Chapter 88
Underground Prison, 1st Floor.
This is the floor where D-Class villains are gathered.
Although the villains are now under police jurisdiction, the villains caught before are still detained in the Association’s prison.
Since the infrastructure to imprison a large number of villains hasn’t been fully established yet, the Association is handling it for now.
“It feels kinda creepy.”
“Just one floor down, and it suddenly feels colder.”
“Not sure if it’s the psychological effect of the prison or if it’s actually cold.”
“They said they’ll come up on their own if we wait here, right?”
“Yeah, they’re releasing the villains from the bottom and coming up.”
“…Shouldn’t we go down and stop them then?”
“Why bother? They’ll come up if we wait.”
“…”
Jeong Gyeoul insisted on going down upon hearing the news that the villains were being released, but no one listened.
Having always been with these people, she didn’t consider the power they held.
The people gathered here had the ability to handle all the villains in the prison without a scratch.
“Just put the camera down and stand in front, Gyeoul.”
“…Huh?”
Jeong Gyeoul moved as Jeong Ha-yul instructed, but she couldn’t hide her confusion.
She’s from the Super Ability Category.
Shouldn’t Lee Ha-yoon and Jeong Ha-yul, who are from the Physical Category, be the ones standing in front?
“Why am I standing in front?”
“Because you’re the one who’s going to handle them.”
“…?”
The conversation seemed a bit off.
“I mean, I’m from the Super Ability Category, so shouldn’t I support from the back while you and Ha-yoon unnie take the front?”
“Huh? What are you talking about? You should be in front, and we’ll stay behind.”
“…Why would Physical Category fighters stay in the back?”
“Because we’ll be watching from behind?”
“…?”
Jeong Ha-yul laughed while looking at Jeong Gyeoul, who had a mix of disbelief and confusion on her face.
“You and Hayan will handle everything in front. That’s why we brought you.”
“…And while we do that, you’ll just watch?”
“Real combat experience is super important. You’ve only been following me around; you’ve never actually fought villains yourself.”
“Even so… Lee Cheol-jin is S-Class, right?”
“That’s why Hayan is here.”
Lee Cheol-jin is the weakest among the S-Class.
Recalling the time it took to subdue Lee Cheol-jin in the past, Jeong Ha-yul decided not to intervene.
If it’s Hayan and Jeong Gyeoul, they should be able to handle it.
Jeong Ha-yul, as if doing them a favor, sat back after putting the two middle school girls in front.
“…Are you really sending just us?”
Jeong Gyeoul stared at Park Seol-hwa with cat-like eyes, but Park Seol-hwa pretended not to notice and turned her head away.
“Sorry… But this will be good for you…”
“Good for us? We’re still first-years and just trainees!”
“Then think of it as advanced training.”
Jeong Gyeoul felt that no matter what excuse or reason she gave, she couldn’t avoid going out with Hayan alone.
“You’ll help if it gets dangerous, right?”
“Maybe?”
“Everyone! Jeong Ha-yul is a psychopath! She’s pushing two 14-year-old middle school girls into danger!”
Jeong Gyeoul suddenly ran in front of the camera and started badmouthing Jeong Ha-yul, but no one seemed to care.
“Stop that and come here. I hear something.”
“…”
The broadcasting team wouldn’t air Jeong Gyeoul’s outburst unless they were crazy.
Jeong Ha-yul, knowing that, found Jeong Gyeoul’s shouting at the camera cute.
Meanwhile, commotion could be heard from below, and Jeong Gyeoul was sent back to her spot.
“Is this for real… Two middle school girls at the front line…”
“Stop whining and come up with a plan.”
“…This is too much! You’re evil! Cruel!”
Jeong Gyeoul looked at Park Seol-hwa again, but Park Seol-hwa closed her eyes tightly and turned her head away.
“…I’m running away. I’m definitely running away.”
“Even if you do, Jo Se-hee will know where you are.”
“…Unnie, you’ve changed. How could love change like this!”
Jeong Gyeoul’s usual threat of running away no longer worked.
It was like watching the boy who cried wolf meet his end.
“This is all because we love you, so just accept it.”
Jeong Gyeoul turned her body before Jeong Ha-yul even finished speaking.
“Hayan, I’m counting on you!”
“Okay! I’ll handle everything! Gyeoul, you just take care of Lee Cheol-jin!”
“…?”
Even Hayan, whom she trusted, joined in teasing her.
There was no one on Jeong Gyeoul’s side here.
***
A sound could be heard.
A massive movement was heading toward us.
Just as the faces of the black-clad group became visible.
They stopped.
“Damn… There’s so many of them.”
Ah, curses slipped out again.
This is all Jeong Ha-yul’s fault.
“Editing, we need editing.”
“It’s the villains’ first appearance scene. Will they really edit it? The curses might just stay in.”
“…Really? Maybe they’ll at least mute the audio.”
The villains didn’t care what Hayan and I were talking about.
At first, they seemed surprised that two middle school girls were standing in front instead of Association staff or heroes.
Then, they seemed even more surprised when they saw the people sitting behind us.
“That’s Jeong Ha-yul!”
“Why is the Demon King here…”
“Park Seol-hwa is here too!”
“That’s the Taebaek Guild Leader!”
“Damn… We finally escaped, and the Grim Reaper is waiting for us?”
The villains seemed unable to believe the situation.
I’d probably feel the same.
After working so hard to break out of prison and enjoy freedom, the Demon King is waiting right there?
Who wouldn’t curse the heavens in this situation?
The villains, filled with despair, began to lose their will to fight.
…At this rate, they might just turn back on their own.
But Jeong Ha-yul, who didn’t want our practice targets to disappear, offered them hope.
“We’ll just sit here, and two delicate middle school girls will handle you. You’re not going to chicken out against middle schoolers, are you?”
“…Just those two?”
“Are they just trying to tire us out before finishing us off?”
“If Jeong Ha-yul stepped out now, we’d all be wiped out. Why bother with such a hassle?”
The villains swallowed the hope Jeong Ha-yul offered.
Bastards.
Use your brains, idiots.
Even if you defeat us, do you think they’ll just let you go?
The cameras are rolling, you know?
It’s clear why they ended up rotting in prison.
Thanks to that, my hope was utterly crushed, and I had no choice but to fight.
In the midst of it, there was even a filthy guy looking at Hayan and me with lustful eyes.
….
I’m going to make that bastard a eunuch.
I pressed the button on the necklace Jeong Ha-yul gave me.
In an instant, a specially designed suit wrapped around my body.
‘I forgot about this at the Academy…’
If I had remembered this, I wouldn’t have gotten stabbed in the side.
The saying that if your brain is bad, your body suffers seems true.
“Gyeoul! You look so pretty!”
Turning around, I saw Park Seol-hwa looking at me with sparkling eyes.
…Oh right, she made this.
“Thanks. I’ll wear it well.”
Just as I was about to thank Jeong Ha-yul for the gift.
Hayan tapped my shoulder.
“They’re coming, Gyeoul.”
“…Yeah.”
Looking at the villains in front of me, my gratitude vanished.
Jeong Ha-yul, you’re the worst.
Using this anger as fuel, I pressed down on the villains with all my might.
The so-called Telekinetic Press.
It’s the technique I used to crush Hayan at the Taebaek Training Ground.
Of course, the result was different from Hayan, who escaped by controlling gravity.
The villains hit by the Telekinetic Press stuck to the ground as if they had merged with it.
I instantly incapacitated half of the villains, but I wasn’t satisfied.
The ones lying on the ground are just the weaklings.
The ones still standing are the real deal.
“Hayan!”
“Okay!”
While maintaining the Telekinetic Press, I signaled to Hayan.
Whoosh—
The weak villains in the front couldn’t dodge the ice spears flying toward them due to the pressure of the Telekinetic Press.
“Ahhh!”
“My arm! My arm’s pierced!”
“Help me! Don’t just stand there, do something!”
They tried to use their abilities to block, but most failed.
“Oh, that’s the Gunman.”
“You know that villain?”
“He’s the guy who robbed banks before. He has this interesting ability where his fingers turn into guns.”
Yeah, I remember.
It was right after I became Jeong Ha-yul’s sister.
She took me to a scene to assert dominance, and we took down two C-Class villains.
Back then, he seemed like a real villain.
It made me decide to escape from that comfortable Demon King’s house.
Of course, I never actually did.
Seeing them chattering in the back, they still seem like villains.
I chuckled and released the Telekinetic Press.
Then, I immediately charged forward.
While the ice spears were still flying, I redirected them to attack the villains from behind, and I summoned two into my hands.
Following Jeong Ha-yul’s advice, I tried holding swords and spears, but…
Nothing felt as good as these ice spears.
They fit perfectly in my hands, as if they were custom-made for me.
With solid weapons in both hands, I charged forward.
“Here I go!”
I jumped into the air at full speed, but…
I saw the Fox Mask near where I was about to land.
“Damn…”
I panicked.
The pain of my bones being crushed came rushing back.
Tactical retreat.
I used telekinesis to push myself away mid-air.
When I turned back, everyone was looking at me like I was crazy.
…What, why?
Only those who’ve been grabbed by one arm and nearly crushed can throw stones at me.
That guy is like PTSD for me.
I’d rather face Lee Cheol-jin.
“Play! Play! Hayan!”
I used the ice spears in my hands as cheer sticks.
“…That’s not how you use those.”
“…I know.”
Hayan, who seemed unhappy that her ice spears were reduced to cheer sticks, started blasting magic at the villains.
As if protesting to me that ice spears should be used like this, she kept using them.
“…I get it, stop.”
At this rate, they’re all going to die.
Our goal isn’t murder, it’s subdual, right?
This is starting to look less like subduing villains and more like protecting them.