Red, who launched from the waiting area, ran swiftly and uninterrupted.
Normally, the people gathered in the plaza would have been competing in games prepared by the organizers, engaging in fierce survival battles.
Red had no intention of participating in the game.
Right now, it was simply a matter of finding and subduing the one who orchestrated this.
A game where robots equipped with sensors turned their heads and shot participants moving within their detection range.
Red zipped through the gaps between bullets and broke through effortlessly.
A game where walls closed in on both sides, requiring players to adjust their stances to survive.
Red burst through, running much faster than the speed at which the walls narrowed.
A game where players had to cross a bridge mixed with reinforced glass and regular glass within a time limit, with the risk of falling to their deaths if luck ran out.
Red crossed the glass panels with ease, moving far faster than the speed of falling.
Afterward, the perilous games that claimed lives targeted Red, but he shattered them without a scratch.
In the game, Red was akin to a bug.
The bug simply charged through the game.
He arrived solo at the final checkpoint far too easily.
It was a wide plaza with swirling sand and dust.
Red looked around.
There was nothing.
A strange, massive energy was felt from afar, and even though it lay over the entire space, it was not visible.
At that moment, a sound echoed throughout the plaza, vibrating the ground.
The ground split open, revealing a gigantic form atop it.
A colossal beast machine.
On top of that machine sat a man.
He had blue hair and a handsome appearance.
His face was so mild and sweet that it caught the attention of both men and women alike.
That man, crossing his legs and resting his chin in one hand, looked down at Red with a profound gaze.
Red also looked up at the one gazing down at him.
With cold, piercing eyes.
Not only was such a sickly face not his type, but it also emanated a foul, rotten aura that was unsettling.
He was a being who had casually harmed others, devoid of any hesitation.
“Is it you? The administrator of this place?”
Even with a fierce expression that would make a man with great courage shrink back, the man showed no signs of fear. Instead, his handsome face twisted slightly as if displeased.
This is troublesome, the man muttered softly, exhaling a long sigh before speaking.
“Ah, really, just as the rumors said, you’re rough and uncouth. To think you’d ruin the games I worked so hard to prepare like this. Thanks to that, my carefully planned scheme has been completely distorted.”
The man had three goals.
One was personal.
The remaining two were requests he had received.
Of those, the tasks he had been asked to do had not gone according to plan.
The overwhelming ability of the girl had easily disrupted his plans.
“Originally, I intended for the participants to fight, betray, and struggle against each other during the games to acquire money or for survival. I wanted to expose the ugly aspects of humanity to show you human nature as it is. So in the end, I wanted to ask you, the last one remaining, if you still trust humans, but it all fell apart.”
With a gasp, the man covered his face with both hands and lowered his head deeply.
His shoulders trembled.
Was he in despair over his plan collapsing?
Yet, a faint laugh escaped from the man’s lips.
Hehe.
Removing his hands to reveal his face, he showed no signs of disappointment.
On the contrary, a very relieved smile adorned his face.
“Well, it doesn’t matter. To be honest, I never expected things to go according to plan. I mean, I didn’t think such a prank would work on you. You’re the famous criminal killer who crushes all the world’s malice with your fists!”
The grotesquely curled corners of his mouth slowly relaxed.
“I prepared a stage for you to simply achieve my goal and to repay a favor to someone I know, but well, what can I do? If the actor does not follow the director’s instructions, what can I do?”
Red’s eyes narrowed.
“Who are you?”
The man clapped his hands, as if recalling something important.
With an elegant gesture, he lightly bent at the waist.
A cruel smile bloomed on his face.
“My name is Adam. I am the man who will sit on the throne of greed. It’s my last walk, so remember my name clearly. Because knowing the name of the man who will defeat you will make it less tragic.”
Red repeated Adam’s name and face in his mind and tilted his head slightly.
“Strange. The Squared Amusement Park is sponsored by a wealthy philanthropist. It shouldn’t have been easy for trash like you to come in and prepare such a vast facility.”
“Hehe, that wealthy man? I’m the one who gave him the money. I ordered him to create this place just for fun while giving him money. Sitting here and watching people flounder, how exhilarating it is~.”
As he observed Adam’s face intoxicated in ecstasy, Red frowned.
“What a disgusting stench of rubbish.”
“Hehehe. It’s a game that only someone with a lot of money like me can enjoy.”
“But the throne of greed… are you perhaps referring to the Seven Great Transgressions? With an empty throne, have the other two been killed too?”
“No. Strictly speaking, the two humans you missed are still alive. But they are worthless since they’ve already lost once. It’s practically empty. That’s why I want to sit there.”
With his legs crossed, Adam rested his chin on his hands.
He drew a great arc with his lips.
His murky eyes, swirling with greed and desire, flickered deeply.
“I want to sit in the seat of greed among the Seven Great Transgressions. It suits me. And then I want to fill the others with my people and become the shadowy figure operating in this world, that’s my dream.”
Adam’s innocence in revealing such a dream made his face appear innocent and childlike.
Sparkling, passionate, and pure evil.
“But!!”
Adam’s gentle face turned into rage, veins bulging on his forehead.
“You keep getting in the way of my dream! Criminal killer Red!! You, obsessed with your paltry hero play, have taken down many of the organizations I’ve put my money into! What good does it do to do the groundwork when you come along and wreck everything?”
“Right. I have a general idea of what kind of person you are. But what have you been doing all this time to come after me now? Just asking, are you that scared of me?”
With a sneer curling at Red’s lips, Adam denied it with rage.
“Not at all!!!”
Drawing a slow breath, Adam.
Having regained some calm, Red smiled wistfully.
“Honestly, until now, I was not prepared to fight you. But that ends now. I have all the cards in hand.”
“I see, understood.”
Red pulled down the leather gloves on his hands.
Clenching his fists, he took his stance.
“I’ll defeat you and then listen to the rest.”
“Yes! That’s how it should be; that gives me worth for coming here. But before that!!”
Adam snapped his fingers.
A clear sound rang out softly.
Snap.
In between Red and Adam, a large hologram appeared in the air.
Like a child waiting for something pleasant, Adam smiled cruelly yet cheerfully as he spoke.
“Let’s play the final game.”
Looking at the screen, Red slightly furrowed his brows.
What was reflected on the screen was the plaza with people.
The troubling part was that there were four massive monsters stationed in the north, south, east, and west of that plaza.
“As you can see, I have sent my pawns to the participants’ waiting area. The moment my order is given, they will move to kill all the participants in the plaza.”
Isaac’s smile grew even more brutal.
“The game’s content is simple. You or them, you get to choose.”
The monsters would remain still while Red endured Adam’s attack.
But the moment Red moved, the monsters would kill the people.
It was a straightforward rule, as Adam stated, but it was an utterly disadvantageous game for Red.
His face hardened at the unfair game.
Seeing that reaction, Adam chuckled and continued speaking.
“How will the fist that enforces justice make its choice? Even if the bodies of the powerless create mountains and rivers of blood, will you silently wield your fists to eradicate evil?”
Adam stretched out his right arm.
“Or will you abandon that shallow justice and endure the bitter hardship to save so many lives?”
Next, he extended his left arm.
With both arms stretched out toward Red, he called out loudly.
“Choose!”
Right after he finished speaking.
Boom!
The rebellious and ferocious giant beast machine Adam rode exploded.
“Isn’t it obvious? I’ll defeat you and save the people.”
Red kicked off the ground and charged towards Adam, throwing a punch at him.
The beast machine moved quickly to protect Adam, sacrificing its life in the process.
Of course, in the aftermath of the explosion, Adam’s body flew into the air and fell to the ground magnificently, rolling around.
Covered in dirt, Adam coughed repeatedly.
Annoyed by Red’s unhesitant actions, he got up.
Wiping the dust from his mouth with his arm, he said.
“Foolish! Do you think that’s possible? You will die by my hand here. Or do you trust the people in the waiting area? Do you think they can defeat those monsters? No matter how many Solvers are stationed there, those four great monsters can never be taken down.”
Adam continued speaking boldly.
“I sent the four great monsters there as my strongest pawns. To give a sense of greater despair. They are monsters that require multiple teams of SS-grade Solvers to take down!”
Adam burst out laughing loudly.
Indeed, Red’s time of contemplation was very brief, which was perplexing.
But rather, that’s why he could be all the more pleased about her choice.
A bold judgment and calm resolve to discard anyone to eradicate evil.
A distorted image of a hero, far removed from the heroes in books.
It indicated that she was no different from the humans in the city.
“You wanted to play hero that much! Now, criminal killer Red, see! The result of your hero play!!”
Adam swung his arms widely, clearly observing Red’s expression.
To see that face.
However, faced with an expression contrary to his expectations, Adam’s body froze.
What’s wrong? Why? How come?
Red’s expression was indifferent.
Seeing her utterly disinterested demeanor, Adam suddenly felt a sense of discomfort.
“Why that face?”
“Who knows? Maybe it’s because I’m still believing in the potential I guessed at that time….”
Adam frowned at her cryptic words.
Red quietly shifted her gaze back to the screen, recalling past events.
Adam followed her gaze.
The entire screen showing the plaza suddenly went dark.
