Chapter 4: The Villain's Perspective (4)
An S-Class hero was a celebrity.
And not just an ordinary celebrity, but one whose name was known worldwide.
If an S-Class went on a trip abroad, the state provided a private jet and attendants to ensure no foreign agents harassed the S-Class with offers of defection.
Naturally, their freedom was limited, and their movements were disrupted. The S-Class led a more tiring life than celebrities.
Therefore…
Even if she was wearing a wig and disguised herself to hide her white hair that changed due to her power, it wouldn’t be strange for me to recognize that this woman was ‘Snow White’.
“Shush…!”
Snow White was startled, placing her index finger on her lips.
“H-How did you know that?”
“…….”
Because she was one of the main heroines?
Or maybe because she was so pretty?
“I’m a fan. I’m one of the ‘Dwarfs’.”
“Oh.”
Snow White held onto her sunglasses.
“I thought so….”
What were the Dwarfs?
It was the name of her followers’ fan club’, so to speak.
Of course, this global group being a fan club was stressful for her.
She was trying to borrow a motorcycle in a parking lot in Banpo-dong, Seoul, and the owner of that motorcycle was her fan?
That was beyond embarrassing.
“I’m really sorry, but could I borrow your motorcycle right now?”
“Are you trying to get there on the bike? To… stop it?”
“Yes, I’ll certainly compensate you. No, I’ll deposit it to you right now.”
“No, you don’t have to make a deposit.”
Getting a deposit from a hero?
Get my account traced and be exposed as a villain?
[Freeze this guy’s account first!!]
All the money I had earned would be frozen as national property.
That should never happen!
“Just take it. It’s obvious I should lend it to you, a hero who protects our country.”
“Huh? But, still.”
“Just make sure to protect our house. I only bought it 3 months ago…! So, I’m counting on you!”
After bowing slightly to Snow White, I handed over the bike key and immediately left the spot.
To my eyes, I was just an ordinary person running away in a hurry.
Although I could see Snow White watching from afar, I ran northward as much as possible and took out my smartphone.
“Huff, huff, Chairwoman…!”
[What’s going on, Chief Do?]
“Shaky, I mean, Black Knight was stolen by Snow White…!”
[What?!]
I told the boss the whole truth as it happened.
[Why is that woman in Seoul?]
“I don’t know. She suddenly came up to me and asked to borrow a bike…!”
[The bike?!]
“I lent it to her for now.”
[Damn it, no! Go and retrieve it! Why the hell did you lend the bike I bought for you to Snow White!]
The Chairwoman yelled in my ear.
[I bought it!! For you!!]
“…I apologize. I didn’t want to inadvertently expose myself and cause you harm.”
[Don’t worry about that! …Huh, no. There’s nothing we can do about the situation now. Hmm, Chief Do?]
Her voice returned to her usual cool, attractive tone.
[You don’t have to retrieve the bike. We can always buy a new one. You did well. It just started… moving.]
“Are you referring to the bike?”
[Yes. It has a location tracker on it.]
I knew that, but hearing it again was a bit scary.
My only means of transportation was the bike, and a location tracker was on the-.
“Chairwoman, could it be?”
[Why don’t we follow the signal for now? I have a mission for you, Chief Do.]
There was a playful tone in my boss’s voice.
[Go and smash the bike together with the Red Scarf.]
“In that case…”
[We’ll be indebted to Snow White. An S-Class Hero like her can easily pay monetary compensation, but a custom bike has value beyond money.]
“Chairwoman. What are you planning?”
[We’re going to implement ‘that operation’ using our connection with Snow White. I’ll tell you the details later. For now, go and destroy the bike. I’ll arrange for a new and awesome one.]
“Understood.”
In a deserted alleyway, I took a light breath and raised my hand to my face.
“…Transform.”
BOOOOMMMMMMM!!
The bike roared as it sped off.
Snow White, also known as Baek Seol-hee, momentarily lost herself at a speed that surpassed 200 km/h.
‘A bike with this kind of speed for a civilian?’
It was an unthinkable speed.
Could that man possibly be a biker gang member?
He might have borrowed the bike from a gangster or someone like that.
Since it was Seoul.
Even if it’s called Banpo Zai, it was now more of a land of earthbound spirits who couldn’t leave Seoul rather than a wealthy neighborhood. Those left behind there were like ghosts stroking their dead child.
It was inevitable that ‘the West’, compared to ‘the East’ with its relatively good public security, would end up in an environment with relatively poor public security.
It couldn’t be helped.
Because the ‘Island’, the safest place in the world and arguably the center of the world, was in the East Sea.
If it had fallen into the Yellow Sea, the position of the east and west would have been reversed, and Busan might have suffered more severe damage than Seoul now did.
Sigh.
Lost in various thoughts, she had reached her destination before she knew it.
[Snow White! Current location?!]
“I’m in Anseong, Anseong.”
[The punk is heading north along Cheonan! If you can intercept him halfway, do so and definitely retrieve ‘the item’!]
“…Roger that.”
Snow White got off the bike.
To ensure that it wouldn’t get damaged, she parked it safely on the side of the road and locked the side stand. Then, using her ability, ‘Ice Magic’, she froze the area around the wheels.
There should be no chance of it being stolen.
“…Huh.”
Facing a battle, her mind was cluttered.
Not only because of the bike but because the mission itself was stressful for her.
She appeared in Seoul not because she was part of the pursuit team chasing the Red Scarf from Busan. It was because she was ‘on vacation’ in Seoul.
Heroes couldn’t even properly enjoy a vacation.
If there had been another hero in Seoul, it might have been different, but Snow White was the only hero in Seoul.
365 days a year.
Even stepping out of her residence for a brief moment immediately attracted the press, yet during the only ‘3 days’ where a hero could enjoy freedom, she now had to fight an enemy.
[Snow White. The Minister of Defense…!]
“…Connect me.”
Snow White was momentarily very irritated, but she couldn’t cut off the words of the so-called ‘high-ranking person’.
[Ah, Baek Seol-hee? So, you are-]
“I’m in operation. Please call me by my code name.”
[…Ahem! So, Snow White. You are-]
“I’m about to engage in combat.”
Click.
After pressing the device in her ear, Snow White reached out towards the intense red heat coming from the front.
“Ice Wall.”
Crack!
An ice barrier spread across the road with the sound of splitting ice.
It was a wall that appeared to exceed ten meters, a wall that seemed impenetrable for any enemy.
An ice wall erected by an S-class ability user.
It was impossible for an average ability user to penetrate, but for one who has ‘that thing’-
Crash!!
Something red crashed into the ice wall.
Something that dyed the surroundings’ blood red tried to pierce through the ice wall like a needle.
“…Hmph!”
Snow White pumped more power into her hand, and the ice wall, while scraped from the outside, did not break.
“Tsk!”
The man within the red trail stepped back and clicked his tongue.
“Hey, government dog.”
“…What? Don’t you feel embarrassed saying that?”
“I didn’t say anything wrong, so what’s there to be embarrassed about?”
The young man, the villain ‘Red Scarf,’ wore what seemed like a red muffler that fluttered around his neck due to his power manifestation. He extended his hand forward with his eyes glinting a blood-red.
“Move, if you don’t want to die.”
“You? To me?”
“Hehehe, you’ll understand when you experience it directly.”
Flap.
Behind Red Scarf, something akin to red wings unfolded.
The fog made of mana looked very much like demon wings, and Snow White hastily looked up at the sky.
“…Phew.”
There were no helicopters yet.
It wouldn’t be possible to identify this location via satellite immediately, so she had about 3 minutes/
She needed to subdue him quickly during this time.
“Do you know how dangerous that thing is?”
“Why? Are you scared that I might instill fear into the world?”
“Conversation doesn’t seem to work with you. You’re 19 this year, right?”
“Shut up!”
Red Scarf raised his fist towards the sky.
Soon, a pillar of fire erupted around him. Snow White quickly extended the ice spike she had been secretly moving along the asphalt upwards.
“Even Snow White won’t be able to stop me! As long as I have this power, the ‘Power of Darkness’!”
Roar!
The fire pillar that ascended into the sky spread out in all directions.
Snow White quickly expanded the ice barrier, but the flames engulfed the surroundings faster than she expected.
“Ah…!”
The moment the fireball hit the bike, it exploded in a dazzling display.
“To engage in such indiscriminate terrorism…!”
Snow White bit her lower lip and reached forward.
“Do you think awakening your mana was just for this kind of act?! The blessing of mana is meant to be used for the world!”
“What do I care about using it for you?!”
As Red Scarf floated up into the sky, he aimed a blast at Snow White.
“I will live my life for myself! Damn it, rather than living in this shitty hellish peninsula—”
In an instant.
“To the place where I can live as a hero… To…”
Scrape, scrape.
Along with the sound of something scratching the ground, a black figure began approaching from a distance.
“That is…”
[Danger!! S-rank ability user detected! Pattern… Goblin!!]
The villain’s counterpart appeared.
Treading on the remains of the burning bike, the Goblin stared intently at Red Scarf with its crooked head.
And then.
[Villains must be eliminated.]
With those words, the Goblin charged toward Red Scarf.
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