Chapter 29: Teacher

The woman paused at the entrance and looked up.

[Under World]

A sign engraved with elegant lettering on a pitch-black background gave off an air of luxury.

At first glance, it looked like an upscale bar. You’d almost expect to see a handsome bartender in a tuxedo mixing cocktails inside.

But the woman only let out a dry laugh as she stared at the sign.

“Under World, huh… Not even trying to hide, are they?”

Shaking her head in disbelief, she suddenly inhaled sharply.

Whoosh.

The air, visible in the chilly flow, was sucked quickly through her lips. The longer she inhaled, the more her abdomen swelled like a balloon.

“It’s an attack!”

Sensing the surge of mana, the guards reacted immediately and rushed out. Three of them unleashed their Talents and lunged at the woman.

Then, her eyes flashed.

“Fwaaaah!”

The shockwave of compressed air burst from her belly, obliterating everything in its path. The guards who took a direct hit were torn apart into splashes of blood, and the shockwave rattled the entire bar from within.

Tss.

Wiping the corner of her mouth with her hand, the woman stepped forward. The broken door failed to stop her as she walked in.

As expected, the interior was a wreck.

Overturned tables. Furniture scattered across the floor. People trembling in fear…

Step. Step.

Amidst the chaos, the woman stood tall and held up a badge.

[Special-Class Hero – Lisa]

“As of today, this establishment is shut down. Charges include smuggling, tax evasion, and illegal loan sharking. No appeals will be accepted.” “Ugh… Why the hell is a hero here…!”

A bartender muttered bitterly from the corner. Lisa responded with a look of amused contempt.

“Why is a hero here? Because I’m a hero, you idiot.” “You pigs gorged yourselves while everyone else starved…!” “…Tch. So that’s the excuse you’re going with.”

Any organization rots if it stagnates. Apparently, the Nova City hero branch was no exception.

With an unpleasant expression, Lisa walked up to the bartender.

Crack.

Without hesitation, she stomped on the trembling man’s face.

“I’m a dispatched hero. I have no ties to this branch. That means your little web of interests means absolutely nothing to me.” “…F*ck, what’s an outsider sticking their nose in here for?!” “Isn’t it obvious?”

Because she’s a hero.

Lisa’s foot rose.

Thud!

The kick spun the man’s jaw sideways. Leaving the foam-mouthed man behind, Lisa turned away.

The rest would be handled by the district police. That is, if they weren’t too afraid of retaliation from a Special-Class Hero.

“…Puhuhuh.”

Then, a collapsed vagrant let out a low chuckle. Ignoring him, Lisa headed for the exit—until he spat out words like a curse.

“Keep acting like that, you won’t live to see retirement.” “……” “The times are changing.” “…Spoken like a true insect.”

As she exited the bar, a crowd had gathered. Curious eyes watched the unexpected commotion.

“This was an illegal establishment. Please continue on safely, citizens.”

Lisa waved the crowd away, but her eyes caught a glimpse of a street sign.

[D-8 Zone is safe once again today!]

Safe. Just two years ago, no one would’ve laughed at a slogan like that.

Lisa’s eyes darkened with a chilling calm.

‘Gwangmyeong.’

Her irresponsible retirement had led to countless casualties. People who didn’t have to die were killed. Orphans who lost their families continued to grow in number.

She couldn’t take full blame, but just knowing she had a share in the mess brought her shame as a hero.

‘If I had inherited that name…’

Things would never have fallen apart like this.

How could the symbol of justice dare to toss justice aside for personal emotions? Lisa, with her sense of justice, couldn’t comprehend it.

“Lee Seoran…”

She spat out the name with the fury of someone ready to bite it apart.

“Lee Seoran? Why?”

“…Hmm?”

The voice was young. Clear and delicate—unmistakably belonging to a girl who hadn’t yet outgrown childhood.

Lisa turned her head and focused her eyes.

A doll-like girl stood there, gazing up at her with a blank expression.

‘…Cute.’

Her hair gleamed like silk, and her deep black pupils shimmered with intensity.
Though small, her features were perfectly formed and delicately arranged as she stared up at Lisa.

Lisa held back the corners of her mouth from curling up.
In doing so, her expression only grew more rigid.

Just then, the girl’s cherry-like lips moved again.

“Why are you talking about Lee Seoran?”

Was it just her imagination, or was there a faint anger in that soft voice?
A plausible thought crossed Lisa’s mind.

“A fan of Reminis?”

The girl nodded instantly.

“I just… like her too.”

Realizing her slip-up, Lisa quickly tried to smooth things over.
Even if she didn’t like it, Lee Seoran was a symbol of justice to the public.
And symbols had to be protected.

Those dark eyes scanned Lisa’s face carefully, as if trying to read her mind.

“For that, your tone was kind of harsh.”

Surprisingly, the girl’s word choice and tone were quite mature.
Probably older than she looked. Lisa had no choice but to play dumb.

“You’re imagining things.” “…By the way, lady.”

Lady?
It took Lisa three seconds to accept that the girl was referring to her.

‘…Right. She’s just a kid.’

She forced herself to accept it.
Trying to correct the girl by saying I’m not a lady would just be pathetic.

Whether she knew how Lisa felt or not, the girl kept calling her that.

“Lady.”
“……”
“Lady?”
“…Speak.”

Lisa’s voice had gone cold. The girl tilted her head innocently.

“What happened to this place?”

She pointed at the half-destroyed building.
Lisa glanced at it and shook her head.

“This was a bad place. You shouldn’t be here.” “A bad place?” “Smuggling explosives… Just don’t come here.”

Not exactly something you’d say to a child.
But the girl seemed curious, asking question after question.

“Did you do all this, lady?” “…Yeah.” “Are you a hero?”

That damn lady.
If only she’d stop.

Swallowing her frustration, Lisa responded with resignation.

“Yeah.” “…Do you have a title?” “No title. Just Lisa.” “…Li-sa?”

The girl’s expression stiffened for a brief moment.

“What’s a hero like you doing here?”

Suddenly, her form of address changed—from lady to you.
At this timing, the reason was obvious.

“So you know her, huh.” “…You’re a Special-Class Hero. I’m a fan.”

Lisa’s heart melted all over again.
Feeling pleased, she happily shared information with this harmless-looking creature.

“A Special-Class Villain showed up.” “…If it’s a Special-Class Villain, then maybe…?” “Yeah.”

Special-Class Villains.
Dangerous figures officially designated by the Association.
And these days, there were only one or two names that came to mind.

“Hongyeom Yureon.” “…Ah.”

“So you know them.”

A bead of sweat formed at the girl’s nape.

“I’m training to become a hero too.”

Lisa widened her eyes without meaning to.

‘…So that’s why she knew my name.’

---

It made sense now. Lisa had only recently resumed her activities in Nova,
so it was understandable that most people wouldn’t recognize her yet—
but for a hero trainee, it checked out.

— You pigs gorged yourselves while everyone else starved…!

---

Suddenly, a thought crossed her mind.
Would this girl also end up like those pigs one day?

Would this doll-like, innocent face bloat with layers of sin,
her gaze dulled with laziness and indifference?

‘……’

She didn’t know why, but she hoped this one would be different.
She wanted to see her retain that purity, even as a hero.

Lisa took a business card from her pocket.

“What’s your name?” “…Anne.”

Anne.
Lisa etched the name into her memory and gently placed the card in the girl’s small hand.

“You must become a hero.”

Not a pig—
a hero.
Anne’s eyes trembled.

“Understand?” “…….”

The girl nodded.
Lisa smiled in satisfaction and let her go.

Just as she was about to leave, something seemed to click in her mind, and she turned back.

“And stay indoors for today, if you can.” “…Why?”

Lisa replied in a cold voice.

“Because today’s the day we hunt rats.”

***

---

[Things just got complicated.]

I stared blankly at the half-destroyed shop.

‘This was the only broker I knew.’

Why did this have to happen today, of all days?

‘Should I give up on the bomb?’

Nothing could provoke Seoran like that kind of item, but I had no choice.

[Didn’t that brat Owen say he knew a few more?]
‘Yeah, but Lisa’s roaming around.’

Special-Class Hero, Lisa.
The first time I heard her name, my heart nearly dropped.

In the original work, the main characters were Seoran and Dohyeon.

But among the supporting cast, one character had nearly the same level of importance—Lisa.

She claimed she didn’t have a title, but that was a lie.

Lisa the Empress.

A hero said to be closest to Gwangmyeong, standing at the very top.

In the original story, her position was the rival of the protagonist.

And with Gwangmyeong fallen now—

‘She’s probably the strongest in the world.’

[She was a major figure, then…]

I had no choice.
Watching Lisa’s back grow distant, I resigned myself.

‘Let’s just give up.’

As I let out a helpless sigh, someone approached from a distance.

A young man in a mask—Owen.
He had an absurd number of sword hilts strapped to his back.

“Why’d you buy so many swords?”
“None of your business.”
“Serena’s been bending over backward lately because of that, you know.”
“…I’ll pay her back later.”

Owen averted his eyes, clearly feeling some shame.
Then he noticed the wrecked pub and frowned.

I shrugged and turned to leave first.

“Let’s go. As you can see, it’s a bust.”
“What happened here?”
“A monster’s been roaming around. Let’s head back before anything annoying happens.”

Nothing’s going right today.
As I trudged along, Yu Hyesun suddenly spoke up.

[…My liege.]

At that moment, alarm bells flared red across the street.

—Villain Alert. Villain Alert. Citizens in D-8 Area, please evacuate immediately to the nearest shelter.

Everyone froze, unable to grasp the situation.

Then, a man in the distance shouted in a panic.

“Villains! A villain army is attacking!”

[Looks like we’ve been dragged into something troublesome.]

Owen didn’t look too pleased either.
Attacking in broad daylight? Seriously?

“Let’s hide.”

Owen made a sour face.

“Should we, really?”
“What, you wanna turn yourself in and say, ‘Here’s the traitor’?”
“…Fair point.”

As people started to scatter in chaos, we joined the fleeing crowd, running with all our strength.

“Ugh…”

That’s when I saw him.
A young boy, maybe ten years old, had collapsed in the middle of the street.
He must’ve gotten separated from his parents in the confusion.

“Come here.”

I scooped him up quickly and kept moving.
As I patted the boy’s head to calm him, his round eyes stared up at me while we pushed through the swarm of people.

---

[This is…]

Using my mana, Yu Hyesun activated her farsight. Her voice dropped low.

[My liege. You must flee this area immediately. Take only Owen with you.]
‘Why?’
[The number of villains has surpassed one thousand.]
‘What?’

---

I stopped in my tracks.
The boy looked up at me, wide-eyed.

[This is a full-on assault. The heroes will not be able to defend this area. You must escape!]

The boy clung tightly to my clothes.

“Sis… why…?”

My eyes darkened.