it was, I pressed firmly on her right breast, the one I'd groped before.
"Eek?!"
A cute moan burst out, totally clashing with her kill threat.
"Pfft..."
"...Hnnngh..."
Her rising body heat from arousal slicked her with sweat,
and through the white tee, her sky-blue bra peeked through.
"D-don't look...!"
Ignoring her plea, I peeled off the sweat-soaked shirt.
A sky-blue lace bra barely containing her jiggling breasts.
Droplets of sweat trickling down her cleavage.
And the sweet scent wafting from within.
"You pervert bastard...!"
"Still haven't grasped your situation, huh."
"What?"
Time to drill in just how screwed she was.
"What if I shove you out there right now, Miss Ignition?"
"L-like this... in my underwear...? No, don't!"
"Then play nice with your words. Got it?"
Even if I fantasized about this setup,
getting called a pervert bastard she wanted to kill soured the mood.
She needed to realize she wasn't A-Rank Hero Ignition anymore.
Just prey before a virile male.
"Got it?"
"O-okay... I w-won't... anymore..."
Her terrified expression softened her speech.
I ripped off the now-submissive Yoon Do-hwa's bra.
Big.
Constrained by bra and shirt, I'd pegged her at a C-cup.
But free of those barriers, they dwarfed my expectations.
Sweat droplets trailed from her pink nipples, dripping down.
Like morning dew slipping off a leaf.
"Ahhngh...! It hurts...!"
I pinched a nipple between index and middle finger, kneading both breasts,
gently twisting to tease it.
For someone in such a brutal hero life, her skin was impeccably soft, smooth, and pale.
-Squish-♥
"Ahhngh?!♥"
After kneading for seconds, her legs quivered—she looked like she'd climaxed.
"Can't hold back, huh."
Mouth agape, tongue lolled out, twitching expression.
How could anyone resist devouring that?
I wouldn't.
No need to.
[Status: Imprint Stage 1 (Corruption Level 26%)]