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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: Mist's Debut
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"Hmm…"
Seo Ja-young.
It had already been a month since she started living at Ego-Stick's house.
Honestly, she'd just come because it seemed nice, without much thought, but life here was much better than she'd expected, and she was quite satisfied.
And everyone was kind. She'd definitely heard it was a villain alliance, but she didn't know why they were so kind. She didn't think too deeply about it. Good was good.
Anyway, she liked that everyone was kind. Especially compared to the people she'd met before…
…
…When she was young, quite a few people had avoided her after seeing her abilities. She'd just ignored them, thinking they were like barking dogs, but it was still a memory that made her feel a little bad whenever she recalled it. Anyway, compared to those people, the members of Ego-Stream had all welcomed her without prejudice. Maybe it was because they all had abilities themselves.
At any rate, ever since she'd moved into the Ego-House, Seo Ja-young had spent all day lying on the floor in a corner of the living room. The warm sunlight bathed her body, and there was nothing better.
From there, she observed several Ego-Stream members.
First, there was Han Seo-eun, a girl with silver bobbed hair, slightly shorter than herself. Cute. Kind. Supposedly smart too. Ja-young thought she was amazing.
And Eun-wol, who was always attached to Seo-eun. She had long black hair, the complete opposite of Han Seo-eun's, and sometimes wore a miko outfit even at home. Also cute and kind. And since her abilities seemed somewhat similar to Ja-young's, they talked quite a lot.
Lee Soo-bin… she felt a bit like the mom of the house. If Ego-Stick and Da-in handled outside matters, Lee Soo-bin managed the household. She was always smiling, but it was a little scary. A real mom vibe…
Choi Se-hee. One of the few people in the house who was the same age as her. Perhaps that's why they quickly became close.
Death Knight…? This black knight ghost seemed to really like cleaning. Ja-young had even helped him clean sometimes. Only once, though.
Ha-yul and Cha-yoon, was it? She hadn't seen much of them, as they seemed busy studying.
And then. Da-in, the center of this house. He was, in fact, the person she had observed the longest.
When she saw him on YouTube and when she first met him, he definitely seemed like a madman, but he was surprisingly normal.
She continued her train of thought.
…Actually, at first, she wondered why he was the only man among all the women in the house, but after observing him, it seemed he had no ulterior motives. It felt more like he only liked a woman named Stardus.
"Do you like Stardus?"
"Yeah. I do."
Considering he'd answered without a moment's hesitation when she'd casually thrown out that question before, he must like her. Though she wasn't sure if it was romantic or just a general liking. Incidentally, she'd sensed that those around them were flustered when she'd asked that question. Hmm…
"...What are you doing?"
And just as she was blankly continuing her thoughts, that voice came from in front of her, pulling her out of her reverie.
Blinking her eyes and regaining her senses, she realized she was currently lying on the living room floor by the window, next to the sofa.
And Da-in, who had been working while sitting on the sofa, looked down at her and asked, sounding puzzled.
…Ah, now that she thought about it, she'd been lying there staring at his face for a while.
To Da-in, who must have been wondering why she was staring so intently, she let out a small laugh and answered honestly.
"Thinking about you."
"Oh, really?"
At her answer, he grinned, put his laptop down next to the sofa, and stood up.
And with a smile still on his face, he looked down at her, lying there, and said,
"Looks like you're bored, thinking useless thoughts. Time to go train again."
"Ah, no…"
"Yes."
He then raised his hand, making her float gently into the air with telekinesis.
Ja-young desperately tried to grab onto the living room mat, but it was already too late.
…Da-in. He was a good person, but he had one major problem: he kept trying to train her abilities. It was an unwelcome task for her, who just wanted to keep lying around the house, but somehow, when he asked, it was hard to refuse. Was it the tyranny of the landlord…?
Just like that, she was being dragged out to the yard again today.
"Help me…"
"Unnie, fighting…?"
Incidentally, she tried to send an SOS to Baek Eun-wol, whom she met while being dragged away, but only received an awkward, encouraging smile in return. Everyone in this house seemed to be on Da-in's side…
***
The forest in front of the house. While training Seo Ja-young there, I thought deeply.
…How many more times will I be able to carry out these direct terror attacks myself?
Now that some time had passed according to the original story, and Stardus had become strong enough, there was no real need for me to be at the forefront.
Even without that, every time I carried out a terror attack, I felt like retiring. Maybe it was time to seriously consider the future.
'…Ego-Stream is also getting stronger and stronger.'
Of course, it's still not enough. We'd need a few more superhumans to be perfect. However, it's not easy to find villains with both good abilities and good personalities, so I wondered how many more I could recruit in the future.
On top of that, there was the Mango Squad… no, Ego Squad, which I was thinking of forming by gathering lower-tier villains, including the Lapiz Group, and even the superhuman PMC I planned to create in cooperation with Lee Seol-ah.
My head ached just thinking about all the preparations needed for the power inflation in the latter half of the original story. And then there were countless other villains that Stardus alone would find hard to stop…
Ugh, my head hurts, my head hurts. Alright, retirement or whatever, I'll think about that later. For now, let's just prepare for this terror attack.
With that, I said to Ja-young, who was flailing about.
"Stop flailing and try shooting a fireball!"
"…Ugh, a firebaaaall–"
She drawled, as if the world was too much effort, and casually waved her hand.
However, contrary to her half-hearted motion, a fiercely burning purple flame shot out from her hand.
"Ohh…"
The flame exploded with a purple roar as soon as it touched a tree. Moreover, this flame could be controlled for heat and spread, so the fire didn't spread, only burning with a purple glow exactly where it hit.
See? You can do it when you try. She's much stronger than when she first arrived. Look at her, accustomed to combat thanks to the top-tier villainy instructor's teaching.
"Whoa…"
"Hey. Come down now…"
…She had become so accustomed to it that she'd created a vortex of purple flame and ridden up on it. Hmm. Anyway, this should be enough.
"Hmm. I was having some fun for once."
"Wait, you're about to have real fun. Let's do a terror attack."
"…Oh, finally?"
She, who had been flailing closer, showed interest for the first time.
"You're confident you can handle a terror attack, right?"
"Yeah. What's so hard about it? Just shoot some flames at a hero, and if it looks like you're gonna get caught, run, right?"
She said it very calmly. …As expected of someone who initiated terror attacks on her own in the original story, she subtly grasped the essence of it.
"Oh, and you know you'll be on broadcast, right?"
"I know. Don't worry, I'm good at fan service."
Seo Ja-young said that, her lips curving slightly upward. …She's even scarier when she acts like that.
Anyway, having returned, we finally began to formulate a concrete plan. The date and time of the terror attack, the location, the progression…
And most importantly, what to decide for Seo Ja-young's villain name.
"How about Black Spirit?"
I asked first. Well, since she'd named herself that in the original story, she'd naturally go with it again. She'd probably be surprised and ask how I knew.
But contrary to my expectation, Seo Ja-young merely looked back at me with cold, deadpan eyes.
"…Wow. Terrible naming sense."
"Oppa. Who names a girl 'Black Spirit'…"
Seo-eun, who was listening nearby, also said so with a regretful look.
…I'm so wronged! She named herself that in the original story!
But I couldn't say that… Regardless of my grievance, Seo Ja-young's villain name was ultimately decided as Mist.
…It was a name completely unrelated to Black Spirit.
Anyway, with all preparations complete, time passed. Finally. The time had come.
***
Evening. Shadow Walker Kim Ja-hyun's house. He sat down, recalling the conversation he'd had with Lee Seol-ah earlier.
"Hmm… Ego-Stick carrying out terror attacks for Stardus, huh."
What she had told him was exactly what he had already surmised.
Ego-Stick, he was a hero who pretended to be a villain while secretly protecting South Korea from behind. And an especially zealous one, on par with Stardus in his dedication to protecting the nation.
"Terror attacks to make Stardus grow…?"
He tilted his head. So, Ego-Stick's reason for carrying out terror attacks was all for Stardus. To help her grow. No wonder there was a reason he only carried out terror attacks during the day.
"Why Stardus of all people…?"
Of course, why Stardus in particular was a slight mystery. But after a moment's thought, he realized. Ah! It must be because he liked Stardus, after all. How obvious.
"…Kuh-huh, to act like that, even enduring the hatred of the one he loves, all to help her grow… Ego-Stick. What a man."
Truly a man among men, Ego-Stick.
As he was lost in such thoughts again, the phone suddenly rang. It was the Association.
And the moment he answered, he heard:
[Shadow Walker! The villain Ego-Stick has launched a terror attack! Since it's night, we need you to deploy!]
"Hmm…?"
He was slightly flustered. Why me…?
It was common knowledge in South Korea that Shadow Walker handled evening terror attacks. Ego-Stick couldn't possibly not know that, so why did he launch a terror attack at night?
He pondered for a moment, then simply came to a clean conclusion.
Well, maybe it's because it's a bit much for Stardus to handle alone, so he's taking the opportunity to help me grow too? Yeah. That must be it.
Then, well… I can't miss this.
"Alright! Ego-Stick, I'm coming. Just you wait!"
Shadow Walker laughed heartily as he prepared to leave. …A little curious about what kind of terror attack Ego-Stick had prepared to face him.
***
[So, since Shadow Walker has already deployed, Stardus, please stand by for now…]
…