Ch.35Chapter 2. Seed of the Devil (4)

The criteria for defining villain organizations are quite ambiguous.

Those who dream of world domination are villain organizations, and those who commit all kinds of illegal acts for profit are also villain organizations.

Naturally, this includes anti-government forces and forces seeking to overthrow the state.

Whether they try to overturn the national system.

Or try to expose the nation’s shameful secrets to throw the country into great chaos.

Or simply want to see the country fall.

“Hwalbindang” is an organization that seeks to expose the wrongdoings of those in power rather than being a force for national subversion.

They are people who uncover corruption among government officials and try to bring down those who engage in corruption from high positions.

They are a radical group that doesn’t hesitate to use any means necessary to achieve their goals.

This organization appeared in the original work.

From the protagonist’s perspective, they could be considered “comrades” and “allies,” but unfortunately, they’re far removed from me as a villain.

“Why did you kill Jeon Yu-bin?”

Malttugi asked while walking in a circle around me.

“Even if you could kill her anytime, couldn’t you have killed her in a better way?”

[Better way?]

“Yes. For instance… recording a video.”

Malttugi struck a ridiculous pose as if holding a camcorder.

Rustle.

As he brushed his hand over his face, his mask changed.

It was a mask resembling Jeon Yu-bin who had collapsed beneath me.

“I became a demon, but they took me underground and forcibly experimented on me!”

It was a woman’s voice.

A voice remarkably similar to Jeon Yu-bin’s—so similar that I wouldn’t have been able to distinguish it if I hadn’t just been talking to her.

“They forcibly… with my body… sob sob… it would have been good if you’d recorded a video like that.”

[To spread it on the internet?]

“It doesn’t have to be right now. The more evidence videos we have, the better. Isn’t it best to hold as many cards as possible?”

[When you have too many, you often end up discarding some without using them.]

I pointed my club at Jeon Yu-bin, whose breath had completely stopped.

[Did you come here to take Jeon Yu-bin’s corpse?]

“…I need to retrieve at least the corpse. Unfortunately, we couldn’t secure Jeon Yu-bin alive, but I’ll take her dead body back with me.”

Malttugi pointed a long stick like a pipe at me.

“S-class villain Goblin. I know you’re strong enough to toy with S-class heroes, but I too—hey!!”

Whoosh.

Malttugi became angry.

[Hey?]

“Ah, no! What are you doing?! Stop!”

[I don’t want to.]

Whoosh.

The golden flames that erupted from the end of my club clung to the demon’s body and began to burn her flesh.

[Killing a demon isn’t the end. You must completely annihilate it so that not even a corpse remains. As you said, those high-ranking people might use the demon’s corpse for another human experiment.]

“That’s true, but…!”

[The same goes for you all.]

After setting enough flames on Jeon Yu-bin’s body, I pointed my club at Malttugi.

[You’re the same—you want to use this corpse for something too. You’d look for traces of human experimentation on this woman and use it as evidence to make a video.]

“That’s right! But we’re different from them!”

[No. From my perspective, you’re the same.]

“Are you saying Hwalbindang… is a villain?”

Malttugi’s voice began to harden.

“Are you saying that our Hwalbindang, with its noble purpose, is the same as those trash who go around killing people?”

[I didn’t say that. Perhaps you have an inferiority complex about this? I just wanted to say that desecrating corpses is the same.]

“……You’re someone who can’t be reasoned with.”

Malttugi gripped his stick like a sword.

“‘That person’ said we should view you favorably and bring you into Hwalbindang, but you are indeed a ‘villain.'”

[From the government’s perspective, both the Goblin of the Syndicate and Malttugi of Hwalbindang are the same—villains.]

“Are you defending the government now?! Those who commit such atrocities behind the scenes?!”

[You’re quite quick to anger.]

I think I understand what kind of personality this person has.

[A pathetic person trapped in his own ideals.]

“……!!”

Malttugi’s body froze.

[I don’t know what Hwalbindang’s purpose is, nor do I need to know, but whatever your ideal of Hwalbindang is, I’m simply fulfilling my duty as a member of my organization.]

Whoosh.

As the golden flames subsided, only black ashes remained where Jeon Yu-bin had been.

[To kill Jeon Yu-bin and leave no corpse behind. That’s my mission.]

With flames powerful enough to leave not even bones, I completely erased Jeon Yu-bin’s existence from this world.

[I won’t stop you if you want to take even the ashes, but I’m done here. I just need to leave this facility.]

“…I can’t just let you go.”

Malttugi stopped after walking in a circle.

“You will be a major obstacle to Hwalbindang’s future. I’m going to eliminate you now.”

[Do you have that ability?]

“Of course…!”

Rustle.

Malttugi, now wearing a mask like a yaksha, gripped his stick with both hands and charged at me.

[?!]

Incredible speed.

I held my club vertically and twisted my body sideways, and Malttugi’s stick grazed my club and slid off to the side.

“Hah!”

Though his initial strike failed, he sneered at my inadequate response, then spun in place and swung his arm widely toward me.

Gripping the stick in reverse, he tried to thrust its end at my face.

A speed that ordinary people—even B-class or even A-class—would find difficult to follow.

Thwack!

Malttugi hit the top of my mask.

He turned his head back and mocked me with his eyes.

“…?!”

And soon became flustered.

His stick had hit my mask precisely, but it couldn’t even scratch it.

[How dare you attack my handsome face.]

I extended my foot forward and kicked Malttugi in the lower back.

Boom!

Filling my kick with mana, I sent Malttugi flying backward, rolling on the floor.

“Kuh, kuhak…! How…?! My attack definitely connected…?!”

[I let you hit me.]

I readjusted my slightly disheveled mask.

[An attack without the resolve to kill isn’t worth dodging.]

“What…!”

[You were trying to remove my mask, weren’t you? That’s why you didn’t thrust the tip of your stick straight at my face but grazed it instead. To make the mask fly off.]

There was no killing intent in Malttugi’s attack.

[Unfortunately, I’ve always crossed battlefields where people kill or get killed. Do you know how many have tried to kill me so far?]

“…I’m not interested in that.”

Malttugi stood up again, firmly gripping his stick.

“I was planning to remove your mask and use your face to blackmail you… how unfortunate.”

[Only one person has ever removed my mask.]

“Who was that?”

[Naturally, only our great, strong, and beautiful leader.]

Only the leader has removed my mask through skill.

[Let me make a counter-offer. Won’t you join our Syndicate?]

“What?”

[New strong ones are always welcome. I deliberately left an opening, but not many people have actually attacked my mask. Your skill seems to be at least A-class… no, even higher.]

I’m hiding my true abilities now, but Malttugi is also concealing his.

[I don’t know who you are. I don’t know your true identity. But your power, in my view, seems more suited to our Syndicate than to Hwalbindang.]

“That’s absurd. Do you think I would become comrades with those who go around killing people indiscriminately and shouting about world domination?”

[You’re still young. When someone makes a scouting offer, it’s courtesy to at least take their business card. Well, how would ability users know about social etiquette? More importantly….]

Whirr, whirr, whirr.

Vibrations began to echo throughout the base.

[I can hear it. The sound of water. They’re planning to submerge everything here.]

“Ah…?!”

The sound of water can be heard from far away.

They’re probably trying to trap the entire base underwater while simultaneously rendering all electronic devices useless.

“Th-this…!”

[Normally, I would have escaped before the enemies could do this, but because of someone, I was delayed talking. Now we’re about to be trapped underwater.]

“Kuh…!”

Malttugi turned around and tried to escape the way he had come.

Unfortunately, the direction from which water was pouring in was the same direction Malttugi was running toward.

“Th-this…!”

[I’ll put this on your tab for later.]

I ran right behind Malttugi and struck the back of his neck with my club.

Whack!

I swung my club hard enough to make a considerable sound, and Malttugi collapsed forward.

No response.

He’s unconscious.

[I don’t know how he arrived at a timing similar to my entry, but I’ll sort it out after escaping.]

I tied up Malttugi’s limp body tightly with rope, then hoisted him onto my shoulder—

[……?]

Something.

The feeling that I shouldn’t be feeling something—was that just my imagination?

‘It can’t be.’

It must be my imagination.

Swoosh.

Looking at the waves of seawater pouring in from the exit direction, I gathered my breath.

‘I’ll think about it after getting out of here first.’

I ran straight toward the seawater.