Ch.114Chapter 5. You’re Not Ready Yet. (4)

S-class villain and demon, ‘Haftod’ has disappeared.

“Find the ‘Geumbudo-sa’! She definitely disappeared this way!”

The hero who suddenly appeared like a magical girl, Geumbudo-sa, captured Haftod with a red rope and abducted him.

What exactly is that woman’s identity?

I’ll figure it out gradually, but for now, the immediate priority is capturing Haftod.

It’s been a while since a demon became S-class.

Demon of Solitude.

Demon of Rage.

A demon transformed by the explosion of inferiority about his own appearance and anger toward others’ romantic relationships.

Since he happens to be a male demon, if utilized well, he could be of great help in “demon research.”

“Move quickly! Hurry! This way leads to the forest! Spread out widely to search, and report immediately if you find anything suspicious!”

The Academy’s president personally directed the faculty, heroes, and agents mobilized to subdue the demon as they tracked Geumbudo-sa.

“We must find her! If that Geumbudo-sa is who we think she is…!”

The president swallowed the rest of his words.

“We might be able to learn about that ‘Complete Erasure’ incident!”

It wasn’t that he had inadvertently blurted out something he couldn’t tell others; rather, his words were cut off because his chest was swelling with excitement.

“President.”

“Ah, Professor Jung.”

“Are you hoping that the demon Haftod has undergone Zenros?”

“…Of course.”

The president couldn’t contain his excitement, repeatedly licking his lips at the professor’s question.

“If he appears having lost his ability, we would naturally have to work to restore his power, wouldn’t we?”

“Do you think his ability has been transferred to someone else?”

“Yes. That’s what I think. Losing an ability isn’t simply the ability disappearing, but rather being stolen by someone. Why, didn’t we both see cartoons like that when we were young?”

“I’m not quite from that generation.”

“Hmph.”

The president frowned, but soon his face lit up at news from his Taegeuk Watch.

[President. A search party found Haftod in a clearing. He’s a white-haired human, not a demon. It seems he underwent Zenros.]

“Hmm…! Did they check if any magical energy can be sensed by deploying an ability user?”

[I checked personally. I couldn’t sense anything. He has definitely lost his ability.]

“I see…. Ah, how unfortunate. To lose his ability…!”

The president wiped tears with the back of his hand, his eyes reddening.

“The Academy doesn’t abandon students because of accidents. Our ‘Foundation’ will take care of Haftod. Seal his limbs as a precaution, then move him to intensive care to monitor his condition. If we confirm he won’t rampage anymore, we can minimize his restraints.”

[Understood. If he’s going to the Foundation, will he undergo ‘rehabilitation training’ as well?]

“Of course. He may have lost his ability, but isn’t there a possibility of restoring it?”

Though it’s purely in the realm of possibility.

“The Academy doesn’t give up on its students. This place, hehe, is where we nurture the talent that will lead our country’s future.”

[Understood. I’ll proceed as directed.]

“Good. Thank you for your hard work.”

The president covered his Taegeuk Watch with his hand.

As soon as the call ended, he pulled out a white paper box labeled “Hallasan” from his pocket.

“I really hope to meet Geumbudo-sa. And if she doesn’t eliminate demon abilities but rather steals abilities from those who have become demons….”

Snicker.

“If abilities become like objects, wouldn’t it be possible to legally transfer ownerless property to others through proper procedures? And thus, if even non-ability users could become ability users.”

The president’s eyes were shining like a child’s.

“This country will become even stronger.”

* * *

[A demon’s heart is somewhat different from what you extracted. But they’re the same in that a demon’s ability is something that comes out of the demon itself.]

“So it’s just a difference of whether it’s the heart or some other part?”

[That’s right. The extraction method may differ, but whether it’s immersion or hand drip, coffee is still coffee in the end.]

“Suddenly talking about coffee makes this feel strange. Do you become an ability user by drinking coffee?”

[It’s coffee that makes you an ability user when you drink it. With a predetermined ability.]

In this world, abilities are the foundation of imagination.

[Until now, there have been no official cases of abilities becoming objects in this world. But just as you’re stealing demons’ abilities and maintaining them in a form like ether clumps, there are those who research demons and seize their powers.]

Ymir thought she could steal abilities from demons, had enough magical power to realize it, and her will reached the laws of the world, allowing her to extract abilities from demons.

[If stealing abilities is possible, wouldn’t removing abilities also be possible?]

“Is that the Goblin’s club?”

[It’s one of the Goblin’s various abilities. It would be troublesome if you asked how it’s possible. Because….]

“It’s possible, so you use it, right?”

[You understand well.]

The same goes for me.

[I can erase abilities. It overlaps with your ability somewhat, but this is an ability I’ve had from the beginning.]

“How is it possible?”

[It’s a company secret, so I can’t explain in detail. But if there’s a condition, it’s that it’s possible when an ability is in a form that belongs to no one, like this.]

He subtly leaked information.

If Ymir is perceptive, she would surely notice.

“……So you’re saying there are such ability users? In the Syndicate?”

As expected.

Ymir is quick-witted.

It took a little time, but she didn’t take hours to reach a conclusion—she immediately caught my intention.

“When you took Ermina’s ability, I thought you were making it your own. I was going to watch and see what you’d do. But Goblin, you eliminated Ermina’s ability in front of everyone. I had my suspicions even then, but now I’m sure.”

[Ermina. That feels like quite a while ago.]

It hasn’t even been a month, but so much has happened since then that it feels like a long time has passed.

[It feels like talking about something from long ago. Strange.]

“The world moves quickly, and many things happen just as fast. I’m just bringing up now what I didn’t mention then. And thanks to that…I’ve been able to confirm it again. And also.”

Ymir turned to face me with a serious expression.

“I also learned about the demon’s heart. Thanks to that, I’ve realized again. My ability might seem special, but there could be others with abilities like mine.”

[That’s a good mindset.]

“I guess there could be multiple ability users like Goblin in the world? Merging with other ability users, pulling out Rider suits, erasing abilities.”

[Of course.]

After all, the abilities I manifest with my Goblin club are all based on subculture from Earth, another world.

“It seems there’s much more in the world that I don’t know.”

[It’s the dark world that Platinum Sun doesn’t know about. And that dark world is even more viscous and bizarre than you think, and if they learn that Platinum Sun’s ability can turn demon abilities into matter, they’ll immediately come after you.]

“So non-ability users can become ability users?”

[Yes. Whether it’s Zenros or whatever, Geumbudo-sa has revealed herself. And she eliminated the ability from the frog demon.]

Human thinking is diverse.

And it’s not just ability users who think.

[Non-ability users can reach such conclusions too. Was the ability eliminated, or was it stolen? If stolen, is it transferred directly, or is it stored in some form before being moved?]

“The background for thinking that is….”

[Countless creative works came out even before 2000, and there were settings that matched exactly. Some are still being serialized today.]

Demon’s seed.

Demon’s heart.

Considering that seeds grow well and eventually bear fruit, it would be more appropriate to use the word “fruit,” but not using it directly might be out of respect for not referring to bad things.

‘Thanks to that, I’m watching well.’

The older brother isn’t executed and fights alongside his younger brother.

Whether it’s because the worldview changed around 2000 or because abilities actually exist, many stories unfold quite differently from what I knew.

The protagonist’s brother dies in a boys’ magazine that gives children dreams and hope?

Ability users reading manga might go berserk from culture shock.

[The world will try to capture you to create demon hearts. They’ll start investigating you everywhere to figure out your identity. The world won’t let you off easily; rather, they’ll begin to dig into you persistently.]

“…I’m prepared for that.”

[Really?]

“Yes. No matter what unfair treatment…is ‘unfair treatment’ the right term? Whatever adversity and hardship comes my way, I can overcome it. If my identity is revealed, I’ll just live while hiding that I’m an Academy student.”

[That’s positive. Being pursued by the world—you won’t understand until you experience it directly.]

“The S-class villain Goblin is living well now, isn’t he?”

[It only looks like I’m living well.]

Having to remove the Taegeuk Watch whenever I go out, worrying about being naked when my transformation ends, always worrying about magical power being depleted.

“That’s enough for me. And as for my resolve as a hero? That kind of thing….”

Ymir approached me with a smirk.

“Was much harder than resolving to break into the house of a man I like all by myself.”

[……Can you even compare those two?]

“Goblin doesn’t understand because he’s a man. The mindset of a woman entering a man’s room alone.”

With her back to the sea, Ymir leaned her upper body toward me and grinned.

“If I’m resolved to steal Goblin as a woman against the Syndicate, doesn’t that mean I can tell you to take on the world as much as you want?”

I thought she wasn’t ready.

I was wrong.

[You were already a prepared hero.]

“Both as a hero. And….”

Grin.

“As a woman.”