Chapter 30

The message alerts kept ringing.

I didn’t look, but I could quickly tell who sent those messages. To begin with, I only had two people saved in my contacts.

It must be Ryu Seong.

Hiyeon has just been rescued by the protagonist, so she wouldn’t have the presence of mind to send me messages.

They could just be lovey-dovey with each other, so why bother looking for me? It’s good to worry about others, but it would be nice if they could distinguish the time and place a bit.

“…Aren’t you going to check it?”

Apparently, the girl hadn’t lived a life completely detached from modern civilization, as she asked me if I wasn’t going to check the messages.

Finding that endearing, I stroked her head somewhat roughly with one hand.

She showed a bit of dislike, but in a way, she also seemed to like it. Complex emotions could be glimpsed.

“Would you like me to check it?”

“…No.”

“Then I won’t.”

I still hadn’t left the black market.

I needed to see firsthand how the main scenario would unfold in the future, and I needed to inform the protagonist about this girl.

The academy, not wanting to lose a valuable combat-type ability user, was secretly accommodating such ability users behind the scenes.

If the protagonist and I strongly request identity verification for this girl together, it will pass more smoothly.

Originally in the original work, the protagonist and Hiyeon requested identity verification together, but since my ability had similar value to Hiyeon’s, well… I’m not sure.

For now, I would need to register my name as her guardian, and various complicated procedures would be necessary.

‘There’s no need to specifically inform the protagonist.’

There wouldn’t be any problems even if I alone requested protection for this girl.

I would just receive a few questions with suspicious glances, write my name, write this poor girl’s name, and when the complicated procedures were over…

I would be registered as the girl’s guardian.

It’s a contract that states I am responsible for this child’s wrongdoings, and no matter what happens, I must look after her until she becomes an adult.

To explain how such a sloppy procedure got approved, I would need to talk about the time when the existence of ability users was first exposed to the world.

Since you probably don’t want to hear such a boring story anyway, let me summarize.

A very powerful ability user wanted to register another ability user as their ‘adopted daughter,’ and to do that, they even changed the law.

That’s the end of it.

That adopted daughter was currently attending the academy, but for now… it wasn’t her time to appear yet.

: What do you plan to do now?

‘Someday, I’ll have to turn against the academy.’

: That’s inevitable.

‘Then, I can’t face an organization alone. I’m already struggling to deal with just the protagonist.’

: So?

‘I need a knife. A very sharp knife to stab someone in the back… and several of them at that.’

: I understand.

Slowly, and surely, I prepare for the future.

I have no talent. I don’t have overwhelming strength. I don’t have grand beliefs or goals like other villains either. Then, what do I need?

I need companion tools that can follow my orders.

Now I should head back to the dormitory… no, no.

‘I still have something to do.’

Should I check first?

I unlocked my phone and checked Ryu Seong’s messages. The accumulated alerts reflected his character like a mirror.

[Where are you?]>

[Why did you suddenly disappear?]>

[Bia???]>

…

[Sorry, I don’t think I can delay any longer. I’m going in first.]>

[Please reply when you check the message.]>

…

[It seems… it’s over.]>

[Where on earth are you?]>

[Well, I somehow dealt with Alchemy. Hiyeon has returned too.]>

[But even when I asked that person, they said they didn’t know about you.]>

[Where on earth are you?]>

…

<[Sorry, I just checked now.]

[What??? More importantly, I’m glad. You’re safe.]>

<[How is Hiyeon?]

[They say she’s exhausted from overusing her ability. She’s conscious.]>

<[Was it Alchemy… who kidnapped her?]

[That person had their circumstances too. I don’t want to blame them too much. The method was wrong, but…]>

[They probably had no other way.]>

It’s a problem when a person is too kind.

His childhood friend was kidnapped, and all he has to say is that person had their circumstances too. The method was wrong, but he doesn’t want to blame them. They probably had no other way… tsk.

Isn’t this what you ultimately want to say?

That every person has their circumstances, and no one is born bad from the beginning.

That the fault lies not with the person but with the sin, and the person who committed the sin was ultimately created by the environment, birth, and situation.

…Yes. Your words are the standard theory. The correct answer. Perfect to the point of being irrefutable.

And that’s why it’s annoying.

Because a guy who knows nothing talks as if he knows everything and has fallen over.

“…Are you, angry?”

“Huh?”

“I’m sorry.”

“No. It’s not your fault. This is just because my friend said something strange… so I felt a bit upset.”

“It’s not my fault?”

“Yes. It’s not your fault. I’m not angry at you.”

I raised my hand and stroked the girl’s head. More than that… I can’t keep calling her ‘girl’ forever. She’s not some object to be called ‘that.’

‘…Well, I am thinking of her as a tool though.’

The attitude you show on the surface and the attitude you have inside are different.

Children are sensitive beings, very attuned to the emotions and changes of people close to them. To the extent that they can easily guess whether I see her as a tool or as a human.

In that sense, ‘Bia’s’ family… considered the existence of me as the family treasure.

No, let’s not think about the past now.

What has happened has already happened. It can’t be changed. To change it, one must walk towards the future. The luxury of looking back is not allowed to me.

“What’s your name?”

“I… have no name.”

What would be good?

First of all, I didn’t like the name ‘Yeon,’ which the protagonist gave to this girl.

An ability that connects one to another… [Connection], so just naming her Yeon, doesn’t it obviously look like a casually given name?

…Perhaps I should ask the person concerned first.

“Is it okay if I give you a name?”

“…Yes.”

I got permission. The remaining task is to bestow a name.

For a girl without a name, having a name holds great significance.

For ability users, ‘mind’ has a power that cannot be ignored.

For example, if my mind with the shadow ability becomes unstable, my shadow might escape my control and strangle my neck or squeeze my muscles.

…How did I know about backstory that doesn’t even appear in the game?

Well. I’d prefer not to be asked.

Anyway, to speak concisely about the conclusion. Me giving a name to this girl is like suggesting a new path for an ability that hasn’t yet properly settled.

Because the protagonist gave the girl the name ‘Yeon,’ her ability, which hadn’t yet properly formed, evolved by grasping the strand of [Connection].

Then, what I want is.

What tool do I need?

“From now on, your name is Hana.”

“…Yes!”

What would I look like reflected in Hana’s eyes? A savior? A demon? A god? Who knows. What’s certain are two facts: that I saved her and that I gave her a name.

Unfortunately, she escaped from hell by a demon.

I moved my fingers and sent a message to the protagonist.

<[I rescued a girl with abilities who was being sold as a slave in the black market.]

<[It’s shameless, but I’ll ask for a favor. Help me.]

[For now… I understand.]>

Agreeing to help without even asking for a reason, what a pushover of a protagonist.

<[I have something to do. Let’s meet at my room in the dormitory a little later. The password is 1114.]

<[This child’s name is ‘Hana’. The location is ##-##. I’ll leave her to you.]

[Is it okay to tell me the password?]>

<[? Of course. Because I trust you.]

[…Don’t treat other people like this.]>

It wasn’t romance or anything like that. He was simply concerned about my low vigilance. And I, likewise, just find that concern unpleasant.

This is like walking on a tightrope.

A tightrope that is precariously maintained between ‘Bia,’ a somewhat delinquent-looking academy student, and ‘me,’ a human who goes around killing people in back alleys.

“Hana.”

“Yes.”

“It’s a secret that I killed people here.”

“I understand….”

“And, bro… no, sister has something to do for a moment. In a bit, a white-haired brother and a pink-haired sister will come, and it’ll be fine if you follow them and wait at my house.”

“…Y-Yes.”

Hana seemed to fear being abandoned.

Her hands trembling, she held onto my suit pants tightly and wouldn’t let go. Her two eyes were full of trembling and moisture. She looked like she would cry at any moment.

I didn’t have much talent in comforting children.

But in a situation like this… I knew what words would be most comforting to an unfortunate girl.

The words that I, abandoned on the streets with nothing after my parents died, wanted to hear the most.

“It’s okay. I’m here. I won’t abandon you.”

“…Hana, will wait.”

“Yes. That’s right. You’re pretty.”

“Promise me.”

“Here, I promise.”

I hooked my hand with Hana’s hand. It was the finger promise that children often make. Memories from childhood begin to surface freshly.

And they disappear like bubbles.

I stroked her head, and after tidying up the surrounding corpses a bit to hide them in places where they wouldn’t be seen, I cleared away the onlookers appropriately.

For the protagonist to arrive, it would take roughly 3 minutes, so he should be nearby by now.

‘Now I’ll do my job…. Status window.’

: I will issue a quest.

[Quest]

[Kill ‘Alchemy’ and his sibling, who is a multi-ability user.]

[Reward: Monster’s Arm, Night Vision, Memory]

Good. Let’s do this.

One by one, like a machine.