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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: JayM
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The building collapsed. The cadets as well as the external personnel gasped in admiration, but the chairman didn’t let her guard down.
She had intended to completely crush them with the first blow so that the cadets wouldn’t have to see the bodies, but she could feel something hard underneath the rubble, something that couldn’t be broken by this level of pressure.
“Ah, you’re being too harsh. What if I had a hostage?”
And with a sarcastic voice, it blew away the building’s debris and slowly ascended.
Her ears tingled from the demonic energy, but this much was fine.
In her life, she had encountered devils three times, excluding this one, and the difference in their power was vast each time.
Among them, there was one experience where she felt an overwhelming sense of defeat, but judging by the total amount of energy she felt now, the devil in front of her was definitely not at that level.
If it was an opponent she could fight, then there was no need to hesitate.
However, the devil, as if it didn’t care about how she would react, just acted playfully.
“My, my, I shouldn’t be the one to say it, but you’re a monster. To have this much power even while hiding your true form. But what should I do? I have no intention of fighting you directly.”
She unconsciously reacted to the words “true form.”
How did it know that? How much did it know?
“Is that so? I’m fine with that. I’ll just beat you up and dispose of you.”
“No, no, I can’t let that happen. I have to finish my preparations for my great master, you see~?”
“Right, you can do that after you go to hell.”
Blades of wind appeared in an instant and flew to shred the devil.
Invisible blades.
Wind had no shape or color, so the blades created by compressing it were also difficult to see with the naked eye.
The devil detected the incoming blades through its widely spread demonic energy and skillfully dodged them, but that was a fatal mistake.
At first, they were easy to misunderstand since they came from the front, but her attacks had no starting point.
Anywhere there was air was within her range. There was no escape.
The devil was flustered by the cluster of blades that suddenly formed around it.
The only way to escape the ability to control the flow of the air was to either counter it with a stronger force or to escape to a space without air. Since neither was possible for the current devil…
…in the end, it tried to block them by forcibly condensing its demonic energy, but it failed, and its arm was cut off by the wind blades.
Seeing that, the director was certain…
She could win.
“…That hurts. I invested a lot of energy to come up here, so if I get too hurt, I won’t even break even.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you don’t have to worry about your investment and just cleanly annihilate you.”
“How terrifying. Eternal rest. It’s really scary because you’re someone who can actually do it. Then, shall I stop holding back and reveal my hand?”
‘There’s no need to listen to this anymore.’
Thinking so, she created a single arrow with her talent.
Her signature move, the Arrow of the Storm. It was the technique she was most well-known for, having once taken the life of an S-rank villain with a single shot created by compressing the surrounding air to its limit.
The arrow, created by compressing high-density wind, began to rotate violently while emitting blue light.
The moment she aimed the arrow to pierce her target…
…the devil smirked, and something shot out from the building’s rubble, blocking its path.
A human face was floating on the surface of a black, slimy monster.
The director was cold and rational.
Even after realizing it was once a cadet, she intended to pierce it.
It was just a puppet without consciousness.
Someone who chose to abandon their humanity.
It would be worse than the worst-case scenario if someone else involved in the subjugation was harmed because she hesitated.
“D… Director…”
But no matter how cold she currently was, she was still startled when it spoke, something she didn’t expect.
Especially since she had the ability to see through deception and uncover the truth.
She was startled by the fact that the puppet still had a will.
Her reason screamed at her to shoot, but the hesitation that had already formed wouldn’t easily disappear.
“Are you going to shoot, even though you might be able to save it?”
The moment the devil mocked her, she forcibly changed the arrow’s trajectory.
She had no intention of falling for the devil’s trick.
It was a choice she made because she was confident she could pierce only the devil even if she changed the trajectory, as long as there was only one shield.
Because it was right to capture even a puppet cadet if possible.
She just had to pierce the one who was careless while it was thinking that it was safe with a shield.
“Ah, of course, it’s not just one.”
“Sa…ve…”
“I didn’t think it would end like this…”
“We…”
But in the end, she hesitated again at the tragedy that followed.
It was horrifying. How many were there?
“Aren’t they pathetic and cute? These slothful souls who had all their potential stolen by something so trivial.”
The director unconsciously clenched her fist.
How dare, how dare it say such things in front of her.
“Now then, except for the few who will be my shields… All of you, fight.”
“Sa…ve meeee…!”
The monsters, screaming for salvation, charged.
Most of the cadets couldn’t move upon seeing the monsters with the faces of their peers.
Those who started fighting were mostly external personnel or faculty, and the only cadets who moved were…
“Yoo-na, please…!”
“Yeah…!”
…those who were already on the path to completion.
Lilac, buffed by the holy light, charged.
The holy light, which purified evil and didn’t allow the existence of the profane, spread in all directions, burning the monsters’ skin and making them scream.
“…No.”
But it was Lilac who frowned.
What he was trying to do wasn’t an attack, but purification, a healing power.
But they, who had half-turned into monsters, were in pain instead of being healed, and the meaning of this was simple.
It was already too late for them.
It wouldn’t be difficult to defeat the enemies with the Holy Sword, but the demonic energy had already corroded their souls too deeply to purify them and turn them back.
It was easy to kill them, but difficult to save them.
It might have been possible if he condensed a high concentration of power like when he saved So-hyun, but there were too many of them, and there was no one here that could buy him time.
Lilac thought for a moment, then opened his eyes with determination.
If the best was impossible, then the next best.
He knew now that he couldn’t save anyone just by whining.
He couldn’t hesitate now, not after almost losing his friend several times.
There was no hesitation in the sword he was about to swing.
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“…Ga-eul, is that good?”
“Huh? Yeah. Don’t you like it, So-hyun?”
We, who were arguing whether the standard side dish for pork cutlet was kimchi fried rice or omurice, reached the conclusion of ordering both and were able to enjoy a full meal after witnessing the truth that both were delicious.
For the record, I didn’t like spicy food, so if I had to choose, I was on the omurice side.
Afterward, I was planning to go back, but Ga-eul insisted she would tell on me, so I played with her more, going to karaoke and a PC bang with her to kill time.
We were eating dessert while taking a walk, and Ga-eul was happily munching on a lump of cream she insisted was a waffle.
…She could eat that lump of cream after eating pork cutlet?
“Hehe, the others must be having a hard time. I don’t know if it’s okay for me to be this happy.”
“…You’re just saying it out loud now, aren’t you?”
“Honestly, what’s the point of acting when we all know? I feel a bit guilty that I’m the only one who’s too weak to help. So I have to hold onto you even tighter.”
“Oh, for someone who feels guilty, you seem to be satisfying all of your selfish desires right now.”
“…If I’m going to play, I might as well enjoy it. Honestly, I don’t like that the others are having a hard time, but I don’t know if those people are worth pitying. I was tempted for a moment too, but I immediately lost interest after finding out that it was a dangerous drug. They took it because they wanted to, and they even made a contract with a devil.”
“Well, that’s true. There were probably some who were desperate, and some who just wanted to get stronger easily.”
“I don’t know. I heard that those delinquents used to bully people, and since they’re targeting you, I wish they would just disappear.”
“Oh, to hear Kim Ga-eul, of all people, say she dislikes them for bullying people~? This will be controversial.”
“Ah, ah! Seriously! That was just once! Just for a moment! I said I would beg for forgiveness until you forgave me!”
“Yeah, I don’t need it. I’ll tease you every time the cooldown is over~”
“…I hate you.”
“Really?”
“…No, I don’t.”
Ah, seriously, what should I do with our cute Ga-eul?
“Anyway, we’re not going to stay like this until the incident is over. Let me go, Ga-eul~ We have to go back to the dorms.”
“Hmm, that’s true, but…”
She was probably worried that I would run to the scene the moment she let go, but honestly, it was already too late.
“Ah, I’m definitely not going. We can even video call until I fall asleep.”
“…Oh, that’s a good idea. Should we?”
…She liked that? I was just saying it.
“Anyway, I’m really not going, so don’t worry…”
Huh?
Just as I was trying to persuade Ga-eul, a girl came into my sight.
She was far away, so I thought I might have been mistaken, but as far as I knew, there was only one person who insisted on that kind of manga-like princess hair, the so-called drill hair, so I didn’t think I was mistaken.
“…What’s she doing over there?”
Aisha. She looked like she was in serious danger as she clutched her chest as if she was enduring something.
“Hey, doesn’t that look dangerous?”
“You’re changing the subject again… Huh? You’re right.”
It became clearer as we got closer.
The way she was enduring severe pain was definitely not normal.
“Heh, heh. No way. Not yet. I can’t give in before I see that old man’s face contort. Let’s endure a little longer. No, wait, should I just go for any guy?”
…Wow, what was she saying? I was going to help her because she looked like she was in pain, but hearing her talk made me want to leave.
Then, unfortunately, Aisha, who raised her head, made eye contact with me.
“Aha, we met at a good time. You had feelings for me, right?”
…Ah, damn it, I should have just walked away. Why did I have to be such a busybody?
“I’m in a hurry, I don’t think I can hold on much longer. Even if it’s you, please, just…”
Her body trembled.
Oh, this was dangerous. This was a clone, so my senses were a bit slow, but the demonic energy blooming inside her was about to completely consume her.
It was a wonder that she was enduring this much.
“It would be a shame to be in a clean body when I’m thoroughly broken for revenge.”
She probably didn’t even know what she was saying.
Her eyes, which were starting to turn purple, looked at me.
“So please, help me.”
-I have to stop you.
Ah, shit. Why did she have that expression again, so similar to that time?
I didn’t know her that well, even though I used her as a tool once.
Just a girl with a bad habit of flirting, a terrible personality, and an annoying attitude.
And also the girl who risked her life to stop me when I was broken.
…I couldn’t just ignore her after all this, so if she was this desperate, I should help her just this once.
“…What are you talking about?”
“…Haha, if you’re not going to help, then please step aside. I’m really in a hurry.”
“Yeah, I know. Just stay still.”
I took off my right glove. The mark on it was a replica, so its rank was lower, but it was still enough to suppress the demonic energy of a girl who hadn’t completely fallen yet.
The demonic energy she was desperately suppressing, as if scared, hid deeper inside her.
…Anyway, she really endured well. It wouldn’t have been easy to resist the demonic energy, since the devil was trying to corrupt her by force, even giving up a part of its own power.
Her complexion brightened rapidly after I twisted the contract and created an opening.
“Huh? Huh? Huh? Why? This can’t be happening. Just a moment ago…?”
She looked at me as if she had seen a ghost, but I just shrugged.
“What are you? How did you do that?”
“Do what?”
“Don’t play dumb…! Did you help me?”
“Ah, I don’t know. Maybe my hands have healing powers. If you get better on your own, then that’s that.”
…Ah, I saved her, but she was still a bit much. Delinquents were one thing, but a drug addict was crossing the line.
“Let’s go, Ga-eul.”
“Uh, yeah? Yeah!”
“Ah, wait! Please wait!”
Yeah, I wasn’t waiting. The devil you made a contract with would be dead soon anyway.
Then we would be even, right?
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Lilac was definitely going to swing his sword with all his might.
If it weren’t for the man who appeared with a sudden storm slowly descending from the sky as if walking on stairs, he would have.
“…You!”
A jet-black formal suit that contrasted with the pure white demon mask.
An attitude that seemed to look down on the world.
He couldn’t forget him. The villain who brought them defeat that day, and the benefactor who saved his friend and at the same time. The strange man who tried to test them using his friend.
He looked around with his characteristic arrogant attitude and spoke.
[Pathetic.]
A cold voice.
[I don’t like it.]
An arrogant attitude.
[So, I will intervene.]
A brilliant darkness bloomed from his hand, engulfed the area, and devoured all light.
It was the moment a true darkness, which made even devils seem insignificant, arrived.
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T/N – I love it! The overly dramatic flair, the grand entrance, the over the top opening move…! Perfect! Villain MC is really the best.
Also, it seems like Aisha is also going to be the MC’s subordinate even in this run. Well, I don’t mind Miss Drill Hair being evil subordinate number 4 (1 is the hilarious farmer guy, 2 is the loli professor, and 3 is Rose the homonculus maid).
If you find any mistakes, feel free to point them out in the comments.
