episode_0051

*****

“Welcome!”

When I returned after finishing suppressing the villain, Marie greeted me with a very proud face. I don’t know why, but it was cute so I guess it doesn’t matter.

On the other hand, Hwain and Raon were just looking at the ground with complicated faces. As soon as Raon saw me, he even hugged me without saying a word. Normally, I would have pushed him away while talking about men, but seeing him so downcast made me reluctant to deal with him so coldly.

“So, what’s going on?”

I asked Ra-on while patting him on the back, but Hwa-in just shook his head. Can’t you talk? No, if you look at the nuance, it doesn’t work here.

In the end, we all ended up going back to school with confused faces.

“Wouldn’t it be okay if we made it this far? Even so, I wouldn’t have done anything until Cheonmyeong High School.”

“I guess so. huh. Then, let me talk about it one by one.”

So, Hwain told us one by one the facts he had heard from Mr. Rabbit while we were away.

First of all, the reason Mr. Rabbit came to see Hwa-in was because his father did not come home. ‘It’s an unfortunate truth, but why do you do that to us?’ It’s a good story to say, but the story is different if you say that the father is the man I saw at the hospital the other day.

“So, the person who was brought to the lab at that time was Mr. Rabbit’s father?”

“Yes. And they said that contact was lost shortly after being moved to the lab.”

The suspicious story didn’t end there. According to Mr. Rabbit, the sponsor of the anti-awakened group that was protesting in front of the hospital at that time was the same as the sponsor of Team Galaxy.

In other words, it becomes possible to interpret that Team Galaxy or its sponsors are using the anti-awakened group to capture those who caused an explosion of abilities in the laboratory.

Listening to the story, it seemed clear that Mr. Rabbit at least thought that way. The reason he told us was probably because he couldn’t trust his teammates. In fact, it was Cat who put you in the lab, even if it was just for you.

“If you know that much, wouldn’t it be better to talk to the police or the association rather than us?”

“They said there was no physical evidence to talk to them.”

The pharmaceutical company that sponsors Team Galaxy is run by Eonryeongsa’s half-brother, Miyeoknam. In other words, it is a fairly large company. It’s probably one of the top five, maybe even three, in the field.

Even if you report such a place without physical evidence, there is no way it will cause any damage. In fact, it would be fortunate if the opposite happened.

Of course, that also applies to us.

“Fine, a hero is not an outlaw who can ignore the law and go on a rampage. You know that. It’s the same as saying that you can’t believe what Mr. Rabbit says without physical evidence.”

Instead of answering Jeongyoung’s words, Hwain looked at Raon. Raon’s usual lively demeanor had gone, and he had bowed his head silently since a while ago.

Raon was quite hesitant, but when Hwain touched his shoulder, he took a breath and slowly began to talk.

“I was discussing magic with my senior while waiting for you guys earlier. Then, my senior went outside for a moment and while I was waiting for him, the report he left behind caught my eye.”

Raon said that he had no intention of seeing it at first. Even if there was no copyright in magic, I had no intention of looking at something that might have been related to the company’s final year.

However, the magic formula that caught his eye when he took a quick look forced Raon to check the report.

“What is that magic formula?”

“… It was an approach to the human soul. That too, authentic.”

A look of astonishment fell on Raon. Even the bully, who had been acting the other way until a moment ago, was paying attention to Raon.

… Except me.

“What, what you just said was so surprising?”

“Of course, do it. Studying the human soul is absurd.”

“I wouldn’t say it’s taboo, but it can’t be done unless it passes strict screening from both the government and the association. At least it’s not a topic that one pharmaceutical company can touch on.”

Mari and Jeongyoung shook their heads as if they were shocked at my puzzled appearance and explained it to me. Um, well, it was done relatively frequently in my time. Well, soul-related experiments were a study that could easily fall into the unethical direction.

“Wait a minute, wait a minute, isn’t this strange? No matter what, there’s no way you could leave such information in a place where others can see it, right?”

“… I’m not even sure. I’ve only seen it briefly and it’s so difficult that I don’t understand it all yet. But if what I saw is correct, I think there is at least some related research being done in that lab.”

“Couldn’t I have let my guard down because I thought Raon’s knowledge was at the level of a student?”

There was a brief discussion as to why such an important thing had been handled so sloppily, but nothing much came of it. In the first place, before the conversation got too long, Hwain clapped to change the direction of the conversation.

Now is the time to decide on action rather than questioning the truth of information.

“Rabbit said, ‘Please help me save my father.’ To be honest, I want to help with that.”

Hwain’s feelings were fully understandable. Even though we only talked for a short time, he left a pretty good impression. And even without the impression, saving good citizens in danger is a hero’s main job.

“But as Jeong Young said earlier, it is also true that there is insufficient evidence. Maybe Mr. Rabbit is actually a bad person and is trying to trap us. So this time, I’ll go with a majority vote.”

“Majority decision? Not just people who want to do it?”

“I would like to go alone, but anyway, if I were to sneak in alone, I would get caught quickly and cause trouble to you all. So, unless a certain number of people are secured, I plan to reject Mr. Rabbit’s offer.”

Of course, I will try to find another way at that time, Hwa-in said with a wry smile.

Borrowing the power of others is the same as always. However, his expression did not reflect self-blame for his lack of ability, but rather a determination to do his best in what he could.

I raised my hand, thinking, “I can’t help but help you with this,” but there was someone faster than me.

“I want to go! I got help last time, so it’s my turn to help this time.”

“Even back then, I didn’t really just help you.”

The painter smiled wryly at Marie’s participation in the war and bowed her head to express her gratitude. Next to the embarrassed Mari, Raon also raised his hand.

“… I’ll go too. I really want to hear from my senior.”

Raon, who had been very close to Cat during her internship, must have been quite shocked to see Cat doing such a thing. Hwain also nodded stiffly as his intention was so firm that he could not refuse.

“I will participate too.”

“Huh? you are? Really?”

The next person who expressed his intention to participate was a gangster. Honestly, this was really unexpected. I thought he would reject it, saying it had nothing to do with me or anything.

Still, considering the usefulness of the gang both in terms of power and outside of power, there was no option to refuse. Hwain seemed to think for a moment, but then bowed his head and expressed his gratitude. Whatever the reason, any help was welcome.

“I don’t know what that guy will do when he gets in, but I can’t be the only one left out. I’ll go in too.”

“Of course I will participate!”

Jeongyoung decided to participate in the event in the name of keeping an eye on the gangster, and I decided to participate because it looked fun. In the first place, given my role, there is no reason not to follow Hwain when he does this.

Once the participation of six people was confirmed, attention naturally focused on the one remaining person.

“Hey~, why is everyone looking at me like that?”

Pan-hi.

“Well, you won’t participate just because you look at me like that, right? If you get caught wrong, you could have all sorts of consequences in your school life?”

Pan──hi.

“… Ah, I understand. I can help you. If I help you… .”

“I didn’t mean to see it that way.”

The painter was scratching his head as if he was sorry, but the three of us, Yangachi, Marie, and I, secretly looked away. The gangster was threatening with eyes that looked like, ‘If you don’t come, you’ll die,’ and Marie was begging with eyes that looked like, ‘I’m anxious, so please come with me.’

me? I just roughly followed what the other two were doing because it seemed fun.

“Thank you, everyone. I will think of a way to avoid harm to everyone as much as possible. If you guys have any good ideas, please tell me right away.”

“Here I am!”

Once the direction of action has been decided, the next step is to plan a specific strategy. And I had a good plan. It’s so deceptive that if you’re lucky, you can solve it all with one shot.

“Let’s use cheat keys!”

***

“So you were looking for me, senior?”

Our cheat key, all-round junior, Sia, has arrived. Isn’t it safe to say that we’ve won this now?

“Help me, Siaemon!”

“Emong? I don’t know, but are you complimenting me?”

“… Well, that’s roughly how it feels.”

Doraemon’s serialization ended in 1996. It exists normally in this world too. It’s just that it’s not as famous as it used to be, and the materials are a bit old. The generation gap is sad.

I ignored Sia, who was sitting on the sofa and tapping her knee, and sat on the floor in front of her. Since the last time I put a knee pillow on him, it seems like the number of cases of inducing skinship has strangely increased. Maybe it’s just my mood.

Since I look like this, it might be easy to forget that I am a man. Let’s talk about it step by step later. The priority now is to ask for help.

“Hmm. In short, are you asking me to help you infiltrate the lab?”

“That’s it!”

I think my explanation of the situation was conveyed very well, saying, “I’ve ended up sneaking in with the kids this time, so please help me.” Sia, who was impressed by my eloquence, shed tears of emotion and agreed to my request.

“Are you a fool, senior?”

Correction, I did not accept it. Indeed, it seems that persuading an S-class hero is not easy.

“Is it because there is not enough evidence? However, it takes time for the association to officially dispatch investigators.”

“That doesn’t mean students can storm in and bring evidence. Of course you know that illegally collected evidence cannot be used for prosecution, right?”

“It’s okay, I thought about that part properly.”

Our purpose is to confirm that Mr. Rabbit’s father is safe and to rescue him in case of emergency. If Mr. Rabbit’s father is doing well, you can just get out. If something bad is happening, you can rescue him.

In this case, if Mr. Rabbit’s father still retains consciousness and memory, he can claim that he received a rescue request. In other words, after we illegally kidnap the uncle, we can take it in the form of a rescue request from the kidnapped uncle. It’s a perfect plan.

“I don’t call a plan perfect if it has more holes than instant ramen, senior… . In the latter case, whether it works out well or not, the illegality is certain.”

“It’s okay, because it’s better to be a criminal who saved people than a hero who couldn’t.”

Of course, it depends on the offender, but in this case, it is infinitely closer to safe. But that’s just from my standards!

“Actually, there isn’t much real risk. You know that? Because among the group, there is not a bully, but a trainer. As long as there is a transcript of Mr. Rabbit’s remarks and the fact that he worked diligently during the internship period, there is no way it will be such a big deal that the trainer’s family cannot cover it.”

This is Yangachi’s usefulness in areas other than his power. In the first place, since the sponsor over there is Yangachi’s biological family, there is no way something like this could be made public. Of course, the bully’s position in the family may worsen, but he doesn’t seem to be that interested in that.

“… I’ve thought about this often in the past, but senior, you didn’t hit me because you didn’t know how to hit someone, but you hit them knowingly, right?”

“This time, I’m holding back because there are kids besides me, and I don’t usually like using tricks like that. So please quickly tell me why you are against it.”

Of course Sia knows what I said. Me, who learned to recite Seodanggae Pungwol next to Changhyuk, and Sia, who worked in the intelligence department for a long time, are literally on a different level in this regard.

So the reason for Sia’s opposition must lie somewhere else.

“Mmm. Well, I don’t have a clear reason. To begin with, it’s a fairly peaceful area, so the association’s intelligence department doesn’t pay much attention.”

“… ?”

Peaceful? No, there weren’t enough incidents to say that. … For now, let’s prioritize listening to Sia.

“But this incident is too contrived. By chance, when my senior and the kids went on an internship, a runaway accident occurred and it happened to be a family member of the hero team, so they were caught stealing it into the lab? Also, the hero who asked for help happened to be from your team, so there is no way such a coincidence could happen.”

“No, it was a coincidence that the runaway incident occurred in the hero’s family, but the internship was our choice, and the Awakened Runaway accident was also occurring, and there was no one in particular who asked for help other than us, so it was a coincidence──”

“Anyway! It’s clear that someone planned it. There’s no need to crawl in there on purpose, right?”

Beware of the invisible darkness. Well, it is a natural decision for the Ministry of Information. Of course, the current Shia is not the Ministry of Intelligence, but that experience doesn’t go anywhere.

However, just because there is a risk, you cannot avoid it unconditionally. Although it is said that one can endure hardships when one is young, trials cannot be avoided for the ‘main character’ of the story.

We need a protagonist who has gone through trials and grown. That was a common perception between Changhyuk and me. And the purpose of my life as a bodyguard is to prevent the protagonist from suffering an unfortunate accident during the ordeal.

Of course, in my weakened state, I cannot block all threats. In fact, weren’t there quite a few dangerous enemies? So, asking Sia for help now was literally taking out insurance.

“Sia, you are quite strong.”

“Yes? Yeah, whatever. Compared to when I used to hang out with my senior, I’ve become somewhat stronger.”

“If that’s okay, you should look it up in the dictionary.”

Heroes who originally achieved S rank do not experience drastic changes in their power. So, I have no idea what method Sia used… . What is certain is that when S-class is lined up in terms of combat power, Sia will never fall below half.

“Tell me honestly. Aside from the Four Heroes, is there anyone you think you can’t beat no matter what you do in a 1:1 match?”

“No… , it’s long.”

“Yes, the other Four Heroes won’t be able to come because they have their own work to do. So when I call you, I am literally mobilizing all the power I know.”

In other words, if you take Sia and things don’t work out in terms of battle, it’s an issue with no answer. That’s how much I trust Sia.

“Well, if you lose, you’ll have no choice but to quietly stick your neck out.”

“You have to say that you will come to save me, even if it is just empty words.”

“Yes. Even if it’s an opponent you can’t beat, I’ll definitely come to your rescue.”

Although I said it lightly, it was not an empty remark. This also happened several times when I was active as Asura in the first place. Of course, we are no longer partners, but I have no intention of forgetting our old bond.

However, before I could say the lightly part, I suddenly felt a movement of magical energy. Of course, there was no one else in this house other than us, so it was Sia who used magic power. Why all of a sudden… , what?

“Is that your alter ego?”

The Xia in front of me looked the same as before, but her energy was slightly weaker. There was also a feeling that the smile, which seemed like a genuine smile, was somehow stiff.

Sia, or rather Sia’s alter ego, responded to my words by tilting her head.

“Yes? Yes, well, that’s right?”

“… ? Did something urgent happen?”

“Sometimes you want to talk through your alter ego.”

Are there times like that? There are many unique personal characteristics based on potential, but has that ever happened to Sia?

… If you think about it carefully, it seems like it happened a few times in the past. The clones back then weren’t as elaborate as they are now.

“Anyway, since you trusted me so far, I guess I have no choice but to respond to this as a junior. The reason I’m going there is to complain about the last advertisement, right?”

“Oh, are you taking care of it? Of course, it is good to have a trustworthy junior.”

“Hehe, please praise me more!”

That day, we exchanged simple strategies with Sia, and while doing so, she also praised me a lot. It was truly a meeting full of laughter, but for some reason, we couldn’t see Sia in person until just before departure the next day.

… It’s not like I made a mistake or anything, right?

***

Surt and his party’s infiltration attempt took place the day after the party heard Ratchet Rabbit’s story. If it took time to prepare, the result would be worse than requesting it from the association, so it was only natural. The timing was perfect as the next day was Sunday and there were no regular researchers in the lab.

It was because of this fitting part that Joo Sia felt something artificial. Of course, it was Sia that Fafnir prepared for such a time.

The ultimate weapon, Sia, was located a little away from Surtur and the others from the beginning, that is, in Team Galaxy’s reception room at the research institute. Even if Surt and his group, who were students, were caught, they could have done nothing about it as they were minors, but for her to infiltrate the company openly, it would have been a huge political problem if she had been caught.

Therefore, it can be said that the Surt team’s goal this time is to rescue the victims while Sia attracts the attention of pharmaceutical companies through advertising consultations and protests.

“If you look at the map of the lab that Mr. Rabbit brought you, the basement of the lab is divided into three areas: Sector A, Sector B, and Sector C. So we also have to divide into three teams.”

There are two conditions for the team. One is that it must include at least one person who can use stealth-related techniques, and the other is that it must have sufficient combat power to prepare for emergencies.

Of course, Surt and his party discussed this the day before and decided to some extent. Therefore, Surt was not dissatisfied with the current situation.

“If you’re going to do something stupid, you’ll have to think carefully. If you’re not careful, you could get stabbed in the back.”

“Ha, with your skills?”

No complaints, but was this really the best? Hero Surtur asked himself once again as he watched the two people next to him creating an imminent atmosphere.

With the number of people divided into three, two, two, it was inevitable that the trainer would be among the three. This was simply due to the trainer’s excellent group hiding skills.

In that case, it was inevitable that Jabberwock would join the three-person team. If you are a Jabberwock who has a lot of experience working with mercenaries, it will be much easier to figure out in advance even if the trainer tries to do something strange than other people. Jabberwock himself was hoping for that too.

The problem was when deciding on the last member of the three-person team. Raon and Cyclops were out of the question because they were capable of group hiding, and Fafnir had excessive combat power, so Surtur and Mare naturally emerged as candidates.

“I think hiding, if possible, can lead to physical contact, so it should be done with people of the same sex if possible!”

At first, Surtur himself nodded to Mair’s claim. No, I still don’t think that’s wrong. However, seeing as the trainers can hide like buffs without any physical contact, isn’t there a need to team up with members of the same sex? I couldn’t help but feel that way.

In fact, infiltration itself was laughably easy. It could also be said that the team composition was good. The process of the Jabberwock identifying surveillance devices in every corner of the dark hallway and the trainer neutralizing them, the trainer feeling the signs of barrier magic and Surtur destroying only the main points with flames, was as natural as water.

Rabbit has taken care of the surveillance cameras separately, so if things continue this way, he will be able to escape without being detected. However, Surtur could not call this excellent team good even with empty words.

“I’m jealous of that little guy. He must be hanging out with the girls right now and flirting with them.”

“… The one that Fafnir teamed up with was Cyclops. You probably don’t know the relationship between the two.”

“Ah, that’s right, that’s right. Even if it’s just that little thing, I won’t feel anything.”

What was particularly problematic was the trainer’s attitude. The trainer’s attitude of blatantly viewing his teammates as objects of sexual desire was fatally at odds with Jabberwock and Surtur, who cherished their teammates.

However, you won’t get an answer until you say you don’t like it and avoid it forever. Since we are now on the same team, it would not be advisable to continue fighting. Fafnir was hoping that the three of them would at least not fight.

There were too many reasons for Surt to decide to mediate between the two.

“Let’s stop forcing the conversation in that direction. Rather, why did you participate in something like this?”

“Why, I pretended to get along well in front of the kid, but I still don’t like him? Well, I wonder what’s so good about such an old man.”

The reason why I was full and overflowing was cut in half in an instant. Surtr barely resisted the urge to join in with the Jabberwock and attack its trainer.

“Fafnir is just a colleague, and the reason I’m asking you is simply because I was curious. If you don’t want to talk, that’s okay.”

If he received an insincere answer this time, Surtur was planning to completely give up on the minimal effort to communicate with the trainer. I also thought that would actually happen.

However, the trainer shook his blonde head, pondered, and then slowly opened his mouth.

“… It’s because of family.”

“Family?”

“You saw it on the first day of the internship, right? That guy with hair like seaweed.”

When Surtur heard the word seaweed, he thought of the man who was the sponsor of Team Galaxy. Apparently, the trainer called him older brother.

Did the trainer come here to uncover and persuade the family of their evil deeds? No, perhaps they are trying to pretend to cooperate with us and destroy evidence for the sake of their families. Surt thought it was impressive to see the trainer thinking about his family while thinking such things.

“It’s okay, if you convince me well, you will definitely understand.”

“… ? What nonsense are you talking about? Here, you have to clearly identify the weak point and step on it so that you can never mess with it again.”

“… … .”

Surtur decided to resent his trainer’s common sense judgment, even if just for a moment. In fact, at this point, I even thought that there might be something going on with that statement.

Just before Surtur opened his mouth again in a semi-resigned tone,

Jerk.

──He seemed to be popular.

At the end of the hallway, there is a fork in both directions. One person was approaching from one side. Since they were taking such measures, there was no way they could hear the conversation, but naturally the three people kept their mouths shut and started moving. The Jabberwock dived into the shadows of the hallway, and Surtur stuck to the wall with his trainer, hiding behind illusion magic.

An ordinary researcher would probably have passed by without noticing anything abnormal. The skills of the Jabberwock and its trainer were so skilled that even an awakened person could not find this place without being suspicious.

However, what appeared on one side of the crossroads was something that was far from ordinary.

“… oh? Isn’t that Surtr there? It’s been a while since I saw you.”

A woman with green hair neatly tied down and a long tongue like a snake. Chae Sa-hee hissed and was looking directly at them.

*****