Ch.40Chapter 2. Artificial Demons and Natural Demons (3)

“That’s unexpected. I didn’t think you’d choose a place like this.”

“Do you dislike pasta?”

The place I chose was a pasta restaurant run by an Italian chef.

Fortunately, Yoon Yi-seon didn’t seem particularly displeased with my choice.

“No, not at all. I just thought men might not like places like this. Oh, please speak comfortably with me. I prefer it that way.”

“…Really?”

That works for me.

“It’s not that I dislike it. It’s just a bit awkward for men to come here together, or for a man to come alone.”

“…True. A man eating pasta alone does require a certain amount of courage.”

“Right?”

A man going to a soup restaurant alone to eat soup is common.

But pasta feels different.

No matter how much the status of Korean and Western cuisine has reversed, the cultural position occupied by Japanese and Western restaurants hasn’t changed.

-No matter how trendy Korean food becomes globally, a date spot where kimchi soup might splash around is still a bit awkward.

That’s why Japanese restaurants and Western specialty restaurants have managed to maintain their presence until now.

Moreover, like the background of many foreign restaurants on Sejong Island, there are establishments targeting foreigners on the peninsula, or ones opened directly by foreigners.

As a result, the cultural element of pasta restaurants—the feeling that “it’s a place to go with women”—hasn’t disappeared in this world.

Fortunately.

“Yi-seon, would it be a problem if rumors spread about us having a meal together like this? Wouldn’t it cause a scandal?”

“A scandal? Not at all. Do you know how many people I eat with as part of the student council? Would it be a scandal if I had a private dinner with a presidential candidate?”

“…Not a romantic scandal, but a political one, I suppose.”

“Hehe.”

Yoon Yi-seon is a smart woman.

Not only is she a high-ranking ability user, but her political acumen is also considerable.

That’s why she has continued to lead the student council until now, even as a university student.

She will continue to lead the student council.

And after graduation, she’ll probably go into “politics.”

For the advancement of ability users’ human rights.

‘But she’s still naive.’

Yoon Yi-seon doesn’t yet know all the dark sides of the world.

She’s a woman who has lived in a pure flower garden, completely unaware of things like demons or human experimentation.

She roughly knows that there’s a bloody quagmire beneath the flower garden, but she doesn’t know how dirty and vicious that quagmire really is.

There’s no need to tell her either.

“If a scandal does break out, how about this excuse? Say the student council is conducting a project in conjunction with the library.”

“A project?”

“Yes. A book lending project. Something like a ‘review competition’ for books in the library.”

“Wouldn’t that increase your workload?”

“Not books from my section, but from the 800s literature section.”

“Ha. So you’re passing the work to others? While just providing the idea?”

“Of course. I don’t want to live a busy life. I prefer to live comfortably, thinly, and for a long time.”

“You seem like someone who would live thickly, lengthily, and robustly.”

“……?”

Did I hear that wrong?

Is she deliberately saying this to me?

If so.

I can’t lose.

“While I do live thickly, lengthily, and robustly, life can’t always be that way. Although I always work with my head held high facing forward, sometimes I want to collapse on the bed and just sprawl out.”

“But you just said you want to keep living that way.”

“It’s enough for me to raise my head and stand up when someone needs me.”

“When someone needs you… That’s an interesting answer, like a hero. Hehe.”

Yoon Yi-seon lightly toasted her marshmallow over the candle.

“I’ve been thinking about what you told me last time.”

“What? Oh, the contract with a demon?”

“Yes. At first it sounded like you were telling me to become a villain, but I realized the essence of what you were saying.”

Yoon Yi-seon swallowed the marshmallow in one bite, then stood her fork vertically on the table.

“If one has the power of a demon but doesn’t act like one? If one looks like a demon but acts more heroically than anyone else? Should we call that a demon or a hero?”

“A hero.”

I slightly burned my marshmallow more extensively.

“Even if the outside appearance becomes ugly like this, you can still be a hero if you want to be one. What matters is your mindset and actions.”

“Not beliefs?”

“Having beliefs doesn’t always make you a hero. Like this.”

I swallowed the marshmallow in one gulp.

“This is a marshmallow. But it’s burned. How does it taste? The inside is still sweet, but there are bitter and dry parts. I expected the sweetness of a marshmallow, but what I actually ate wasn’t quite that.”

“You seem to have a tendency to make difficult metaphors.”

“To put it bluntly, if your actions aren’t heroic, you’re not a hero.”

“Hmm….”

Yoon Yi-seon fell into thought for a moment.

“…Like the Goblin?”

“The Goblin.”

An objectively difficult subject came up.

“The Goblin is a villain.”

“But people sometimes call him a ‘dark hero.'”

“What? No, that’s complete nonsense.”

Dark hero.

Me?

That’s absurd.

“The Goblin just kills all villains. Like that incident on the Gyeongbu Expressway recently, and at that restaurant. Ugh, I was so shocked then.”

“……?”

“Oh, I was at that restaurant. I was eating when the attack happened.”

“Really? I’m sorry. If I had known, I would have asked about your well-being earlier.”

“It’s fine. I’m just grateful to have escaped safely.”

It was an incident where people actually died.

“Anyway, the Goblin can’t be called a hero, dark or otherwise. He’s just a villain who doesn’t hesitate to kill people according to his own agenda.”

“That’s quite a harsh assessment.”

“It’s the truth.”

“Hmm… I think he’s quite good.”

“…Huh?”

What did she just say?

“You think the Goblin is good? Are you defending a villain now?”

“I’m not defending villains. I’m defending the Goblin.”

“You’re defending a villain who kills people? That’s dangerous talk.”

“Is it? I think what he does is right.”

“…….”

Is she testing me?

Does she think I’m the Goblin and that’s why she’s saying this?

Or does she genuinely believe the Goblin is right?

“Those who kill shall be put to death. That’s in the Eight Laws of Gojoseon.”

“That’s an ancient law, applying it directly to modern times is problematic.”

“But I don’t think keeping them imprisoned forever is much help to society either. While I wouldn’t go as far as saying ‘once a villain, always a villain,’ I believe those who commit evil acts should receive appropriate punishment, and a person’s death should be repaid with the death of the perpetrator.”

“You’re merciless. You might end up killing a villain by mistake someday.”

“I wouldn’t kill them myself.”

Yoon Yi-seon shrugged and smiled.

“Heroes arrest villains. And execution is carried out through legal judgment. Of course, if they don’t surrender peacefully during arrest, heroes aren’t held responsible if the villain is dealt with on the spot.”

“I didn’t expect to have this kind of conversation when I came to eat with you.”

“You spoke negatively about the Goblin first.”

Ah.

Could it be?

“Are you some kind of fan club member for the Goblin or something?”

“…….”

Yoon Yi-seon took out her smartphone and showed me something indescribable on the screen.

“I’m member number 38 of the Goblin fan club. I’ve been watching him since he was C-rank. I know all of the Goblin’s activities to date.”

Oh no.

This is bad.

She’s a Goblin otaku.

“My goodness. Is it okay for the student council president to be like this about a villain?”

“Yes. There are so many people who like the Goblin besides me. When heroes try to catch villains while tediously reciting Miranda rights, many people cheer when they see someone decisively cracking villains’ skulls. There are also people who have been saved thanks to the Goblin.”

“Saved?”

“Yes. The families of those killed by the villains that the Goblin killed. Basically, they feel like, ‘Thank you for killing them for me.'”

“…….”

I feel a certain heaviness inside.

“Sometimes I think: if there are demons in this world, they’re not ability users who go berserk, but those who commit crimes with malice. Especially those who kill people for reasons others can’t understand.”

“Understanding… This is getting more complicated.”

“We should try to understand, even if it gets complicated. It’s better than those who just randomly talk about conquering the world, right?”

“……What?”

Did she just.

Insult the Supreme Leader’s dream?

“I can’t just let that slide.”

“…You know what I’m talking about, right?”

“Yes, I know. You’re talking about the Syndicate and Yimemangryang.”

“Do you really think it would be good if an evil organization ruled the world and made it into one giant nation?”

“…Not necessarily. Well, not exactly. But regardless of the form, isn’t it about showing through actions and results in the end?”

“You really are interesting, teacher. Wait, are you perhaps one of the Four Heavenly Kings or the Supreme Leader’s Guardian Alliance?”

“……Let’s say something similar.”

In the end.

Though our subjects were different, Yoon Yi-seon and I reached the same conclusion.

“Even if the outside is demonic, if the inside is heroic, then it can be considered heroic.”

“Yes. In that sense, I brought some sketches.”

“…Sketches?”

“Yes.”

Yoon Yi-seon smiled brightly as she opened the gallery on her smartphone.

“I’m planning to use this as my new costume, what do you think?”

“…….”

I have only one thing to say.

“Hot pink Doji Rider?”

Yimemangryang, help us.