Ch.89Chapter 4. How to Conquer a Villain (2)

I was invited to the penthouse on the top floor of a 30-story hotel, the tallest building in Samcheok city.

“Welcome, Manager Do. What would you like to do first? Dinner? Shower? Or me?”

“Is it possible to do all three simultaneously?”

“Oh….”

The woman let out a surprised laugh at my response.

“I never imagined you’d respond like that.”

“I’m used to handling that kind of teasing.”

“My, what if it wasn’t teasing?”

“Then let’s start with tea.”

I sat down in a chair next to the tea table.

“May I release my transformation?”

“You’re transformed? I don’t mind, but wait—”

I immediately deactivated my transformation.

The clothes that had been clinging to my skin disappeared instantly, and the woman, who had been walking toward the minibar, quickly turned toward the room entrance.

“What are you doing?!”

“What’s there to be embarrassed about between us?”

“Put something on right now!”

“I’ll put something on since you insist, but we’re past the point of worrying about such things, aren’t we?”

“It’s about manners, manners!”

The woman angrily threw a robe at me, and I promptly put it on and tied the belt.

“That’s better. When I always have mana wrapped around my body, it feels like I’m walking around naked.”

“That’s exactly it!”

“Since it looks like a suit on the outside, others don’t think that way, so it’s fine.”

“…You just say whatever you want, don’t you?”

“Yes.”

The woman twisted the corner of her mouth and brought me something to drink.

It wasn’t alcohol.

It was black tea.

The minibar was already stocked with plenty of alcohol, but neither of us intended to drink.

“What brings you here?”

“That’s what I wanted to ask you. I was surprised when I suddenly felt your magical power from the sea.”

“I was adrift. I had just visited Sejong Island.”

I explained my situation to the woman.

She listened attentively with a serious expression, and I made sure to explain in detail so she could understand my circumstances.

“So you went to persuade Platinum Sun, and on your way back to Seoul, you had to stop due to lack of fuel? Did you fight with Platinum Sun?”

“There was no physical confrontation. Instead, we engaged in a bit of a mental battle using mana.”

Ymir had been feeling me up, and I did my best to protect my body from her touch.

As a result, my magical power decreased somewhat, and riding the bike consumed more mana than I had expected.

“I don’t plan to travel to and from Sejong Island again. It’s more comfortable to just take a boat or car.”

“Seems like it consumed more mana than you thought. I should tell you to rest comfortably, but I thought you came to support me.”

“Support?”

“Yes. This place is currently a battlefield.”

“…….”

It seems I’ve stepped into something I shouldn’t have.

No, perhaps I’ve stepped into exactly where I should be.

Regardless of my mana shortage, the Goblin should be where the execution takes place.

“Where there are bad villains, there’s the Goblin. What’s going on?”

“October Travel. Have you heard of it?”

“The airline company? The one that made a big entrance at Yangyang Airport.”

Naturally, all airports in South Korea are managed by the public corporation Korea Airports Corporation.

However, at places like Incheon and Yangyang, where foreign visitors are frequent, foreign airlines have successfully lobbied to secure their own stakes, and I know that October Travel has invested all its shares in Yangyang.

I used it occasionally.

I often flew first class when escorting the chairman, and I enjoyed the opportunity to eat Western meals as in-flight meals since it was a foreign airline.

“That’s right. When people use international foreign airlines, they all use October Travel. But there’s a problem. The chairman of October Travel and his granddaughter are currently here in Samcheok.”

“Do you have a tablet for research? I left my Taeguk Watch in Seoul.”

“I’ll tell you. What do you want to know?”

“That granddaughter, if I remember correctly, she was a powered individual.”

“That’s right.”

I remember now.

She’s one of the supporting female characters from the original work.

“Her name is….”

“Juliana Faygreen. According to international standards, she’s a C-class powered individual. She needs to go up to Yangyang to catch an international flight, but she’s currently staying in Samcheok due to death threats.”

“People like those from October Travel wouldn’t cancel flights or refuse to go to Yangyang just because the chairman’s granddaughter received death threats…. What’s going on?”

“The organization that made the death threats is stronger than you might think.”

The woman showed me another photo.

In the somewhat low-quality CCTV image, familiar people were heading down an alley, and I could immediately recognize who they were.

“So this ill-fated connection continues here.”

“That’s right. The ones who are threatening to cause terror are… ‘Hwalbindang’.”

The woman twisted the corner of her mouth.

At the same time, I couldn’t help but let out a laugh.

“Why would Hwalbindang attack Juliana? Because she’s a foreigner?”

“If that were the reason, they would have been subjected to all sorts of terrorism long ago. It’s not that. When you hear it, it’s really absurd….”

The woman leaned her upper body slightly toward me.

“I’m sorry to interrupt your mission, but I can tell you if you help.”

“Will you give me some magical power?”

“I don’t see why not. But I can’t do it for long. Things are happening right now, and I’m fighting in real-time.”

“Then excuse me. I’ll try to finish as quickly as possible.”

I stood up.

“Then please help me with a light supply of magical power, Hye-ra.”

“Where do you get off suddenly calling me by my name…?”

“Should I call you by your villain name instead of your name?”

Name: Yoon Hye-ra.

Ability: S-class. Pyrokinesis-fire magic.

“Honestly, all the Yimemangryang executives’ names are tacky.”

“……You’re trying to shake the foundation of Yimemangryang right now. You know that?”

“I don’t know. Personally, I think everyone should change back to their ‘original names’.”

“Ugh, I hate that. Especially me. You know what mine is.”

“Isn’t it better than ‘Qiongqi’?”

“It doesn’t sound like a villain name!”

“Yes, yes. I understand.”

Villain name: [Qiongqi].

“Magical power supply…. No, I’ll retrieve some of my magical power that’s inside you. I’ll take it directly from your mana pouch.”

“…….”

“Should we start by singing the first verse of the national anthem?”

How to recover magical power in this country?

“Tell me if it hurts, Hye-ra.”

“As if it would hurt…!”

Of course, it’s national pride.

* * *

At that time.

In a suite room on the 29th floor of a hotel in Sokcho, a blonde woman was grinding her teeth with an anxious face.

“Ugh, why am I in this state….”

The woman’s cheeks were swollen.

As if she had been hit by something, she pressed her reddened face with her hands and ground her teeth.

“Damn it….”

“Does it hurt? I’m sorry.”

The old man sitting across from the woman, Desmond Faygreen, the chairman of October Travel, bowed his head with a heavy expression.

“But you know what kind of item that is.”

“I know. That’s why I was trying to take it home.”

“You know that if this gets out, we’re finished.”

“…But when we take it back to our country, the effect will be tremendous.”

Desmond couldn’t help but lament at his granddaughter Juliana’s suggestion.

“Grandfather. Think about our country. We can’t keep bowing our heads to this small country forever.”

“But Juliana. If your actions go wrong, everyone in our company could be harmed. You know that, right?”

“I’ll take responsibility for that. I’ll say it was my doing alone, that I planned it all by myself.”

“That’s why there’s something called owner risk….”

“If I did something wrong, why should the company be harmed? I’m not even a company employee.”

“Sigh.”

Desmond had explained it several times, but it was no use.

“Look at the case of Stern. A-class powered individual Ermina Sternfeld tried to kill an E-class powered individual and became a demon, losing all her abilities. What happened after that? Stern is now on the verge of bankruptcy.”

“Even if it’s on the verge, it won’t actually go bankrupt.”

“This isn’t something to talk about so casually….”

“It’s okay. Everything will work out. Who moves thinking things won’t work out?”

Desmond felt dizzy.

His granddaughter was certainly talented in her abilities, but her perspective and experience of the world were still lacking.

No, this was inevitable.

She was just a 17-year-old child after all.

Although she had more experience than others as Desmond’s granddaughter, she was still a child who thought the world revolved around her.

“Juliana. Are you confident you can protect that ‘item’ from Hwalbindang?”

“Yes, of course. With my ability, they’ll never find out where it is. That’s why Hwalbindang is trying to catch me, trying to kill me now.”

Grin.

The corners of Juliana’s mouth stretched to her ears.

“This is a game between them and me. Me, taking the most precious thing in the age of powered individuals, and Hwalbindang targeting me. If I safely take that item and leave the country, I win; if I fail, I get killed.”

“We should contact the government—”

“No. Don’t say that.”

Juliana firmly shook her head.

“I got this item after even being slapped by you, Grandfather. If I now ask for help because I can’t take it back—”

Creak.

There was a sound of something moving from the floor above.

Vaguely, it seemed like the national anthem could be heard.

“Tsk. How can there be noise between floors in a suite room….”

Juliana raised her middle finger toward the ceiling.

“Take this!”

“Understand, Juliana. They are currently being ‘patriotic’.”

“Patriotism isn’t everything.”

“In this country, it is. Someone staying long-term in the 30th floor penthouse is being patriotic, so of course a powered individual would appear.”

“…Is it all patriotism if they just produce powered individuals? Ah, really.”

Juliana fidgeted on the bed in frustration.

“Hey!! Keep your patriotic sounds down!!”

Still, the bed creaked.