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# Villain Disguises Himself as a Hero (1)
Rustle.
Even after digging through the ground, I couldn't find the daily necessities and medicine I'd been told about at the
black market. I kept digging deeper into the useless soil until all I found was damp mud.
"Damn it."
A curse slipped out on its own. I'd paid five million won for this information at the black market. I really shouldn't
have bought it from some villain I'd never seen before just because I was desperate. If I'd known this would happen, I
would've used that money to buy food instead.
With a sense of emptiness, I plopped down on the dirt. I'd spent weeks doing nothing but running away and hadn't been
able to eat properly. At this rate, I'd starve to death.
Grrr—
Driven by hunger, I began digging up roots in the middle of the mountain. It wasn't unusual. When you're constantly on
the run to avoid being tracked down by the government and heroes, not being able to eat properly is commonplace. But
this was the first time I'd ever been this hungry.
Pfwak—
When I pulled out a root buried in the ground, a large root covered in insects came out with it. I had no idea whether
it was wild ginseng, a sweet potato, or kudzu, but I figured that anything that went into my mouth was basically the
same, so I shut my eyes tight and shoved it into my mouth.
Chew, chew.
Something like juice seemed to come out, and a rich, earthy taste filled my tongue. How should I describe it? Hmm. Yeah,
exactly! It tasted like chewing on a rubber tire cut straight off a car that had just driven through a mud puddle.
"Blegh."
I forced half of it down my throat and spat the remaining scraps onto the ground. The moment I looked at the scraps
lying there, I felt nauseous. It made me realize once again that I'd just swallowed something that looked that
disgusting.
"Kang Do-hyeok."
"Huh?"
I answered without thinking. When I looked behind me, I saw sharp features, a square jaw, and a heavily muscled body.
The hero whom every citizen of South Korea knew had finally found me.
"I finally found you."
"You managed to find your way here."
I didn't even have the strength to stand, but I couldn't greet such a precious guest who had gone through all that
trouble to come all the way to this mountain while sitting down. Using what little superhuman strength I had left, I
staggeringly got to my feet.
"Class 1 villain, Kang Do-hyeok. I am arresting you."
"Why did it have to be you?"
"Because I'm the only person in South Korea who can catch you."
What was the name of the burly man standing in front of me again...?
Anyway, that guy was Absolute, the hero currently ranked number one in South Korea.
For the past few months, he'd been desperately trying to catch me.
"If you come quietly... I won't use violence."
"You heroes always say that."
"Because that's justice and order."
"...Yeah. Justice. Order. You always go on about that and then end up getting hit from behind, don't you?"
To be honest, I had wanted to meet him too. But I hadn't wanted to meet him while I was in this weakened state. The
timing couldn't have been worse. I wanted to have a serious battle with the hero who represented South Korea. Didn't
every man imagine something like that at least once? How strong am I, really?
I'd heard so much about how strong Absolute was that I could practically hear it ringing in my ears. So I wanted to
fight him at least once. But now, weeks had passed without me getting enough nutrients. I was suffering from all sorts
of symptoms, including exhaustion, anemia, vomiting, diarrhea, and so on.
"Uh. Um... Can I be honest?"
"I don't enjoy conversations with villains."
"You're strict. If it's okay... could you come back another time? Or at least, could you give me something to eat?"
"What?"
"I really haven't eaten properly for the past few weeks."
"What... exactly are you saying?"
"I do want to find out who's stronger between the two of us..."
At my excuse, Absolute looked at me as though he were looking at a cockroach crawling across the ground. For a hero to
look at a person as though he were worth less than a bug. Villains and heroes really were all the same.
"Looks like you've misunderstood something, Kang Do-hyeok. Do you think we met for some childish fight like that?"
"No. I was just... saying it."
I let out a deep sigh. I was about to fight him, but I didn't even have the strength to lift my arms. Even when I was
healthy, I wouldn't have been able to predict who would win against him... but in my current state, the outcome was
obvious without even trying.
"Let's not waste words."
"Kang Do-hyeok, I am arresting you on countless charges, including murder, theft, assault, demonstrations, terrorism...
and many others."
"Ah, right. Didn't I tell you? I have no intention of being arrested. If you want to catch me, you'll have to kill me."
At my warning, Absolute's expression gradually hardened. Still, I was glad I got to see that irritated look on his face
one last time.
"Then here I go."
Boom!
An enormous collision.
After that, I don't remember much.
I vaguely remember struggling desperately, and the last scene I remember was Absolute casually walking toward me after I
collapsed, covered in blood.
And then everything seemed to go black.
But.
I definitely should have died.
Yet.
I was now standing inside the elementary school classroom I had attended as a child.
"Kang Do-hyeok?"
"..."
I looked around. Vague memories began coming back to me. I'd taken classes here.
"Kang Do-hyeok~?"
"...Yes."
"Why are you just standing there spacing out? You have to give your presentation."
"...What?"
That's right. She was my homeroom teacher when I was in third grade. As I remembered, she was a teacher who always put
her students first and welcomed them warmly. However, she was also the poor teacher who eventually couldn't handle my
terrible personality and submitted her resignation to receive psychiatric treatment.
If I remembered correctly, what was written on the paper I was holding for my presentation was about my dream for the
future. Of course, I'd said something shocking enough to stun my classmates, their parents who had come to observe the
class, and the teacher.
"Now, Do-hyeok, what do you want to become when you grow up?"
"...I..."
That's right. I remembered. I had loudly shouted that I wanted to become a villain, then laughed as I watched my parents
and classmates react in shock. Back then, I was immature and didn't think about anything.
Rather than a hero who was so rigid and constantly went on about justice and order, or a hunter who had to risk his life
to save the world from monsters, villains who were free and could obtain whatever they wanted by doing whatever it took
seemed much cooler to me.
"Do-hyeok?"
"...I want to become a hero!"
Until now, I'd lived as a Class 1 villain wanted by the authorities. In a way, I'd reached the pinnacle of villainy. So,
was I free? No. Or could I obtain whatever I wanted? No.
Instead, I died of malnutrition after spending my miserable life doing nothing but pushing my body to its limits,
without even being able to use my strength one last time. So now, I no longer had the stupid idea of becoming a villain.
Instead, I'd realized that being a hero was a much better profession. Your retirement was secured, there was a
cafeteria, and although there were some restrictions, you could act far more freely than a villain.
Well, my heart might be that of a villain down to the bone, but if someone who thought he had died was given another
chance like this?
Of course I'd choose being a hero over being a villain.
"Good. Then why does Do-hyeok want to become a hero?"
Why did I want to become a hero? The question was so simple that I almost snorted.
"Because..."
Wasn't the answer something everyone here knew?
"Because I can eat school lunch."
"Huh?"
I could hear whispers spreading around me. Of course. Nobody could have expected such a perfectly straightforward
answer. Could anyone have imagined a child wanting to become a hero for a reason like this? Was this answer a little too
precocious?
Ding-dong-dang-dong—
"Ah. Haha. All right. Since the class bell has rung for now~ Class president!"
"Yes! Attention! Salute!"
"Thank you!"
And so, the class came to an end. When I looked at the full-length mirror set up at the back of the classroom, I could
confirm that I really had the appearance of an elementary school student. I had no idea how it had happened, but it
seemed I'd traveled back in time. I'd occasionally heard stories like this among villains. At first, I'd simply thought
they were people lost in delusions. But something like this had actually happened to me.
"Do-hyeok!"
A classmate approached me warmly. Since my dream was now to become a hero rather than a villain, I answered in the
brightest and warmest voice I could manage. I even added a smile, though it felt awkward.
"What?"
"Eek! Th-that... d-do you want to go eat together?"
"You! What did you just say? Huh?! Say it! What did you say?!"
"Waaah!"
It was unbelievable. Ignoring my classmate who suddenly started crying for some reason I couldn't understand, I
hurriedly clutched my pounding heart and dashed toward the cafeteria. How long had I yearned for this moment? Wasn't
this the very moment I'd desperately longed for back when I had been crawling around mountains eating bugs and chewing
on mysterious roots?
"Huff. Huff."
Maybe because I'd returned to a child's body, my heart had shrunk along with it, and I was out of breath. But that
didn't matter. This familiar, savory scent filled with memories. The distinctive smell of the cafeteria.
Ah. How I had missed this smell.
"School lunch."
A system where, under the guidance of highly educated nutritionists, you could eat plentiful meals containing balanced
amounts of carbohydrates, protein, fat, vitamins, and dietary fiber. If there was one greatest invention in the world,
it had to be the school lunch system.
"Ew. I hate kimchi."
"I hate squid soybean paste soup too."
The children's complaints could be heard, but I paid them no attention. Just looking at the menu in front of me made me
feel like I could cry at any moment. How long had I waited for this moment?
I reverently received the food onto my tray and sat down. The clear squid soybean paste soup glistening beautifully and
the plump grains of rice immediately caught my eye. Just as I was about to replenish myself with as many nutrients as
possible before the food got cold—
"Hey, you're the kid without a mom."
"Heh heh."
Yes. If I had to name one of the reasons I'd become a villain, I could say it was because of people like this. He was
the one who had teased and bullied me throughout my school years because I'd said I wanted to become a villain.
"Hey. Are you ignoring me?"
"Yeah."
"WHAT? You little bastard. Are you trying to die?"
Back when we were elementary school students, I remembered him as an elite who had awakened his ability at a very young
age. Because of that, he was under the delusion that he was superior and would pick on people he didn't like. I was his
main target.
Back then, I thought he hated me because I wanted to become a villain... but it turned out he simply didn't like me.
"What the!"
He raised his hand and swung his fist toward me, but I grabbed his arm.
"Let go."
Crackle—
Starting from the wrist I had grabbed and extending up to his elbow, his arm shriveled up as though it had turned into a
mummy. He screamed in terror.
"I told you to listen from the beginning."
"Aaaah! Wh-what is this?!"
For an elementary schooler's mind, my ability must have been horrifyingly grotesque. The magic power I'd absorbed from
him through Absorption Art was now filling my body.
I hadn't known this before I traveled back in time, but during my days as a villain, I'd discovered that the Absorption
Art I'd awakened had actually existed since I was very young. Which meant that while this guy thought I was an ordinary
person, I had already been capable of using Absorption Art long before he awakened his own ability.
I simply hadn't been aware of it.
"Waaah."
"A-are you okay? I-I'll go get the teacher!"
The boy who was crying beside him, apparently considering himself a friend, comforted him and said he would bring the
teacher.
I smirked, finished the rest of my school lunch, picked up my empty tray, and casually left the area. By nature, someone
like that should probably be killed, but I was no longer going to be a villain. I was going to become a hero.
I'd spent so long as a villain that my habits were ingrained down to my bones, but what of it?
Still, I felt a little uneasy.
Me, who had lived my entire life as a villain, becoming a hero.
Didn't it feel like I was secretly getting hired as a hero while pretending to be one?
"Ah... it's warm."
My stomach was full, and the sky was clear. It couldn't get any better than this.
The sound of wailing was still coming from the cafeteria, but that mummified arm would gradually swell back up as it
recovered its magic power, so he would be fine. After all, someone whose dream was to become a hero couldn't go around
harming innocent citizens.
"Maybe I... have a talent for being a hero."