Ch.77. First Terror, Target: Silver Mirrored Shin Yu-kyung

“This is the first terror attack.”

I explained the outline to Lu-a early in the morning.

“You’re going to kidnap Silver Mirrored’s crew members?”

“They’re just bait. We only need to lure Silver Mirrored, Shin Yukyong, to the scene alone.”

“Your goal is revenge against Shin Yukyong, right?”

“That’s not all. We’re a new villain organization. You’re also a rookie villain, Lu-a. For your debut, you need to face a hero with as high a rank as possible. That way, our initial ranking will be set higher.”

For villains, having a higher rank makes growth easier.

The more I get revenge on those bastards, the easier it becomes to clear scenarios.

I’m just taking back what was originally mine anyway.

A villain organization is a means to clear scenarios, including the Galaxy Empire.

As I learned from the system, there’s more than one way to break a scenario.

You can fight monsters as a hero of light, or you can fight as a lord of evil.

“And after luring her out? Are you going to kill her?”

“No.”

I couldn’t help but smile.

“That would be such a waste, far too wasteful. The Dragon King Sentai will fall step by step, gradually descending to rock bottom. When they finally come to their senses, they’ll be at the bottom of a swamp where they can’t even breathe.”

Ji Se-hwa, Shin Yukyong, Kang Yerin, Choi Minseo, the Association Chairman.

I plan to inflict pain on them gradually, slowly.

In the long term, I need to nurture a massive villain organization. I’ll need many powerful villains and funding in the future.

That’s why getting Lu-a on my side was incredibly fortunate.

The Dragon King Sentai will become excellent nourishment for my organization.

They think they’ve reached the top by removing the obstacle called Red Dragon and obtaining everything.

But at some point, things will start going wrong, one by one.

They’ll think it’s just bad luck until they realize they’re already in the middle of irreversible destruction.

They’ll meet their deaths in a hell of despair.

That’s my plan.

“So what do we do?”

“You’ll subdue Shin Yukyong.”

“Me? Against an S-rank hero?”

Lu-a’s face turned pale.

“Wait a minute. It’s only a week away. Even if my talent is as high as you say…”

Lu-a’s concern is reasonable.

Both heroes and villains are labeled with alphabets like A or S, but these shouldn’t be considered equivalent ranks.

To put it simply, an A-rank hero is much stronger than an A-rank villain. It’s because of how rankings are determined.

For villains, it’s about monetary value.

Their rank is calculated by converting the damage they’ve caused and are predicted to cause into currency.

It’s simple for villains with high killing power too. People are also money.

They say an average salaryman earns about 2 billion won in their lifetime.

In that way, human lives can be converted into monetary value.

Children are valued higher because they have more to consume and produce in the future.

This way of calculating human lives in terms of money is the value system of the Hero Association and its chairman.

Heroes are ranked by how much damage they can save by defeating villains.

Unlike villains, only their achievements matter.

So with the same combat power, a villain’s rank would naturally be higher than a hero’s.

Because it’s much easier to destroy than to protect.

“The Dragon King Sentai are S-rank heroes.”

S-rank heroes are, in other words, immeasurable. It means they’re the best heroes.

Put an S-rank villain in front of an S-rank hero, and they’ll be subdued in five minutes.

Not to mention the four S-rank heroes of the S-Sentai.

They could rightfully be called the four strongest people in the world.

There are many sentai teams in this world. Just as adventurers form parties in fantasy games, when heroes gather to form teams, that’s a sentai.

But there’s only one S-Sentai.

Only those belonging to the S-Sentai worldwide can include “colors” in their hero names.

It means that among tens of thousands of heroes worldwide, when someone says “Silver,” everyone knows it refers to Silver Mirrored Shin Yukyong.

Asking to subdue such a Shin Yukyong sounds absurd.

“It’s possible.”

I said with confidence.

[Soul of Comrades]

I have this skill, and Lu-a has the potential to be an SSS-rank villain. Her talent alone exceeds the members of the Dragon King Sentai.

Soul of Comrades is a skill that only applies to my sentai. There seems to be no way to apply it to her since she’s not registered as a hero, but of course, there’s a workaround.

“Lu-a.”

“Yes.”

“Believe me. I’ll make you strong. If you help with my revenge, you’ll gain the power to achieve your own revenge.”

I extended my hand to her.

“Become my comrade.”

Lu-a stared intently at my scarred hand.

“…Comrade.”

She slowly took it. Her hand was cold as a corpse. It felt refreshing.

[An evil sentai has been formed!]

[Team name: ‘Unset’]

[Leader: ‘Gerogius’ Jung Ui-seok]

[Member: ‘Unset’ Lee Lu-a]

With this, Lu-a can now receive the Soul of Comrades effect.

I don’t need a new team name. Naming things creates attachment. I’ve learned that’s just an act that brings loss later.

But Lu-a will need a villain name.

“Lee Lu-a.”

“Call me Lu-a.”

“Hmm?”

“You said we’re comrades. I don’t like being too friendly. I can’t… call you by your real name either. Even when we’re alone, just in case. Should I call you Geo?”

“You’re a woman who cares about strange things. Do as you please, Lu-a.”

“Okay. Geo.”

I thought I saw the corners of Lu-a’s mouth lift slightly.

“But what’s this evil sentai? It’s asking me to set a name.”

“What?”

That’s strange. The system window shouldn’t be visible to her as a scenario character.

No. If it’s Dark Matter’s ability, I could understand. It’s not the system but her dark matter directly transmitting the current state to her brain.

“Since it’s a sentai for revenge, how about Vengeance?”

“We don’t need a name.”

“Why not? It’s nice to have one. And my villain name. What should it be?”

“Dark Matter.”

“That’s not cute, so I don’t really like it… But since you gave it to me, I’ll use it. Yes.”

Lu-a seemed satisfied after completing the settings.

“Then we’ll start training immediately. We won’t have time to rest until the day of the operation, so let’s go now.”

As I was about to move, there was a knock.

“Come in.”

“Boss. A woman has broken in and is causing trouble.”

“You’re wasting my time with such trivial matters? Handle it yourselves.”

“I apologize. But we can’t stop her…”

Incompetent fools. I went downstairs. I could hear the sounds of fighting. Thugs were flying through the air.

In the center was a woman. Seeing her, my eyes widened.

She too seemed surprised to see me, her mouth gaping open. From surprise to relief, then to anguish. Dressed in a maid uniform, she ran to me and immediately embraced me.

“Ah, Master! You’re alive! Thank goodness, thank goodness…!”

“Emma.”

I stroked her hair. Her usually neat hair was a mess of dirt.

I felt sorry thinking about how many hardships must be contained in that matted hair.

“I’m sorry, Master. I couldn’t protect you, I lost the mansion to intruders, and I couldn’t even sacrifice my life but ran away… Please punish me for my sins…!”

Emma knelt before me, sobbing loudly. I examined her. Her body was covered in wounds. Her left arm had been torn off, and her glasses were broken.

But she wasn’t bleeding. That’s because she’s an android. She was a combat maid in charge of my household.

“You’ve been through a lot, Emma. Did you find me by sensing my power?”

“Yes. The function to rescue you was still working. When I last heard news from space, I was in despair. That my kind and upright Master had passed away…!”

Even as an android, Emma has a self-awareness, making her no different from humans.

The confusion and sadness she must have felt would certainly have been unbearable.

“Were you injured protecting the mansion?”

“Yes. The Association dispatched heroes and took everything away. Everything you had achieved, Master…”

“What about Pestam?”

“They took that too. But I found out some information during the process. Currently, Pestam hasn’t been disposed of but has all gone into Green Nature’s possession.”

“Choi Minseo? Hmm.”

Good information.

I can use this in an interesting way.

“Well done, Emma. My current base is here. Get repaired here and join my plan as soon as you’re ready. I don’t have time now, but I’ll explain when I return.”

“Understood. My loyalty is always for you. Master, thank you for being alive. Thank you sincerely…”

I was somewhat grateful for her unwavering loyalty.

After ordering my subordinates to repair Emma, I left the arena with Lu-a.

◈ ◈ ◈

I know the efficient monster hunting grounds for leveling up. Of course, time is still short.

Lu-a followed the hard training with only 4 hours of sleep per day, even vomiting stomach acid.

And she didn’t complain once. She was a strong woman.

Still, it was a bit insufficient.

The current Dragon King Sentai’s specs probably aren’t at S-rank hero level.

With the demerit from my Soul of Comrades being released, their level and stats would have decreased, probably to A-rank. Though they don’t know it yet.

To overwhelm them one-on-one, Lu-a would need to be at least an SS-rank villain. Right now, she’s around S-rank villain spec.

Of course, I have a plan.

On the day of the terror attack, I, Lu-a, Emma, and subordinate villains knocked out and imprisoned the crew and staff before the cruise ship departed, then disguised ourselves as them.

A cruise ship departing from Incheon.

It’s a travel cruise ship chartered by Shin Yukyong’s crew heroes.

“Haha! We really hit the jackpot with our line!”

“Just being crew members lets us go on trips like this with tax money, long live Captain Silver!”

Heroes ranked A or higher can become leaders and form teams at the Association. That’s called a crew. They get priority in mission assignments and train teamwork regularly.

Of course, this doesn’t apply to those whose leader is from the Dragon King Sentai. So why do heroes need crews?

Crews have long since degenerated into political factions within the Association. They’re used to slander and plot against heroes who are doing better than themselves. They’re just numbers for that purpose.

Even to avoid being slandered, heroes ranked A or higher kept crews. I was the only one without one.

Instead of wasting time on such pathetic politics, I had to take down as many monsters as possible.

“Hey, waiter! Bring more champagne!”

“Why aren’t you moving quickly? Do you know who we are? We’re Silver Mirrored’s crew heroes!”

Like this, most of them are trash who play power games using their leader’s influence rather than being active themselves.

“Hey, miss, you’re my type.”

A drunk man approached Lu-a, who was disguised as a waitress. The man caressed her buttocks. Lu-a bit her lower lip in disgust.

“How about it? You’re probably working for minimum wage anyway, so why not quit and come to my room? I’m the second-in-command of this crew. If you get on my good side, your life could change, you know?”

The man stroked Lu-a’s cheek. His alcohol-smelling fingers moved closer to her lips.

“…Geo.”

“Huh? That’s not my name.”

“Are we still far?”

We were still a few kilometers from the area where we planned to start the operation. But seeing that guy, I didn’t want to watch this disgusting scene any longer either.

“It doesn’t matter. Do it.”

SPLASH!

The man’s shoulder burst open, spraying blood.

“Wh…? Ugh, AAAHHH!”

The man fainted as he saw his own arm rolling on the floor.

“KYAAAAA!”

“What’s going on?!”

Chaos began to spread across the ship.

The operation had begun.