Winterer vs S-Rank (2)
Winterer vs S-Rank (2)
A storm descended at Seol Hayeon's signal.
It moved so quickly that the other villains saw only a raging violet whirlwind.
But Winterer, a Grade 1 Villain, could see it clearly.
Charging forward in the heart of the storm was...
Aika Ninomiya, the world's number-one S-rank.
'That Japanese outfit... Why was that bitch in Korea?!'
Winterer was horrified.
Why had she plotted the attack on Seol Hayeon?
The previous skirmish had let her gauge Seol Hayeon's strength.
She had concluded that victory was assured as long as no other S-rank joined the fight.
That was why Winterer had panicked at the mere report that Võ Chí Công, the lowest-ranked S-rank, had arrived. And now...
What? Aika Ninomiya?
Even among S-ranks, Aika stood apart—a realm beyond the heavens.
People seriously debated who would win between Superman and Aika.
Terror froze Winterer so completely that she could not move.
"H-hiiik..."
"......."
'She's unusually sensitive to bloodlust for a villain. I only gave her a light warning not to try anything foolish.'
Most of Winterer's terror came from Aika's bloodlust, but that was beside the point.
While Winterer remained frozen, the strongest awakener made her move.
—KWAAAAAAANG!!!
'Why does a person moving sound like a jet?!'
The thunderous boom arrived late—a sonic boom produced because sound could not keep pace with her movement.
Aika had launched herself at the speed of sound in response to her disciple's signal.
As though that were not enough, she subdued every one of the dozens of villains.
She darted in every direction as though swimming through the air, swinging her sheathed katana.
All at the speed of sound.
'Can a human really move that fast...?'
Even Winterer could barely follow her with her eyes.
Aika moved so quickly that she appeared to split into dozens of bodies.
Ordinary people could perceive only the violet whirlwind traced by her blade.
To Aika, subduing a group of mere Grade 2 and Grade 3 Villains took only seconds.
'How could anyone possibly deal with a monster like that...?'
—Clink. Fwoosh!!
"Hii... Huh?"
"Aren't you too old to be playing freeze tag, Prime Minister?"
"......!!!"
'When did she get past me?!'
She had even had time to seize the hostages Winterer had imprisoned in ice.
It was a sight that would have made physicists around the world doubt their eyes.
Did she simply ignore air resistance? She struck them at that speed, yet only knocked them unconscious?
By the laws of physics, it made no sense.
Of course, add the name "Aika Ninomiya" and everyone would simply nod.
Humanity already regarded Aika's strength as something beyond science.
In any case, the monster who defied even the laws of physics stared at Winterer...
"...Tch."
—Whoosh.
Then it withdrew again.
Only then did Winterer recover from her terror and move.
She had planted ice bombs throughout Seoul until she reached her limit.
The moment she stopped supplying them with mana, they would explode like grenades with their pins pulled.
'I almost died... No, detonate them first!!!'
—Crrk.
Winterer gritted her teeth and drew up her mana.
At first glance, it was a foolish move.
An opponent she could not possibly defeat had arrived, yet she was throwing away her only bargaining chip.
It looked like nothing short of suicide.
But to Winterer, it was the obvious choice.
From beginning to end, she had only one objective:
Seol Hayeon's downfall.
"All of you can fucking diiiie!!!"
'Seol Hayeon, you bitch—and Korea itself—are finished!!'
The civilians who would die in the attack...
Winterer estimated the casualties at roughly ten thousand.
A tragedy that entered the history books would surely destroy Seol Hayeon's place in Korea.
Whatever the strategic calculations, the victims would see her as someone who sacrificed ten thousand people to save herself.
No justification would make them accept it.
Just as they had long ago, they would call her a monster and throw stones.
Winterer was willing to die if it meant dragging Seol Hayeon down with her.
——However...
—Freeze.
'Wait. Why did Seol Hayeon do nothing while I stood here gawking at that monster...?'
A sudden question occurred to her.
The few seconds she had spent frozen in terror should have given Seol Hayeon more than enough of an opening.
Why had Seol Hayeon not attacked her?
And why had Aika Ninomiya not cut her down?
Were they wary of the massive explosion that would follow her death?
Impossible. If that were true, they would not have confronted her so aggressively.
She was the one holding the bombs, after all.
'It is almost as though they can deal with the bombs somehow and are merely keeping me alive for now.'
The answer flashed through her mind like lightning.
They intended to disarm the bombs while she delayed detonating them.
...By ordinary logic, that was impossible.
Perhaps they could discover the bomb locations by interrogating her accomplices.
But how could they stop her from detonating them?
Even at top speed, disarming them would take half a day. She was hardly going to stand by and watch.
Her puzzled gaze returned to the scene before her...
—Freeze.
"Big Sis. Long time no see."
"......?!!!!"
Only then did Winterer realize...
a young woman had approached until she stood directly in front of her.
She was another victim of the Awakener Proliferation Plan, just like Winterer.
A thoroughly brainwashed doll who could not even feed herself.
An awakener who never spoke without orders and was therefore convenient to exploit.
Subject 47.
However.
'What the hell? This bitch... Why does she look...?'
Unlike the girl in Winterer's memories, genuine emotion shone in her eyes.
A warm smile of delight curved her lips.
The joy of reunion filled her voice.
After only a few weeks apart, Subject 47 had cast off the brainwashing that had seemed unbreakable.
"What the fuck...?"
Winterer was so shaken that she forgot to detonate the bombs.
It proved just how important Subject 47 was to her...
———and created an opening for one young man.
[Activating the skill "Complete Hypnosis"...]
"Hello~ I am that child's father. Before you detonate the bombs, how about we have a little talk?"
[Despite the difference in Grade, the target falls under a "mild" hypnosis!]
"...What?"
For the first time, Winterer's eyes widened.
* * *
Rewinding slightly, to when we had just reached the scene.
While the Chairwoman went out to buy time, I...
[You say you have something to discuss with me? Very well, let's hear it...]
"...Master. Do I really have to hide inside your robe?"
I was crouched beneath Master's robe.
Her pleasant scent made the situation somewhat difficult.
"It would be troublesome if she discovered your identity. I must conceal my presence as well, so this is the best..."
—Flap.
"Daddy, Haru breaking news. Mommy candidate's panties are white."
"......!!? Do not lift someone else's clothes, you little imp!"
Haru being squeezed in with us made the space even more crowded.
...The situation outside was deadly serious, yet our little corner was complete chaos.
What was I supposed to do about the Haru effect?
To restore the mood, I explained the operation again.
"Ahem. Haru, listen carefully to Daddy. While Granny keeps her busy, Alice and Sia will..."
I gave her the Haru-optimized version of the plan.
Oh no! The bad villain had hidden bombs that would go boom—and they could explode in the blink of an eye.
Thankfully, Alice and Sia had gone to deal with them, but...
there wasn't enough time.
No matter how long Granny stalled with stories that smelled of red ginseng, the villain would throw a tantrum before the two sisters finished.
"So Haru and Daddy are going to stall her together after Granny. Got it?"
It was a perfect explanation, even if I said so myself.
Haru patted her cheeks.
"Mm...? Haru not good at talking to strangers. Haru can't stall."
"......."
'As I thought, she has forgotten Winterer.'
I'd noticed when she remained quiet during the video call. Her child regression had erased parts of her memory.
She seemed to remember almost nothing of her time with Winterer.
Only a vague sense that she had an older sister remained.
...It was good that she had forgotten all the horrors she had witnessed while living with villains, but this was inconvenient.
I quickly explained.
"You see that blue-haired girl over there?"
"Mm. Completely flat. Baby has no food, so she is grumpy."
"...Ahem. She is actually your big sister."
"Big Sis!!?"
The words "big sister" immediately caught Haru's interest.
She snorted excitedly beside me.
"Now that Haru remembers, Haru had a big sister!"
"Yes. She is your big sister, but she is doing something very bad right now."
"Big Sis is bad!"
"That is why you and Daddy will stall her together, so she can't do anything bad. Understand?"
"Got it. Haru and Daddy will punish Big Sis together!"
Drawing on all the experience I'd accumulated during my two weeks as a father, I successfully won Haru over.
Now she would unquestionably follow my instructions.
That left Master...
"Master, you understand your role, correct? Subdue everyone except Winterer and rescue the Prime Minister."
"Do not worry. If I am permitted to reveal myself, that much will be child's play."
"Yes. I trust you, Master."
Although she arguably had the most important role, neither Master nor I felt particularly tense.
With Master present, the chance of the Prime Minister dying was zero.
Even if Winterer suddenly attacked him, Master would react within milliseconds and rescue him.
Nothing in the world was more pointless than worrying that Master might fail at something.
"Will you truly be all right? She is rather strong for someone of your level to hypnotize."
"I'll be fine."
"I only ask because I am worried. If necessary, I could mince her into pieces just short of death..."
Master seemed beside herself with worry for her disciple.
I hurriedly stopped her.
"Whoa. What are you planning to do in front of Haru? Absolutely not."
"Haru, it's fine...."
"No. Our Haru should see only good and beautiful things. Protect Haru."
Haru was an adult in age, but mentally no older than a kindergartener.
She was at least a decade too young for a gore film.
"In any case, Master, please help me raise Haru properly."
"...H-hmm. You want us to raise a daughter together. Well, if that is what you wish, my disciple, then as your master I suppose I have no choice?"
"Yes. I look forward to raising her with you."
Just like that, I appointed Master as Haru's co-parent.
I might have been the Second-Round Hypnosis Breeding Guy, but being a father was new to me.
Many hands made light work; raising Haru together could only help.
In any case, while we killed time, the Chairwoman's story neared its end.
Master's expression and mine changed at once.
"Master, it is almost time."
"Take Haru and leave the robe. You may be caught in the attack."
"Yep."
Master and I were both seasoned veterans.
We'd joked around, but neither of us had ever stopped paying attention.
As the tension of battle gathered outside, I quickly slipped away with Haru...
[I bought you twenty-five minutes, Yujin.]
"......Master!!"
"I know!!!"
—TWOO-KWAAAAANG!!!!!
A Strategic Nuke launched moments later.
I ran with Haru as well.
Without worrying about Master in the slightest, I charged straight toward Winterer.
"Haru, go ahead and greet your big sister!"
"Got it."
—Shoo-shoo-shoo.
"Big Sis. Long time no see."
Haru used Greeting Attack! It was super effective!
Winterer was flustered!
'As I thought, Haru means that much to her...!'
—Scurry-scurry.
There was no chance I would let this perfect opening pass.
I rushed forward and cast hypnosis.
She was so shaken that a hypnosis which normally could never affect her took hold with ease.
"I happen to be this child's father~"
"...What?"
[The target falls under a "mild" hypnosis!]
'The opening shot landed.'
Even so, Winterer was still a Grade 1 Villain.
Her stats placed her around the middle-to-upper range of A-rank.
With my own stats in the lower C-rank range, she was a difficult opponent.
To overcome that gap, I forced my way through a vulnerability in her mind.
Just as I had used the keyword "Dad" with Haru.
This time, I used Winterer's weakness: Haru.
'Until Alice and Sia finish, I will survive with Wind-Style Tongue-Fu...!!'
—Schlick.
There was a long way to go, so I first wet my lips.
And then.
"It sounds as though our Haru owes you a great deal. I heard you took very good care of her."
"Hah? Why would I care for a doll-bitch like her?"
"———Then why are you pretending to be a villain? You aren't one, yet you keep acting cruel. Right, Haru?"
"Mm. Daddy. Big Sis was mean."
"......?"
A spectacular talk show performed by a close father-and-daughter pair.
Its runtime would last until Sia finished delivering Alice to every bomb site.
It began now.