Ch.36Call Me a Lawyer (1)
by fnovelpia
People often struggle to grasp the concept of nano-size.
That’s only natural.
Because the unit “nano” itself refers to a size category that’s completely impossible for the human eye to perceive.
The size is approximately one billionth of a meter.
It means 0.000000001m.
In other words, concepts like grabbing or hitting something that small naturally don’t apply.
So what on earth was this guy?
“My nano-sized division bodies were ‘annihilated’?!”
“Grrrr…”
“A-Amazing! Mr. Horn Mask!”
As some of the mosquito swarm flew toward Disappearance, Kang Janghoon clapped his hands and instantly turned them to “dust” as if swatting flies.
It was impossible.
Mosquitoes broken down to nano-size, squashed to death between palms.
At that size, they should have flowed unharmed through the clapping hands without injury.
Yet it was like pest control spray.
Zzzzzzzz.
“…Vibration?”
It wasn’t ordinary clapping.
As if to demonstrate this fact, Kang Janghoon showed his hands to the mosquito monster, vibrating them thousands of times per second.
“C-Could it be a vacuum state?!”
Vacuum.
It meant a state where air has almost disappeared between spaces.
Or a state where gas “pressure” is extremely lowered, which theoretically could instantly exterminate anything inside that space, even nano-sized mosquitoes.
But wait.
‘Creating an artificial vacuum? And just with his palms…?’
What living being could intentionally create a vacuum state?
Unless it was some kind of “ability.”
But what he was doing was clearly just a vacuum created by rapidly pushing his palms together—pure physical labor.
In other words, not some convenient power like psychic ability or magic.
‘How physically capable must someone be to artificially create a vacuum state that normally only occurs in outer space?’
Maybe it was just a coincidence.
Or perhaps such power came with significant risks.
Thinking this, the mosquito monster sent another wave of nano-sized division bodies toward Disappearance.
But once again.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
“?!?!?!!!?!?”
“Ohhh…!”
Like swatting passing insects.
Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!
Kang Janghoon casually continued exterminating the high-ranked nano-sized monster with his extremely compressed hand claps.
Looking at this horned masked monster, what the mosquito felt after discomfort was nothing but “fear.”
‘This guy… no, a monster of this caliber came to compete with me for ranking?’
Something was clearly off.
This was simply a different level altogether.
Even among high-ranked monsters, the mosquito monster wasn’t particularly high in the hierarchy.
Truly high-ranked monsters would be like “Sword” or “Radiation” who had recently been reincarnated back here after being defeated in the human world.
…Wait a minute.
“A crimson horn mask?”
Come to think of it, the Violence monster who returned after just a month in the human world…
When two high-ranked monsters with their own followers in this realm returned within days of each other, they had shouted:
“Horn Maaaaaaask!!”
“I’ll definitely kill you!!”
As if they had been defeated by the same opponent.
The traitor to their kind they mentioned.
Brilliant golden hair with flesh like a cape fluttering behind him, and above all, a horn mask.
A crimson horn mask concealing his identity—the greatest slaughterer of their kind.
A chill ran down its spine.
‘Could it possibly be this guy?!’
It was a misjudgment.
If he had been that person from the start, there wouldn’t have been a fight at all.
According to rumors, he fought for humans, and to think that wasn’t just hearsay but the truth.
There couldn’t be a greater traitor among monsters.
He hadn’t even made a “contract” with anyone, yet he terrorized his own kind?!
‘It’s frustrating, but I don’t have the power to defeat him right now.’
Was his hobby hunting high-ranked monsters?
How did he know in advance that the mosquito would approach Disappearance and prepare accordingly?
Surprised by the “betrayal” from Disappearance from the start, the mosquito monster used the time bought by its nano-sized division bodies.
‘I need to report this to Lord Disease quickly!’
It tried to escape as soon as possible.
But.
Swish!
“?!”
“I-I got them all! Y-You’re amazing!”
Got them all?
Did he really catch all tens of trillions of nano-sized mosquitoes?
One by one with his hands?
“…Insane.”
“Grrrr.”
‘It’s over.’
The last nano-sized mosquito trying to disappear into the mist.
Having realized the truth too late, the mosquito monster looked up at the true monster looming above.
The moment its eyes met with Kang Janghoon’s.
Clap!
…and it quietly vanished.
***
“Waaaaaah!”
“Mommy! Mommy!”
“My daughter!”
“Thank you! Thank you so much! Hero!”
“It’s nothing… I didn’t do anything this time, really.”
The incident was resolved in an instant.
As soon as the restaurant returned to normal after defeating the mosquito monster, countless people rushed in from outside the entrance that had been inaccessible.
They were all police or heroes, and apparently there had been chaos outside just as we had felt inside.
“We were dispatched when the top floor of the Hero Museum suddenly disappeared.”
“How long were we gone exactly?”
“According to the CCTV footage, exactly 39 hours, 18 minutes, and 47 seconds.”
“Fortunately, the time flow inside and outside seems to have been the same.”
“Seems that way.”
As soon as the situation ended, Yoon Haeun sent the children back to their parents who had come all the way here.
Even so, she remained vigilant, continuing to receive situation reports.
She must have barely slept while protecting the children in that isolated situation—truly showing the mental strength befitting an S-class hero, despite her vulgar behavior.
“This incident ended more anticlimactically than expected.”
“I know, right?”
Meanwhile.
Unlike the ordinary children who had safely escaped and were now in their parents’ arms, two people wore disgruntled expressions.
Miss Hoshino and Carmilla seemed quite disappointed.
“I wonder why we suddenly got out?”
“Yeah… maybe the monsters that trapped us started fighting each other?”
Flinch!
Even with Miss Hoshino’s sharp intuition, I decided to ignore it.
“Janghoon, are you okay?”
“Huh? Oh, of course!”
“That’s good. If you feel anything strange in your body, tell me right away. Understood?”
“Yes, I understand.”
Anyway, this incident was successfully resolved.
I stretched and yawned, relieved that everything was over.
Then Yoon Haeun walked toward us?
“Are you both okay?”
“Ah, yes…”
“What about you, teacher?”
“Yes. As you know, there wasn’t any fighting this time. So I’m just a little tired.”
She must have been awake for nearly 40 hours, yet she claimed to be just “a little tired.”
Was she saying that for the children’s sake, or was it true?
Either way, there was nothing good about associating with her.
“Janghoon, you’re not hurt anywhere?”
“Of course not.”
I smiled innocently along with Yoon Haeun.
A truly innocent child’s smile.
Like the ending credits of a movie, this incident was successfully…
Click.
“Huh?”
“What?”
“Eh?”
I thought it was over, but…
“Um… teacher?”
Still smiling, she took my hand and then—handcuffed my wrist to hers.
I’ve seen this in movies.
It’s how police prevent criminals from escaping.
But why use it on a fragile young boy?
As if she had something to say about this…
“Janghoon.”
“Y-Yes, teacher…”
She looked at me with a smile for a moment.
Her pupils were still heart-shaped as if in heat, but then her expression disappeared completely, and there was definite “hostility” in her face as she looked down at me.
“I’m afraid I’ll have to arrest you on ‘suspicion of being a monster.'”
“W-What?!”
“W-What did you say?”
“Hey! Who gave you permission to arrest Janghoon?!”
“Would you understand if I said it’s an S-class hero’s authority? Princess.”
“!!”
***
The Hero Association in City A.
In the lowest level of that place.
In the “workshop” located far deeper underground than even the “special room” that managed monsters, there was always someone hammering metal and creating weapon designs.
She was an ancient monster who had likely existed before the establishment of Hero City.
At the same time, she was an oddity in the monster world who sided with humanity without compensation, and the first and last “special-class monster” recognized by Hero City.
Red-tinted skin.
Black flowing hair.
Two horns protruding from her forehead.
Her pupils glowed with a dark golden light like those of a beast.
Her attire was minimal for quick work activities.
Her lower body was covered only by micro shorts that barely concealed essential areas, and her upper body was similarly clad in just a tied brassiere.
Tap tap.
Clang clang.
Clatter.
She spent all day making weapons, as always.
So that humanity could survive against monsters who were inherently stronger due to their species characteristics.
For the continuation of humanity, without which she herself couldn’t exist, she spent another fulfilling day working tirelessly.
Shiver.
“…Huh?”
One day.
In the midst of her usual daily routine.
“What… what have they brought here?”
Above her head.
A faint presence of an equal being felt from the ground far above.
She stopped hammering upon realizing that a member of her kind had arrived after a very long time.
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