It Was Too Much Money to Refuse
It Was Too Much Money to Refuse
[SET. Seven-Star Step Kick (七星步脚).]
I couldn’t afford the slightest slack. Every last one of them was a star-bearer far more seasoned than me.
Their physical specs matched or exceeded mine, and their level of mastery was on an entirely different plane.
‘The Belt’s assist alone won’t cut it.’
No matter how perfectly the Belt showed me what I needed to do and what the enemy would do, I was still the one executing it.
Having a map doesn’t keep everyone from getting lost.
Catching the fine details the map couldn’t show was a skill belonging to the person reading it.
I was still inexperienced.
I knew that.
‘Fuck, but that doesn’t mean I can just leave them alone.’
Strangely, I felt none of the fear I’d known when facing magical girls. I felt no pity toward them, either. No grand sense of mission.
All I had was fury and killing intent.
The first step carried the fury.
The second step carried the killing intent.
The steps after that repeated them both.
As the fury and killing intent gradually intensified, Starlight coiled around my right foot.
For now, I was aiming for the one who looked easiest: the Corrupted Magical Girl, Virgo.
If I had to find a reason beyond her being the easiest target—
Because this body’s—Han Jae-jung’s—ex-lover was the one who’d killed Blue Sirius. In the original story, anyway.
“You.”
Crrrrack! The final step. The ground where I’d stood caved in completely.
The earth split in the shape of the Big Dipper, and a sharp blue-green Starlight gushed up from within like solar flares.
That luminescence, like an aurora, latched onto my leg like chains without the slightest hesitation.
When I took another step, my leg sliced through the air. So it couldn’t be called a step. I even turned the very gravity trying to pull this leg down into a weapon.
“Have you ever seen a star?”
And I brought it down on Virgo’s head.
A one-legged drop kick.
KWA-GWAGWAGWANG—!
An overwhelming mass gave rise to a deafening roar, tremors, and a gale of wind.
[Seven-Star Step Kick (七星步脚) manifestation successful. Replication Rate 30%.]
With this much power, it’s only thirty percent? The technique itself was a success.
However.
“Haha, you really are impatient.”
The announcement that a monster had been eliminated didn’t follow.
“...Contradiction (矛盾).”
“You even knew my name? I’m honored.”
He’d risen up from exactly the opposite point and demonstrated a kick of precisely identical force, canceling out the Seven-Star Step Kick.
This was why I hadn’t attacked him first.
The monster who used Scutum: Contradiction.
“What’s more, you didn’t just call me by my constellation, Scutum—you addressed me properly by name. I’m moved.”
I landed back on the ground and dusted myself off.
Damn it, my leg was shaking.
Looks like taking my own attack right back at that level puts a fair strain on me, too.
“Manners matter. Calling someone by the right name is basic mutual respect.”
“What’s that bastard yapping about, Mr. Balanced-Fetish?”
“This person here is demonstrating a perfect example right now. An example of what not to do, that is. So much for saving you.”
I shifted my gaze and looked at his leg.
“Hm? Ah... this... yes. This is... haha, embarrassing. You got me good. Your strength is every bit as fierce as your temper.”
He stammered and laughed sheepishly.
He was exactly like me. A leg trembling violently, unable to find its balance.
So my power does work on these guys, after all.
The problem is, that’s all it does—just work.
“It must be unpleasant to look at. I’ll correct it right away.”
As soon as he said that, his leg healed.
“Hmm. Copying durability as well really isn’t efficient. Don’t worry. This was simply a performance to demonstrate my ability. If the day ever comes when I fight you for real, I’ll show you my true intent and copy only the force of your Starlight.”
Contradiction.
When the ultimate shield and the ultimate spear clash, which one wins?
When two essentially identical forces collide, who will be the victor?
Resolving that question was his goal.
His goal was his name, and everything.
Fitting that goal, his ability was exceedingly simple.
“Haha, of course, I should hope that day never comes. But you never know what might happen.”
Copying and wielding the power of an opponent he’d defined as his enemy.
“It seems that low-IQ bitch misspoke and caused a misunderstanding, so I’ll state our purpose once more.”
The monster hidden in the shadows behind him spoke up.
“My purpose is not something as crude as world destruction. Nor is the imbecile’s, for that matter.”
“It’s all gonna be destroyed anyway!!!”
“I really wish you’d shut the hell up. Anyway.”
He extended a hand from the darkness.
“What we desire from you is nothing much. It’s not to kill anyone. It’s not to plunge the world into chaos. We merely want a small quantity of the Star Fragments you’ve been gathering. A very small quantity.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Heh-heh, playing dumb? It’s already been discovered that you have the ability to absorb Starlight from the monsters you defeat.”
I’m collecting Star Fragments? What the—
‘Ah.’
Those Star Fragments that scattered every time I defeated a monster. Did they not just dissipate into thin air?
The quests.
If there was a price, it was only natural that there’d be a reward, too.
If that reward turned out to be the Star Fragments produced by the monsters I’d defeated—
‘An increase in power? Simple, I like it.’
But I can’t even handle the Seven Stars, my own original power. When would I ever get around to using all of that?
“Our proposal is exceedingly simple. A proposal for a Transaction.”
In the hand extended from the darkness, a set of Scales bloomed.
“Hand over those Star Fragments. In exchange, we’ll give you money.”
“You think I’d cave for something like that?”
“We’ll give you seven billion won.”
“...Oh.”
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t tempted for a moment. It was the one thing I needed most right now, and an amount that would make any human’s mouth water.
“Too small. Did you stuff everything you’ve ever earned into your own gut?”
“Yeah! That’s nothing!”
“I believe this amount is more than enough...”
“Who bends their convictions for seven billion won?”
Wait, was that aimed at me? Unsettled, I looked at Contradiction. He waved his hand as if to tell me not to worry.
“Rest assured. I have no intention of buying your efforts with such a pittance.”
“These bastards have never earned money in their lives, so they’ve completely lost touch with reality...”
“Shut your mouth and add another zero.”
“...Understood.”
Countless gold bars piled onto the Golden Scales in his hand.
“Seven hundred billion.”
An amount I’d thought I’d never be offered in my entire life was now dangled right before my eyes. It was too much money to refuse.
“Don’t misunderstand. I, too, believe a sum of this magnitude is a reasonable loss. A necessary sacrifice for the sake of even greater gains.”
My body trembled. With that kind of money, I could live in comfort for the rest of my life without a single worry.
There was no real loss for me. Just a bunch of Star Fragments I didn’t even know I had and couldn’t properly use—fragments that weren’t even a single star.
All I had to do was hand them over.
“...I’ll ask again.”
A power at this level wouldn’t even strengthen their forces. It was C-rank, B-rank monster power at best.
I understood that.
That wasn’t the only thing I understood. I understood their nature as well.
I knew the outcome they’d bring about to achieve their goals.
What they were holding out to me was too much money to refuse.
“Even if your goal isn’t destruction, what if destruction is brought about in the process of pursuing that goal? Will you stop?”
But I’d succeeded in refusing! It was a feat accomplished by ruminating on all their evil deeds and hypnotizing myself.
As if understanding my answer, the hand extended from the darkness withdrew the Scales.
“There’s no way that would happen.”
Having withdrawn the Scales, he revealed himself from within the darkness. A monster clad in golden armor standing well over three meters tall.
Libra.
Can the sacrifice of the few be justified for the happiness of the overwhelming majority?
A monster whose purpose was to find the answer to that question.
I knew. Their goal wasn’t something as simple as destroying the world.
Their goal was to resolve the dilemma they themselves carried.
To find that answer, they would readily treat the destruction of the world as nothing more than a means to an end.
“If destruction proves to be a necessary sacrifice, then it can’t be helped.”
“If it’s necessary for the ultimate spear and the ultimate shield to clash, then I’ll gladly accept a little destruction. Regrettably, of course.”
“Destruction’s coming anyway, so what’s the big deal?”
Therefore, because I couldn’t know what sort of butterfly effect handing over these tiny Star Fragments might set off—
I couldn’t take their hand.
“Everything you’ve just said is precisely why I cannot cooperate with you in the slightest. That is my answer.”
Contradiction asked:
“Why? You’re poor right now. Struggling for money to the point you can’t afford a decent meal. Unlike magical girls or other insignificant monsters, we do not harbor ill will toward you. As you yourself have said, even if human society were to be destroyed, it probably wouldn’t pose much of a threat to you, would it?”
I detected no sarcasm. Very fitting for an S-rank monster who prioritized self-actualization above all else.
“Why? Why are you antagonistic toward us?”
He was purely curious about my intentions.
“Because I’m not a monster. I’m a human.”
And so I answered him just as purely.
“Because I know how much harm you cause to humans. Your purpose is a sincere question and your very sense of self. To achieve it, you’ll constantly experiment using humans. And since magical girls will try to stop you, you’ll kill them if they get in your way. If they seem useful, you’ll experiment on them and then kill them.”
What I actually meant was, ‘Are you insane? I know damn well you bastards are going to kill all the magical girls and wreck the world. Like hell I’d ever help you.’ But I phrased it a lot more politely.
“Have you ever seen a star? Have you ever seen the light the magical girls give off? It’s obvious that beauty will vanish, so there’s no way in hell I’d ever help you.”
What I actually meant was, ‘Why the hell would I be nice to the bastards who are going to kill all those pretty magical girls?’ But again, I phrased it much more politely.
Contradiction finally nodded as if it made sense now.
“I see. So that’s it. You are an existence that is neither human nor monster, nor even a magical girl. The one who must establish your identity is none other than yourself. You have chosen the path of humanity. Very well. I will respect your will.”
No sooner had Contradiction finished speaking than the eyes of the Corrupted Magical Girl, Virgo, were engulfed in a murky Starlight.
“So what, then? Kill him? This guy even kicked me. The negotiation’s failed. We should kill him, right?”
“Hmm, that would be the proper course of action.”
“However, just as your will is respected, I would ask that you respect ours as well. Since you have declared your will to actively obstruct us, we can no longer leave you be.”
Starlight swelled. Thick and terrifying Starlight. It was different from that of a magical girl. Different, too, from the monsters I’d faced so far.
A Starlight of overwhelming mass, like the deep sea.
Pressure. And beyond pressure, terror.
A terror I had never once felt in my entire life.
The dread of facing death.
As the endorphins that had sprung from fury and killing intent cooled, terror filled the empty space. I realized all over again just how insane what I’d been doing really was.
I retreated a few steps backward for a moment. Instinct made me do it.
‘Fuck...’
Grudgingly, I steadied my stance. I clenched my fist and angled my arm so I could strike at any moment.
“Hmm... but at this rate, the balance won’t be right.”
At that moment, Contradiction, who’d been looking around at both sides, started walking toward me.
Without hesitation, he stood to my right and transformed the shield he’d been holding into a spear.
“Good. Now it’s an equal fight. Do you mind if we start first?”
“...What are you playing at?”
“Ah, don’t get the wrong idea. It’s not a favor.”
A chill ran down my spine. I felt goosebumps prick my arm.
A different terror than before washed over me. This was fear of the unknown.
“It’s for my own satisfaction. You see, an unbalanced fight is terribly uncomfortable. It’s no fun, either. When two equal forces collide, who will be the winner? Isn’t that a fascinating topic, just to think about?”
Crazy bastard.
They say you feel a primal terror toward someone you can’t understand, and that description fit perfectly.
How the hell were those pupil-less blue lenses gleaming like that?
“Now then! Let us fight with vigor!”
“That lunatic is completely killing the mood.”
“For once, I agree. Someone get this guy out of here.”
“Huh? Why? Equal combat is the only true combat. It is the expression of my self and my will...”
“Enough.”
Libra waved his enormous hand, erasing the dark space. The darkness moved in reverse from when I’d been invited. The shadowy space was pushed back behind me. Those insane monsters in it gradually receded from my field of vision, as well.
“Ah, it seems today is not the opportune moment for battle, after all.”
And even as they faded from sight, Contradiction, who was closest to me, never stopped talking. He looked at me and said:
“I respect that you chose the path of humanity. But being human doesn’t mean you lack purpose. What is the purpose of your power? What do you want to use your strength for? Simple defense for survival? Hmm... that’s dreadfully hollow. And a bit too luxurious.”
He kept those blue lenses fixed on me until the very end.
“I shall look forward to discovering your purpose.”
And just like that, all the darkness vanished from my sight, and what met my eyes were the night, the road, and the stars.