episode_0086
by fnovelpiaThe shabby interior of the house was the height of squalor.
The only lighting was a small light bulb.
There is no proper furniture.
Of course, there were no amenities like a kitchen or bathroom.
This is literally the original form of a house.
It was just a shelter with a roof to avoid the rain and snow.
“Hey, how many years have you been living in a place like this?”
“Hmm! About 4 years!”
“Eh… … . Then even after becoming a hero… … .”
Team leader Jang Se-hee covered his mouth in surprise.
I also found it quite surprising that I had lived in a place like this for four years, but I kept my feelings to myself and continued asking questions.
“There’s also a place like the agency dormitory, so why don’t you go there?”
“Hmm! I’m telling you, it’s a nuisance! Hahaha! ”
Nuisance?
Agency people?
Or yourself?
“If I had to say, it would be me!”
As if he had seen right through my thoughts.
“I’m going to sit on a worn-out wooden box that serves as a chair,” answered Masquerade, crossing his arms.
Well, if everything is so noisy, it might be a bit of a nuisance to the people living together…
“Anyway, today you came here not to investigate my private life, but to help catch Ruina, right!?”
“That’s right.”
“So when can we start cooperating?”
“If it’s cooperation, it’s possible from now on.”
Team leader Jang Se-hee took over the baton from me and spoke on my behalf.
“Then!!”
“But.”
Masquerade suddenly got up and was about to leave, but Team Leader Jang Se-hee stopped him.
“I don’t even know where Ruina is. What are you planning to do?”
It was a question that had to be asked.
In the past few months, Ruina has only appeared twice.
One of them appeared without anyone knowing, so it was effectively only one time.
“… … … … .”
When asked that question, Masquerade folded his arms and remained silent.
And then thud.
The once lively person sat back down quietly on the wooden box.
“Eeeeum… … .”
It’s true that Masquerade is inspired by Ruina’s abilities.
For some reason, whenever Ruina started working, Masquerade would always come.
But on the other hand, if Ruina remained silent, Masquerade seemed unaware of where she was.
Even now, just silently.
Smoke was slowly being released from between the gaps in the body… … .
“Huh, huh huh!? Smoke! Smoke! ”
He woke up with a start and started slapping the Masquerade.
Contrary to my excitement, Masquerade appeared very calm despite the smoke emanating from his body.
“Ah, don’t worry. Hooo… … .”
Masquerade took a deep breath.
Then, the faint smoke gradually subsided.
“It’s a side effect of my ability, you know. Sorry I couldn’t explain it to you in advance.”
“, side effects of ability?”
It was a side effect of the masked hero that I had never heard of before.
It would have been natural since there was no information to begin with.
“I lost myself, and when I came to my senses, I found myself with this fucking ability.”
“Fucking ability… … .”
It’s the same thing Ruina said before.
She also called her uncontrollable destructive power a begging power.
“Why can’t I take off my helmet and suit? Are you getting the idea?”
“If you take off that helmet and suit… … . will your abilities go wild?”
“Huh, that’s right. It’s an ability that builds up heat in your body the more you use it. And depending on your mood, it can explode like this. It’s a really fucking ability.”
“Ahh… … .”
So that’s why the water that was so wet evaporated in an instant.
Masquerade of the Holy Light.
His ability is the speed of his body like starlight.
I knew that the secret to achieving instantaneous speeds that were impossible for a human body was naturally an ability, but I never thought that there would be an uncontrollable weakness like Ruina’s…
“This helmet and suit have excellent body temperature regulation effects. I don’t know who put them on me.”
“Huh? Isn’t that what you wore after becoming a hero?”
“I was like this from the moment I opened my eyes in the forest. Thanks to that, I caught the eye of the current boss and became a hero as if I was kidnapped.”
Well, with that kind of appearance, anyone can’t help but be interested… … .
It was a glimpse of Masquerade’s past that I heard unintentionally.
By the way, he had gained powers without knowing it, and he was even equipped with equipment to control those powers.
“But the effects of the suit alone have their limits, as they are now! Sitting under the waterfall here all the time is my daily routine and hobby! Hahaha! ”
I wonder if my body temperature has gone down yet.
The Masquerade bellowed again.
“Over there. Masquerade. If you can catch Ruina, of course I will cooperate.”
“Hmm! That’s a good attitude!”
“But before that. Can I ask you something?”
“Anything!”
I took a deep breath.
If the worst answer comes out here, it’s going to be a huge headache, but I had to ask here.
Because we can’t just do something like this without confirming anything.
“If you catch Ruina, what will you do?”
“… … … … Huh?”
Masquerade looked as if asking if that was the question.
No, to be exact, it’s still just a weaponized metal helmet mask, but it felt like it.
“Of course we caught the villain, so we should let him quietly face the judgment of the law!”
“No. I’m not talking about the hero, but Mr. Masquerade’s own thoughts. He said he was trying to find his lost self through Ruina.”
“Hmm. Right. Ruina’s ability is a strange ability that clears the fog in my head.”
Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.
Okay, this is where the game is decided.
My heart is also at its climax now, and I am jumping with all my might.
If Masquerade doesn’t show a hostile stance towards Ruina, the story can end peacefully.
If I can lure Ruina out with a little lie here… … .
“Hero Handler. It’s like he knows when Ruina will show up?”
“!!?”
Damn it. I lost my player.
“My guess is that Ruina is currently in the metropolitan area. No, I think she is in the capital city of Seoul.”
That was correct.
Well, that’s because we live together.
“And judging by her recent actions, there must be an invisible helper helping Ruina.”
The ensuing Masquerade’s brutal murder.
Team leader Jang Se-hee, who was in an assistant position, shrugged her shoulders.
“Hero Handler. I think if I act with you, Ruina will definitely appear. I don’t know why.”
“… … If you catch Ruina, what are you going to do with her?”
I stupidly ended up asking the same question I had asked before instead of refuting it.
“Hahahaha! That question again! That’s what I want to do if I catch Ruina!”
Bam!
Masquerade rose vigorously from the wooden box.
Before he knew it, white smoke was once again rising from between the gaps in his suit.
“You will find me. The real me who is trapped in this cold prison.”
Turning his back to us, the hero declared softly.
* * *
“In the end, it ended up feeling like a blur… … .”
It was a sigh-filled remark from Team Leader Jang Se-hee as she carefully walked down the hill wearing heels.
After we finished talking, we neither said we would collaborate nor said we would not.
He was returning from his residence.
“We can’t just let them meet until we’re sure Masquerade is completely harmless to Ruina.”
“That’s true, but… …. No matter how I look at it, it seems like Masquerade has indirectly noticed our identity.”
“How can the National Intelligence Service not do that part?”
“No, I’ll try.”
I wonder if I can really believe it… … .
[Yo, handler.]
“Huh?”
A young voice suddenly entered my head.
[Ex Machina?]
[Yeah. Are you disappointed that I don’t have a girlfriend?]
[I was more surprised than disappointed… … .]
It seemed like Ruina had lent me her earrings.
I heard that Ruina spoke to her in this way last time instead of me.
[How did things go with that guy?]
[I guess you could say it feels a bit vague.]
[As expected. That hero is really weird.]
Are you saying that, you, a hero whose age is unknown and whose face is never shown? … .
I tried hard not to send that thought out loud.
[Anyway, while you were out and about, I did some research on this side. There was only one route.]
[One route?]
[It is said that there was only one girl who was transferred from a certain convent to a censored place.]
[Censored location… …?]
[No matter how hard I tried to find it, there was no information at all. If there are no traces to this extent, I guess it must be intentional censorship.]
I glanced at Team Leader Jang Se-hee.
“Next time you come, you should wear loafers… … .”
She was still having a hard time getting down the hill.
At least it seemed clear that it had nothing to do with this woman or her followers.
[So did you find any meaningful information there?]
[Should I say it is significant? Should I say it is a sure thing?]
A convicted felon.
If Ex Machina can come up with such certain words, it seems like he’s made a great discovery.
What kind of information is this…?
[When you were at the lab, you said Ruina was called by the serial number RF-35?]
[Ah, that must have been it. But why?]
[I’ll send you a photo via encrypted wire. You can see it for yourself.]
Immediately after Ex Machina’s words were cut off.
Buzz! The cell phone in my pocket vibrated.
Let’s check it out, there was a strange character made up of a combination of special characters.
And the text had a photo file attached to it.
If I didn’t know anything, I would have thought it was 100% a phishing file, but I opened the photo file right away without any suspicion.
“Huh?”
What appeared on the screen immediately was a picture with such poor contrast that it was difficult to even make out what it was.
Just by the outline, I could tell it was a picture of the Masked Hero, the Masquerade.
“Uh… … ?”
I was looking at the photo intently, and then my eyes widened.
On his shoulder, where the light and shade were reversed, I could see small letters written faintly.
“RF… … 24… … .”
It was evidence that anyone could tell that she came from the same research lab as Ruina.
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