Ch.69Episode 14. Power Loss (3)

Night had fallen.

Following the signal from the hero on watch, I infiltrated Kim Soyang’s house. Ridiculously, the front door wasn’t even locked.

I entered the house making as little noise as possible.

Kim Soyang’s house had a layout not much different from any typical home. It was an ordinary place suitable for living.

However, the inside was such a mess that I hesitated to step in.

Trash overflowed, suggesting she’d been living on processed foods for all her meals. The stench of rotting food assaulted my nostrils disgustingly, evidence of how long she’d neglected proper disposal.

As I examined the dark interior relying on my senses, a moan leaked from inside a room.

I slowly opened the door.

There was Kim Soyang, lying on the bed mumbling incoherently. She reached out into the air and groped at her own body.

Was she hallucinating?

“Aah…”

As I stepped into the room, a strong sour smell hit me.

Having never smelled the drug mentioned in the novel, I couldn’t say for certain what it was.

But she had clearly gotten into something harmful.

“Hehehe. Ehehehe!”

A sudden burst of maniacal laughter sent chills down my spine. Just listening to it made my skin crawl.

I left the room after watching her writhing body.

Fortunately, she hadn’t been taken yet, so there shouldn’t be any problems with moving freely.

If Kim Soyang had been in Akcheon’s clutches, they might have used her as a hostage for blackmail.

I exited the house and stood where the hero who had been using invisibility skills had been positioned.

“I’m assuming you can hear me. Please take Ms. Kim Soyang to the hospital. There’s a possibility she has consumed harmful substances.”

In the quiet of the late night, my voice seemed to echo unusually loudly.

As soon as I finished speaking, I heard something brush past me. Something was moving.

In this world, Kim Soyang would not interfere with Bin Yun-i. More precisely, she would be unable to interfere.

Her destination now would be prison.

If the drug she took was something available at pharmacies, there might be room for leniency. But anything Akcheon used couldn’t possibly be “ordinary.”

That’s what makes them villains, after all.

“…Good.”

It was time for me to move as well.

* * *

“You’re boring me.”

Crunch, crunch.

Lee Bangsil was eating snacks on a large white bed while watching a movie.

Crumbs kept falling onto the bed. Ugh, how could she sleep with all that scratchiness?

“…You seem to be doing well despite that?”

We were currently in a motel near the building suspected to be their hideout. It was directly across from us, visible through the window.

“Movies these days just aren’t interesting. They lack realism. Realism!”

From my perspective, this world seemed far less realistic.

“…How many people have gone into the building? I suppose you wouldn’t know since you haven’t checked?”

“Do you take me for a fool, kid? I’ve already set coordinates on that building. There are roughly forty people inside. I confirmed all those bastards you showed me in the photos went in.”

Set coordinates…

Did she use “Spatial Dominion”? If so, that’s somewhat reliable.

“I see.”

I hope we can reduce Wolgang’s forces with this opportunity…

While I was looking at the building lost in thought, Lee Bangsil got off the bed. She stood proudly in front of me with her hands on her hips.

“Hey. After all that sarcasm, is ‘I see’ all you have to say?”

“…I told you to stand by, not watch movies.”

“Am I your lackey? Do I have to listen to you?”

“Well… as long as you do your job well, I have no complaints.”

Her usefulness is sufficient just in preventing those villain bastards from escaping.

No matter how fast she is, she couldn’t catch everyone if they scattered. We can’t let anyone escape like during the last camping incident.

“Until I break through your barrier and come out, don’t release it under any circumstances.”

“What?”

Lee Bangsil frowned at my statement.

She seemed displeased that I wasn’t asking her to release the barrier but declaring I would break through it myself.

Sigh. Pride.

“You think you’re that powerful?”

“I’m not without power.”

Her barrier can’t escape my nullification.

If she had properly watched the sparring video, she wouldn’t have such doubts.

If I get the chance, I’ll definitely teach her some manners.

“…Something doesn’t sit right with me. You’re getting more and more impudent.”

“That’s your imagination.”

“No, it’s not.”

“Aren’t you being too sensitive?”

After a quick stretch, I pulled up my hood and said this. I put on a cheap plastic mask too. Sparks flew as I smacked my fist against my palm.

Crack!

From now on, it was time for the Lightning God that those villain bastards had been looking for.

“Lightning God…”

“What did you say?”

The spark sound drowned out her words. Lee Bangsil, who had been staring at me, opened her mouth a beat late.

“…Hey.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll finish this well.”

“No. When are you going to say ‘I’m sorry for being sarcastic’?”

“…”

I looked at Lee Bangsil with eyes full of disgust.

I’m tolerating her now because I need her abilities, but once this is over, I vowed to nullify her powers and make her kneel.

* * *

I moved toward the entrance at a speed others couldn’t perceive. Even as I approached the building, I sensed no presence.

I slightly opened the door. No response.

Surely there must be someone guarding the stairway?

I peeked my head in and looked around. There was no one in the corridor or on the stairs. I opened the door wide and entered. Just as I was quietly closing the door, a man came down the stairs.

Our eyes met.

“Ah, ah—!”

Thwack!

Before he could speak, I quickly approached and struck his neck precisely.

“Kuk! Kuk!”

He grabbed his throat, making a sound like air escaping. As he sank down, placing his hands on the floor, I kicked his face.

Unable to withstand the impact, he passed out.

Judging by his lack of distinctive features, he seemed to be just a regular member under Wolgang.

While I was examining the fallen man, a strange energy enveloped the entire building.

Lee Bangsil must have deployed her barrier.

The stronger villains would have noticed her barrier, but it was already too late to escape. No one below executive level could break through her barrier.

“Well then.”

Now no one can leave this place.

Hearing urgent footsteps from above, I leisurely climbed the stairs.

Typically, the boss is always on the top floor.

“Huh, huk! What the—?!”

“That appearance…”

“It’s the Lightning God! The Lightning God is—”

I leaped over an entire flight of stairs in one bound and planted my fist in someone’s face.

“Yes. I’m here.”

While they were in disarray from the sudden attack, I delivered one punch after another, and they all sprawled nicely across the landing. I glanced at those who couldn’t even draw their weapons before continuing up the stairs.

By now, those above would have noticed.

Skipping the third floor, I went up to the fourth and grabbed the handle of a firmly closed iron door.

Crack!

Tossing aside the crushed handle, I put my hand through the hole in the door and pulled. The hinges screamed. Leaving the door roughly on the landing, I stepped inside.

It might have been an office building before, as empty desks and office partitions were scattered haphazardly.

As I was surveying the scene with its distinctive abandoned building atmosphere of cement and dust, people with red hair, including Yayeong, walked out from the back.

As expected, Jeokwol was also there.

“…Who are you?”

“What a boring question. Do I have to introduce myself every time we meet?”

I picked up a cement fragment at my feet while speaking. I pretended to look around before crushing it.

“But if I must say…”

I gripped the crumbling stones in both hands and smiled. Though they couldn’t see it because of my mask.

“I’m one of the people you’re looking for.”

Crack.

“Lightning Discharge.”

I channeled electric power to my fingertips and threw the stones, sending them flying toward them.

At nearly the speed of sound.

No matter how weak a stone might be, when flying at high speed, it becomes a threat.

Most of the red-haired Jeokwol members seemed to react and block the stones, but Yayeong and others had to endure being pelted without even having time to react.

“Argh!”

Most of those hit by the stones couldn’t suppress their pain and cried out. They collapsed, bleeding from various parts of their bodies.

Meanwhile, those who had dodged or blocked the stones rushed at me.

“That won’t work.”

I kicked the side of the first attacker who charged at me. His waist bent severely as he crashed into the wall. The sword he had been swinging fell limply to the floor.

I alternately looked at the two red-haired men and women rushing at me next.

Watching the swords converging on me, I closed the distance with the man. Reacting to my movement, he tried to twist his body to avoid my grasp. But I grabbed his hand first.

Clang!

I forcibly moved the man’s sword to block the woman’s.

“What are you doing?!”

“No. This bastard…!”

“You have time to chat?”

I smashed his awkwardly trapped elbow with my fist, shattering it.

“Argh!”

The man screamed and dropped his sword. Before it hit the ground, I drove my fist into his side.

Crash!

The man slammed into the wall and lost consciousness.

Watching the incoming sword strikes, I kicked the falling sword up and caught it. After dodging a sword aimed at my neck, I sliced through the attacker’s shoulder.

“Kyaaa!”

The woman screamed and retreated, dropping her sword along with part of her arm. Blood gushed out in an instant, soaking her entire body.

I didn’t follow her as she staggered back to finish her off.

The Association Chairman said not to kill them. So I won’t kill them. That’s better for me too.

It’s relatively easy for a hero to claim self-defense against villains. As long as you don’t kill them, most actions are considered justified.

Especially against a cancerous villain organization like Akcheon, that possibility increases dramatically.

“If you want to go to prison with your limbs still properly attached, you’d better listen to me.”

Because there’s no way for you to escape from here.