The Fall of Cancer and the Dragon King Squad
Cancer was originally a 20-man raid boss. That meant it was designed for twenty players to clear. There were five paths of light. In other words, the basic strategy for Phase 1 was to have four people take charge of each path to clear it, while simultaneously blocking Cancer’s resurrection and healing skills. It was a brutal encounter where a single mistake by one person meant a total party wipe and a retry. But that was a game. This is reality. It is the world I have protected as a hero and the world I intend to rule as a villain. Given that premise, the strategy for Cancer is simple. You don't need 20 people; you just need to bring a massive, overwhelming swarm.
“Urarararara!”
“DIE! YOBBO! DIE!”
“Rest, rest. Silence.”
The villains were each shouting their own mad slogans as they ground Cancer’s subordinates into dust. They were even beating up the stunned heroes who had been standing around like idiots. Not only were the skilled fighters from the Divine Tree participating, but my own subordinates from Vengeance had joined the fray as well.
“Ugh, ugh…! You inferior species!”
Cancer’s forehead throbbed with veins. As he swung his staff, the high-ranking combatants began to emit a red light from their bodies. They went berserk, swinging their massive fists.
“Hiiik, w-wait! I didn’t hear about this… Gaaack―”
A nearby hero was shredded. It was the new Red from the Dragon King Squad. He became "Shin/Red" as his upper and lower body were separated. That one’s dead. It seems Cancer did something to the guy’s corpse, as it was glowing. I had hoped they would buy me more time, but that’s a shame.
While I was watching the spectacle, Rena spoke up.
“I have a small question. Wouldn't it be enough to just take Cancer’s head right now with your skill?”
“Zeo’s Blue isn’t such a convenient skill. The price is your lifespan. Are you stupid?” Lua snapped at Rena.
“It’s only 500 meters anyway. It’s a 3-minute walk, so just make that much of a sacrifice.”
“The things Zeo can kill instantly with his scythe are limited to enemies with lower stats than himself. It even drains a lifespan equal to the target’s remaining life. Even if he could kill Cancer, if that guy has 30 years left, Zeo loses 30 years too. Do you understand?”
“Does that mean you were bluffing to me, too? Zeo, it’s obvious that my future is brighter than yours.”
I didn’t answer. Even if I had stabbed Rena with the Blue of Death, it would have been difficult to kill her instantly.
“Zeo’s Blue should only be used to kill abilities. And even then, the burden is higher the stronger the opponent’s ability is, and it’s impossible if the skill level is higher than the level of Zeo’s Apocalypse.”
“Lua, how do you know that? I don’t think I’ve ever explained it to you. And about the skill levels…”
Those were numbers that only appeared in the system window, visible only to me. While Nameless’s ranking mentioned them, they were only referred to as High, Medium, or Low, not by numbers.
“Uh… Zeo, you talked in your sleep.”
“…Have you used dark matter on me since then?”
“N-no! I wouldn’t do something so cowardly!” Lua retorted, her cheeks flushing red. Something felt suspicious.
“Hmm, I see. Regardless, I need to use Blue.”
Cancer raised his staff. He intended to resurrect the combatants. I couldn't let that happen.
“Blue of Death.”
Blue of Death
My vision inverted. I began to see the souls that exist in all living things, objects, and even concepts. I ran, scythe in hand. I slipped between the fighting monsters and villains, moving in a straight line. My target was Cancer. The skill he was casting. The soul contained within that skill. I aimed precisely for it and swung my scythe. The scythe, having harvested the soul, seemed satisfied as it greedily devoured the resurrection skill.
“What! Where did my divine power go— Huk.”
Cancer, flustered, gasped as my shadow loomed directly in front of him.
“I’ll ask. Is Ractor watching this battle?”
“H-how dare you speak the Emperor’s name with that filthy mouth! You inferior species!”
Cancer swung his staff. I killed his skill again.
“Huk.”
Sensing that something was terribly wrong, his arm began to tremble violently.
“Want to try again?”
“This…!”
Cancer tried to cast his skill again. Each time, I absorbed the soul with my scythe.
“Try it again.”
“Ugh!”
“Try it.”
Cancer’s movements stopped. It seemed he had exhausted all his divine power.
“Then answer my question. Is Ractor watching?”
“Kuk… He is watching. How could I show such a pathetic sight to His Majesty…”
“Good. Ractor, you must have heard from the Red Dragon. I am Georgius.”
I grabbed Cancer by the head, lifted him up, and declared it. His long hat came off, revealing a hideous skull. He was bald, but monster hair was usually a stiff material that was hard to call hair anyway, so I didn’t know if the distinction mattered.
“Thanks to you, I am growing my power alongside my forces. But I have no intention of thanking you. My goal is world domination, and you monsters are just annoying obstacles.”
“Ugh, ughhh.”
Cancer began to moan. That was because I had started applying pressure with my left hand, which was gripping his skull.
“Kuahaha! Massacre! It’s a massacre!”
“We wiped them all out!”
The villains had finished off all the monster combatants. Cancer’s invincibility buff was lifted. Good timing.
“You said you wanted a duel. Look forward to it. Soon, I’ll make your head look like this, too.”
Saying that, I activated Red of War. Without hesitation, I clenched my right hand. I fired a punch toward Cancer’s skull.
Kwaaaaang!
With a terrifying explosion, Cancer’s outer shell began to crack. I unleashed a flurry of blows with all my might. His skull caved in, and his neck bones snapped. Blood vessels burst, and his jaw dislocated, leaving his tongue to hang loose without support. The job was done. The subjugation of Cancer was successfully completed. I held Cancer’s head up toward the news helicopters.
“You saw it well! This is the power of a villain!”
After shouting with vigor, I pulled the switch from Cancer’s head. It was a flashy thing, with orange particles repeatedly appearing and disappearing. It was the ‘Quantum Switch.’ I liked it. I threw the rest on the ground. My subordinates would recover this corpse later. Ractor must have witnessed this battle too. I hope he’s looking forward to what’s next.
“VENGEANCEEEEEE!!!”
Someone was rushing at me. It was considerable speed. A blue dragon was coiled around the sword being thrust at me. It was Ji Se-hwa. She had broken through the villains to reach this point. What guts.
“Hmm.”
Naturally, I easily blocked her sword. I trapped the blade between my elbow and knee, bringing it to a halt.
“This crazy…!”
Ji Se-hwa was flustered. I immediately twisted my body and kicked her in the side. Ji Se-hwa flew through the air, performing a landing roll.
“Hand over Pegasus’s switch!”
Shin Yu-kyung flew in from the right. No, wouldn't something like revenge for her fallen crew members be a better line? I easily blocked her with one hand and slammed her into the ground.
“What did you do to Ui-seok!”
Finally, Kang Ye-rin jumped in. All of their martial arts were things I had taught them. It was essentially a lower-tier version of my own.
“Clock Out!”
Kang Ye-rin’s ability was time deceleration. Still, it only slowed my body down a little; it had no major impact on me. Or so it should have been.
“Hmm.”
It was a bit unexpected. My entire body stopped completely, unable to move at all. My thoughts were also about to freeze. I responded quickly before that could happen. I used Dragon’s Eye on Kang Ye-rin.
Her ability is Level 10? This is a bit unexpected. Kang Ye-rin had never left the Hero Association except for sorties as the Dragon King Squad. That was why I hadn't been able to launch a terror attack on her. I wondered what she had been doing all this time—could she have been holed up in a training ground? Even so, this level of growth would be nearly impossible through training alone. However, if it’s 10, this situation makes sense. Did her ability evolve from ‘time deceleration’ to ‘time stop’?
“Haaaaah!”
Kang Ye-rin threw a punch at me. Of course, it was no problem. If she stopped time, I could just force it to restart.
“Blue of Death.”
I accelerated time and stood behind Kang Ye-rin. Kang Ye-rin was flustered by my disappearance. I kicked her spine with all my might.
“Ugh!”
The three of them collapsed. Above them, Lua’s unobservable dark matter amplified gravity, pinning them down.
“Ughhh…!”
“Kuk!”
Unable to move under the crushing gravity, I mocked the three of them.
“Do you still not know your place? S-class heroes? S-Squad? It’s laughable. This is the level of you lot. The Dragon King Squad.”
“You… son of a…!”
Blood burst from the lips of Ji Se-hwa, who was desperately trying to move her jaw.
“You must hold a grudge against me. But that is your own karma. I heard all about your atrocities from the Red Dragon. It was astonishing. Why are we villains and you heroes when we do the same things?”
“The same…!?” Shin Yu-kyung ground her teeth.
“Yes. That’s why I attacked you. Be grateful. Isn’t it thanks to Vengeance that the Dragon King Squad can still remain heroes?”
“Sophistry…!”
“Sophistry? Just a moment ago, it was the Villain Alliance that took down Cancer. If it weren’t for us, you would have fallen, and the hostages would all be dead. Do you think the public would recognize you as heroes after that?”
“Then are you saying you’re going to be a hero or what!” Ji Se-hwa lashed out. I laughed lowly.
“As if. We are villains. Villains have the rules of villains.”
Cancer’s barrier began to crumble. It was just about time. I made a transmission.
“Georgius to all villains. From this moment, the buildings within the barrier will begin to collapse. Each villain, use your abilities to prevent the collapse of the three office buildings: Go-gang-seok Foundation, D&P Finance, and Blue Sky Capital.”
Following my orders, the villains moved. Lua also withdrew her dark matter and let the Dragon King Squad go.
“Collapse? What do you mean?” Kang Ye-rin stared at me.
“Cancer’s barrier is the type that destroys everything inside. I never intended to keep the hostages alive from the start.”
“That…! Then, what about the other two buildings!”
“You cowardly bastard! You intend to let the rest die?!”
I let out a dry laugh at Ji Se-hwa’s words.
“What nonsense. You should be the ones protecting them.”