Chapter 28: The most serious story in the world

Despite all the incredible experiences I had living as part of a hero party, I had never been kidnapped before.  

Sure, there were jokes about lords or kings groveling, begging me to come to their castles.  

But whether it was humanity’s betrayer suddenly destroying a city or thousands of demons launching a surprise attack—no one had ever managed to take me captive.  

So I never imagined it would happen.  

That in this world, where demons don’t even exist, I’d be subjected to something like kidnapping.  

“What did our little one eat to grow up so pretty?”  

“Let’s see just how much he’s grown.”  

I genuinely had no idea what was going on.  

[The goddess scratches her cheek with a blank expression.]  

[（◞‸◟）]  

[She tilts her head, puzzled by the dark mages who walked right into their own doom.]  

Even the goddess seemed to have given up trying to understand.  

*** 

Cheon Juyeon, the top student of the Combat Department, realized something was wrong around the time the first lecture began.  

The usual pillar of light that should have appeared on campus by now was nowhere to be seen.  

Puzzled, she quickly contacted her informants to track his whereabouts.  

If it had been anyone else, she might’ve brushed it off—but after witnessing that pillar of light walking to school every day for a month, its absence was alarming.  

She activated the sect’s intelligence network and, by the end of the lecture, discovered the reason:  

Shin Yuseong had boarded the wrong shuttle bus and been taken to a dark mage criminal organization’s hideout.  

“…Ah.”  

Sighing, she touched her lips and gazed out the window—far into the distance.  

Even from here, she could see the blazing pillar of light erupting violently into the sky.  

“They kidnapped that?”  

What kind of lunatics are these?  

After assessing the situation, she immediately sent a reply through the sect’s communication network:  

“Misunderstandings aside—run. Now.”  

***

“Don’t touch him carelessly. He’s going to be a very expensive product.”  

“Tch, how stingy.”  

“Hey, look at his face! When was the last time a product like this showed up in our hideout?”  

“Hmm, true.”  

Watching the dark mages lick their lips regretfully, Yuseong frowned.  

‘Should I draw my sword now…?’  

Draw it?

Not draw it?

Draw it?

Not draw it?  

He kept hesitating, but his experience as a hero held him back.  

‘If I’m gonna draw it, I might as well wait until I can wipe them all out at once.’  

‘If I wait, total annihilation angle?’  

‘Okay.’  

The ones in front of him seemed like small fry, so he decided to wait until the bigger fish arrived.  

Though, for all he knew, these were the final bosses—maybe dark mages here were just weaker than he expected.  

“The face collector’s gonna pay a fortune for this handsome mug.”  

“At least ten skins’ worth.”  

“No, no—he’s smart too. We could sell him elsewhere for even more.”  

“Hmm… is Lord Mane coming today?”  

Seemed like this world had its own dark mage big shots.  

‘Might as well take them all out while I’m at it.’  

That settled it.  

Even if it took all day, someone important would show up eventually.  

BANG—!  

Locked in a cell.  

Handcuffed with mana-suppressing shackles.  

[The goddess looks at the pitiful state of her hero and sighs in frustration.]  

‘I could break these anytime, so it’s fine, right?’  

[She agrees that’s true.]  

‘A good dark mage is a dead dark mage. Should I just wipe them all out this time?’  

[The goddess nods, saying that wouldn’t be bad.]  

As Yuseong smirked and communicated with the goddess, the dark mages watching from a distance grew puzzled.  

“Why’s he so calm?”  

“Maybe he’s frozen in fear?”  

“Or maybe he’s just got a naturally smiling face.”  

“No, that’s not just a smile—that’s deranged.”  

But since it wasn’t uncommon for prisoners in abandoned factory cells to either scream or lose their minds, they shrugged it off.  

‘Damn, he’s really good-looking.’  

‘Who’s gonna buy him?’  

Unaware of the disaster looming over them, they chatted idly.  

They were seasoned criminals—dark mages who had walked too far down this path to feel fear now.  

So they laughed and gossiped, waiting for their buyers to arrive.  

***

“No one’s laid a hand on the merchandise yet, right?”  

The first “guest” arrived around noon.  

Dressed in a tuxedo and monocle—completely out of place in an abandoned factory—with a handkerchief tucked in his pocket and a face that screamed villain, the infamous Face Collector made her entrance.  

The hideout’s dark mages tensed as she approached.  

“O-Of course!”  

“We’re always careful with merchandise these days!”  

“Besides, he’s been so docile—didn’t even resist!”  

“Hmm, but if he’s too docile, it’s no fun. A few screams would’ve been nice.”  

The Face Collector’s cruel smirk and the dark aura oozing from her made even the hideout’s leader pause.  

‘How can a dark mage be this brutal?’  

It was well-known in the underworld that she was a pervert who got excited skinning handsome men.  

‘…But he’s too handsome to kill like that.’  

Even the hideout leader, who’d be executed on the spot if caught by the government, felt a pang of pity.  

Still, he didn’t forget his role.  

Selling for the highest possible profit—that was his duty as the head of the smuggling and slave division of Black Chronicle.  

“Would you like to see the merchandise first?”  

“Yes, let’s.”  

A mock auction was scheduled for later, but showing a regular buyer a preview wasn’t a problem.  

In fact, it was better to let her stew in anticipation.  

This meeting was just a showcase.  

“Ooooh!”  

The Face Collector gasped the moment she saw the absurdly handsome man locked in the underground cell.  

Even imprisoned, he exuded boredom—paired with a flawless face, perfectly sculpted muscles, and an insane physique.  

Judging by her ecstatic expression, the bidding would far exceed expectations.  

“Listen. I’ll pay above market price. Sell him to me right now.”  

“…Excuse me?”  

The hideout leader blinked, trying to process what he’d just heard.  

‘Is this crazy bitch trying to lowball me before the auction?!’  

Even if she was a notorious dark mage, he was a high-ranking organization member too.  

And this was his hideout—if it came down to it, he wouldn’t lose to her.  

“Let’s pretend I didn’t hear that.”  

“Oh? Are you angry with me?”  

“Lord Mane is coming today. And Count Vermouth too. Do you really want to earn their resentment?”  

“Ahem. They’re coming too?”  

Not just organization executives—but even more infamous dark mages were on their way.  

The Face Collector reluctantly swallowed her greed and glanced at Yuseong again.  

He was the most handsome man she’d ever seen—maybe even in her entire life.  

And with rumors of his incredible magical talent, his value would only skyrocket.  

‘…Damn, I’m gonna have to pay a fortune for him.’  

‘If I can even afford him at all.’  

But even as a notorious dark mage, she couldn’t take on every criminal here.  

Suppressing her frustration, she shook her head and left.  

All she could do now was wait for the auction.  

*** 

After a few more eccentric guests visited the cell, time passed.  

By evening, Yuseong was getting restless.  

‘Being kidnapped isn’t as easy as I thought.’  

Just as he considered breaking out, the noise from upstairs grew louder.  

Listening closely, he caught words like “secret auction,” “notable guests,” and “big shots.”  

[The goddess holds a warm tub of popcorn, eagerly waiting for the show to start.]  

‘Hmm. Guess I’ll wait a little longer.’  

*** 

Meanwhile—  

Fresh off a mission in Africa, Combat Department Professor and S-rank Hunter Shin Arin had just landed at Incheon Airport when she received the most shocking news:  

“Yuseong didn’t come to school today?!”  

It was the most serious crisis in the world.  

Next Chapter.