Chapter 14: Millionface (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 14: Millionface (5)
The reason Awakened are stronger than ordinary people is rooted in mana.
Since the physical ability scores shown on measuring devices represent values enhanced by mana, an Awakened who cannot use mana becomes nothing more than an ordinary person who exercises a bit too much.
Just like Pink, a B-rank villain, who was currently being beaten like a dog by Lee Yu-na.
The sight of Lee Yu-na stomping on Pink while showing off her pale backside was quite a view, but at this rate, the villain was going to die.
"Whoa, whoa—calm down. We need to take her alive."
When I hugged her from behind and pulled, Lee Yu-na was dragged away, still huffing as if her anger hadn't subsided.
Then, perhaps feeling something pressing against her buttocks, she jumped away in surprise and bowed her head to me.
"I'm sorry. I showed you an unseemly side of myself."
I've already seen plenty of your "excited" sides.
"Ugh... Million...? Did you... betray us?"
With her pretty face turned into a mess, Pink spoke feebly.
By now, she should have realized the person had changed. Is she a total airhead?
"Millionface is over there."
When I pointed at the unconscious Millionface, Pink looked on with a bewildered expression before gritting her teeth.
"That stupid bitch. She couldn't even manage one guy and got taken down? Fuck..."
She got taken down too, yet she's blaming someone else.
Now that even Pink had been caught, I couldn't expect Safety Helmet to fall for a trap. Even if Safety Helmet was as much of an airhead as Pink, she would definitely notice something was wrong.
In the end, we couldn't use the cock trap, so we put our clothes back on.
To be honest, I was disappointed because I wanted to do it with Safety Helmet and Lee Yu-na too, but if I let my libido take the wheel, I’d be in real trouble.
I finished dressing while watching Lee Yu-na’s plump rear as she turned around to pull up her pants.
"What do we do now?"
Lee Yu-na, having finished putting Pink's pants back on, stood up and asked me.
But I didn't have any ideas left either.
It was either a two-on-one showdown or trying to bluff and threaten her with the captured villains as hostages. Both methods were incredibly precarious.
"We have to stall for as much time as possible and hope support arrives quickly. Fortunately, Safety Helmet is preoccupied with the storage room, so the backup should be faster."
The command center would have the blueprints for the district office, so it wouldn't take long for the search party to find this wall.
I had no intention of just sitting around waiting for the race between Safety Helmet and the backup, so I checked the rifle Millionface had been carrying while in disguise.
"Are you part of a Tactical Support Team?"
Lee Yu-na watched me, perhaps because my handling of the magazine and chamber looked practiced.
"No, I'm just office staff. I've just been learning how to use a gun lately."
I gave an embarrassed smile and set up magic traps near the hole.
"May I ask what kind of magic you can use?"
Asking for another clan's hero information is a sensitive matter, so I asked cautiously. Lee Yu-na answered without hesitation.
As expected of a world full of brainless attackers, most of her repertoire consisted of offensive magic. Why did she only learn attack spells when she said her skills were support-type?
Lee Yu-na swung a weapon that looked like a dagger into the air. With a clink, the blade and handle extended, transforming into a spear.
"Now that I've reclaimed my weapon, I'll protect you, Yeon-woo."
She had been depressed earlier, saying she was no match for them, but now she was full of fighting spirit.
"Let's fight together. I'll provide you with plenty of support."
"Together... Yes, let's fight together."
The word "together" seemed to resonate with her, as she whispered it to herself with a bright smile.
It was a nice atmosphere, but since there was nothing left to do but wait, we pulled up chairs and sat down.
"The backup is a bit late."
"You're right... Could I have given them the wrong location?"
Lee Yu-na worried, thinking it was her fault.
We sat in silence for a long time, but there was still no sign of the wall being breached.
I was starting to worry that Safety Helmet would realize something was wrong and arrive first, but then, footsteps began to echo from the hole.
Lee Yu-na stood up with a tense look, nodded to me, and hid in the corner as planned.
I didn't know if a surprise attack would work, but I had to stall for as much time as possible.
Feeling the footsteps draw closer, I sat with my legs crossed, pretending to be as relaxed as possible.
From an outsider's perspective, it looked like I had captured both Pink and Millionface, so I was going to bluff hard.
"Hey... what took you so long? I've been waiting forever."
Safety Helmet spoke awkwardly, only poking her head through the hole to look inside.
That's strange. She wasn't the type to speak so timidly.
I frowned, remembering how Safety Helmet had initially cursed at the villains with such a rough tone.
However, Safety Helmet, seeing the situation inside, widened her eyes in shock before soon breaking into a bitter smile.
"What the... they've been suppressed here too."
Safety Helmet laughed hollowly and looked down.
"You've already caught them, so why the games? Agh! Don't poke me! I'm serious! Look! They're all done for!"
As I watched Safety Helmet's one-woman show, someone else poked their head in slightly to check the interior.
I couldn't see her clearly, but her cold, sharp eyes left a strong impression.
"Jeong Yeon-woo?"
"Yes, I'm Jeong Yeon-woo. Who might you be?"
"Two confirmed abductees. The numbers don't match. Which one is Millionface?"
"Sister!"
Hearing the voice, Lee Yu-na jumped out from her hiding spot and ran toward the hole.
"Stop."
But at that cold voice, Lee Yu-na froze in her tracks.
"Personnel confirmed. Deploy the suppression team."
At the radio call from the woman Yu-na called "Sister," the wall was smashed open, and heroes poured in.
Not just through the wall, but strong-looking heroes also burst through the hole where Safety Helmet and the woman were. The woman shouted:
"Everyone, drop your weapons and get on the floor!"
"Sister..."
Lee Yu-na looked on with a dark expression, then slowly knelt and lay flat on the floor.
I also set the gun aside and lay down quietly.
It seemed cold, but it was the correct response.
At the point where this many heroes were pouring in, victory was guaranteed, but with Millionface involved, distinguishing friend from foe was difficult.
In the end, Lee Yu-na and I were fitted with mana-suppressing handcuffs just like the villains and led away by the heroes.
Although the woman gave cold orders, we were escorted kindly, almost as if being supported, unlike the villains.
Seeing her give orders to everyone, that person must be the Clan Leader of Square Garden.
So, Lee Yu-na's older sister is a Clan Leader?
I thought she grew up in a well-to-do family, but it turns out her background was even more impressive than I thought.
Unlike the innocent and soft-looking Lee Yu-na, the Clan Leader had a cold and rigid image.
Still, I guess the breasts and hips are genetic.
*
Lee Yu-na and I were held in a different space from the villains.
I say "held," but we were using a room in the district office temporarily, so the atmosphere was just like an office.
Lee Yu-na, sitting at a table with her hands cuffed, looked grim.
"Why does Mr. Yeon-woo have to be treated like this? He's the biggest contributor who caught two villains."
I thought she was sulking because of her sister, but she was actually worried about me.
"It's the right call since we were 'presumed' abductees, not 'confirmed.' We're innocent, so if we wait, they'll treat us fairly."
"It's natural to be wary of me since Millionface took my form, but Mr. Yeon-woo..."
"It's okay. Anyway, we survived safely."
When I gave a thin smile, Lee Yu-na's dark expression softened a bit.
"You're right. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have made it out safely."
"I wouldn't have been able to do anything without you either, Yu-na. We saved each other."
Only then did Lee Yu-na smile.
"You're a strong and humble person... Ah, I will definitely keep what we talked about inside a secret."
We had discussed various things while waiting for Safety Helmet.
Lee Yu-na had promised never to speak of what happened with the villains.
A "trash-tier" and a C-rank had achieved the incredible feat of taking down two B-rank villains, but the process was a bit difficult to reveal.
Technically, even though we suppressed them, I was essentially just being raped.
Personally, I didn't think of it as a source of shame, but Lee Yu-na insisted on keeping it a secret to protect my honor.
Thanks to that, many details would be omitted from the final report.
This would lead to suspicion regardless of the achievement, but Lee Yu-na showed strong resolve, saying she couldn't subject her savior to such humiliation.
Well... I have a feeling the villains might just blab everything anyway.
As I was thinking, the door opened, and the Clan Leader of Square Garden entered along with Park Sung-jun.
There was no way they'd include our minor clan in an important meeting; they probably brought him along just to identify me.
The Clan Leaders sat across from us, opened black folders on the table, and picked up their pens.
Even though they were heroes, they seemed used to paperwork, likely because they were Clan Leaders.
"I am Lee Ru-da, the Clan Leader of Square Garden. First, I apologize for the rudeness."
"It's only natural in the field during an identification operation."
"I appreciate your understanding. Millionface, who regained consciousness, has deactivated her transformation, so the suspicions against Hero Lee Yu-na have been cleared. Release the handcuffs."
At Lee Ru-da's nod, our minor Clan Leader, Park Sung-jun, stood up and unlocked Lee Yu-na's handcuffs.
However, I remained cuffed.
While Lee Yu-na looked at me with an anxious gaze, Lee Ru-da continued.
"We are interrogating the villains, but I'd like to hear from the parties involved about what happened."
Lee Yu-na and I took turns explaining.
The villains tried to rape me, and while they were off-guard, I unlocked Lee Yu-na's handcuffs, allowing her to suppress Millionface.
Pink was taken down when she showed her back to Lee Yu-na, whom she mistook for Millionface. The rest was already known to Lee Ru-da.
Since we only omitted the part about having sex and told the truth about everything else, Park Sung-jun's expression turned dark.
Is he worried about me? Probably not.
"You're registered as a hero on paper, but you're not actually one."
"Yes, I work as office staff in the clan."
"And yet, you're saying you managed to steal the key right under the nose of a B-rank like Millionface, even if she was off-guard?"
"Sister! Are you doubting Mr. Yeon-woo right now?"
When Lee Ru-da asked in a voice full of suspicion, Lee Yu-na jumped up and shouted.
However, Lee Ru-da remained unfazed and spoke while looking at me.
"Yu-na. This is an interrogation. You haven't completely cleared your own suspicions yet, so stay quiet."
"... ..."
At that cold voice, Lee Yu-na bit her lip and glared at Lee Ru-da.
"Clan Leader Lee Ru-da isn't wrong, so please calm down."
When I smiled gently and pulled her arm, Lee Ru-da's gaze shifted to my hand.
After resisting for a moment, Lee Yu-na sat down powerlessly as I kept pulling.
With an anxious Park Sung-jun and a resentful Lee Yu-na, the atmosphere in the interrogation room grew increasingly heavy.
"I'll answer your question. I didn't steal the key."
"Then how did you unlock the handcuffs?"
"Um... I'm not trying to be rebellious, but may I demonstrate how I unlocked them?"
When I lifted my wrists to show the handcuffs, Lee Ru-da stared for a moment before nodding.
Handcuffs used to restrain the Awakened have a mana-sealing function, but their structure is identical to ordinary handcuffs.
I took the cap of a ballpoint pen from the table and used the long clip part to pick the lock. Park Sung-jun looked shocked.
"It would be harder to do that stealthily than to steal a key."
"Yes, that's true."
As I said that, I placed the unlocked handcuffs onto Lee Yu-na next to me.
Lee Ru-da watched silently, but Park Sung-jun panicked at my sudden action and reached for his weapon.
Don't be so scared, you're making our clan look bad.
I tossed the pen aside and casually gripped the chain connecting the cuffs.
Click—
Park Sung-jun's eyes went wide as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing, and Lee Yu-na, who hadn't even realized how she'd been freed earlier, was also stunned.
Only Lee Ru-da stared at the handcuffs with calm eyes before speaking.
"Your mana control is impressive. Did you neutralize the mana sealing and use materialized mana to act as a key?"
...I didn't expect her to figure it out in one go. She's impressive.
It seemed a similar technique existed here, as Lee Ru-da calmly understood the principle.
"Yes, it's just a minor trick."
"Based on the data provided by the Break Line, I didn't think this would be possible."
"That's last year's data. Well, my current stats aren't much different, but control ability isn't something you can calculate with simple numbers."
When I shrugged and spoke nonchalantly, Lee Ru-da nodded as if she understood.
"Many heroes don't care about abilities outside of raw numbers. That's an excellent attitude."
I was praised! Yay! ...is what I would have said, but instead, it felt like I had only increased Lee Ru-da's wariness.
Lee Ru-da, who had already heard plenty from Park Sung-jun, was suspicious and interrogated me because I was so different from the data she had received.
The questions she fired from various angles were sharp, forcing me to answer with caution.
After the long interrogation ended, Lee Ru-da organized her papers and stood up.
"An investigator will be following you for the time being. It's also for your protection, so I hope you won't find it too unpleasant."
"It's fine. It's an honor to be protected by such elite heroes."
Unluckily for me, there were too many suspicious aspects about my situation.
Coming to the district office today on the pretext of giving out snacks, suppressing villains with a frail body, and showing a personality different from the records—from Lee Ru-da's perspective, there were countless red flags.
It was best to accept it quietly and clear the suspicion.
Lee Yu-na looked dissatisfied with my treatment, but when I readily agreed, she kept her mouth shut and endured it.
"Well then, it's time for the heroes' triumphal return."
I looked at Lee Ru-da, not knowing what she meant, but her face remained expressionless.
On the other hand, Park Sung-jun was grinning, which made me uneasy.
"Waaaaah!!"
"Look over here!!"
"This is KS Broadcasting! Hero Jeong Yeon-woo, Hero Lee Yu-na! You've been identified as the primary contributors! How do you feel right now?!"
As soon as we stepped out of the district office, I was dazed by the erupting cheers.
Flashes went off everywhere, and people were shouting so much I couldn't understand a word.
I watched Park Sung-jun naturally stand beside me, putting his arm around my shoulder as if we were close and waving to the crowd, then my eyes met Lee Yu-na's.
"Congratulations. You've become a celebrity."
"I didn't do anything. It's all thanks to you, Mr. Yeon-woo. Thank you."
We smiled at each other and escaped the swarming crowd through a path created by the police.