Chapter 104
To be honest, subduing Yoon Byeong-cheol wasn’t particularly difficult.
I could handle it alone, and with Shin Seo-ha and Lee Se-ah tagging along, losing wasn’t an option.
“Die, die, die!”
Nevertheless, the only reason we hadn’t yet subdued the rampaging Yoon Byeong-cheol was simple.
“How long do we have to keep dodging like this?”
Shin Seo-ha shouted in frustration.
“Until we find a suitable way!”
We needed to get Yoon Byeong-cheol to confess everything.
The problem was that once someone was completely overtaken by the C-virus, regaining sanity was nearly impossible.
[When their reason is completely gone, even showing hallucinations like before is useless. You don’t know if what’s in control now is the person themselves or one of the numerous grudges.]
Despite that, I had to bring Yoon Byeong-cheol back to his senses. Knocking him out or killing him was useless.
“Yomi, do you have any good ideas?”
[There is one method that might work temporarily.]
“And that is?”
[Salmon.]
“Salmon?”
At that moment, a massive fist came flying from the right. Yoon Byeong-cheol’s punch almost hit me while I was momentarily distracted.
“You idiot, why are you just standing there?!”
Crunch
With Lee Se-ah’s voice, the incoming fist halted. The surrounding space shimmered like a mirage, revealing a pair of hands gripping Yoon Byeong-cheol’s arm.
“Thanks!”
As I increased the distance, the halted fist sliced through the air. A powerful gust followed, enough to make my hair whip around.
“What do you mean by salmon? How am I supposed to get salmon here and now?”
[You idiot! I meant you should promise to treat me to salmon as a reward for telling you this.]
Annoyed, Yomi scrunched her nose.
“I just bought you steak the other day!”
[I’m tired of steak!]
Darn fox. Trying to negotiate while I’m struggling? No wonder these creatures are always the main villains in fairy tales.
“Fine, just hurry up!”
[Very well.]
Yomi wagged her tail.
[You need to channel a large amount of your spiritual energy directly into him! That might temporarily drive out the grudges!]
In short, it was like pouring a large amount of clean water into a cup already filled with dirty water. It was a reasonable plan, especially for something Yomi thought of.
[But you’ll need to get really close to him for it to work.]
“No problem.”
Yoon Byeong-cheol’s enlarged right arm was swollen enough to compensate for the shriveled left side, and its constant motion made it difficult to approach.
‘There’s only one sure way to get close to Yoon Byeong-cheol.’
With the plan in mind, I moved swiftly towards Yoon Byeong-cheol, closing the distance.
“Seol Ha-baek, what are you doing?!”
“Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
Shin Seo-ha and Lee Se-ah shouted as I moved into Yoon Byeong-cheol’s attack range.
Without any protective gear like a full-body shield, a single hit could be fatal.
“Cover me!”
I knew it was a selfish request, but I had no choice but to rely on them right now.
“That crazy bastard!”
“He’s insanely strong, so I can’t hold him off for long!”
Despite their complaints, both Shin Seo-ha and Lee Se-ah closed the distance, entering Yoon Byeong-cheol’s attack range.
“Hey, old man!”
As Shin Seo-ha tried to get inside his arms, Yoon Byeong-cheol twisted his body. With his head bent at a 90-degree angle, he had to make a big move to keep his target in sight.
“You little brat…!”
Yoon Byeong-cheol raised his fist, but the punch that seemed ready to strike stopped momentarily in mid-air.
“So heavy…!”
Veins bulged on Lee Se-ah’s forehead.
Even with the invisible hand, it was hard to withstand Yoon Byeong-cheol’s monstrous strength.
‘Now!’
With his arm raised, his front was left unprotected. I dove into Yoon Byeong-cheol’s embrace, raising my fist towards his heart.
Thunk
“…Huh?”
But it was my heart that was pierced.
As I was about to strike, a new arm sprouted from Yoon Byeong-cheol’s chest and drove straight through my heart.
“Kihihi, how foolish.”
Yoon Byeong-cheol laughed as if he had anticipated the entire situation.
“Seol Ha-baek!!”
“…….”
Shin Seo-ha screamed, and Lee Se-ah covered her mouth.
Squelch!
Spikes emerged from the forearm that had pierced my heart, skewering me from within.
“That’s one down—”
Yoon Byeong-cheol, confidently looking down at my lifeless body, suddenly paused.
“Huh?”
He finally noticed something was off.
Drip, drip, drip
My shredded body began to melt into green slime that dripped to the floor. Yoon Byeong-cheol stared dumbfoundedly at the slime left in his hand.
“What is this—?”
“You got tricked.”
Hearing the voice from behind him, Yoon Byeong-cheol turned his head in haste.
Schwack!
An energy-infused hand knife pierced his back.
[Now!]
I channeled all the spiritual energy within me, slamming it through my fingertips.
“Aaaahhh!!”
Pure energy poured over the murky water within him.
Yoon Byung-cheol’s mouth gaped open, and from inside, pitch-black forms of grudges burst forth.
His grotesquely swollen body began to shrink, and his once pale skin regained a hint of color.
“Urgh…”
Having expelled a massive amount of grudges, Yoon Byeong-cheol lost his balance and collapsed. His eyes, faintly open, spun wildly.
“It’s all over now.”
I approached Yoon Byeong-cheol. His unfocused gaze gradually converged on me.
“…No. Tails can always be cut off.”
“Impressive. Even in this state, you haven’t given up. Look at yourself. Can you live like this forever?”
“…”
Yoon Byeong-cheol rolled his eyes to check his body. While overtaken by madness, he hadn’t noticed, but now in his sane state, the sight of his mutated body filled him with disgust.
“This is what you did to your employees.”
Knowing that continuous injections of C-virus twisted human bodies, Yoon Byeong-cheol still administered the drug to the hunters repeatedly.
His long-standing evil deeds had come back to haunt him in this way.
“But if you answer my questions, I might be able to restore your body.”
Yoon Byeong-cheol’s pupils quivered at my words. For someone whose body had been wrecked, my offer was like a lifeline.
“…You’re telling the truth, right?”
“Of course. I managed to bring you back to your senses, didn’t I?”
Even if it’s only temporary.
Well, it’s not like I’m lying.
“What do you want to know?”
“Nothing much.”
Shin Seo-ha and Lee Se-ah were watching. I hoped they both, especially Lee Se-ah, would listen closely to what Yoon Byeong-cheol was about to say.
“Who’s backing you?”
Yoon Byeong-cheol, whose real name is Yoon Byeong-shik, was a notorious criminal with seven major crimes under his belt.
Who could have given such a notorious criminal a clean identity and supported him in establishing such a monstrous enterprise?
“Who gave you the C-virus and instructed you to trap Lee Se-ah?”
“If I speak recklessly about the ‘young miss’—”
“If you stay silent, you’ll take the fall for everything.”
Yoon Byeong-cheol swallowed hard.
Of course, I already knew who was behind it. The important thing was to get Yoon Byeong-cheol to say it out loud.
“Lee Se-young.”
The person who supplied the C-virus from the Rabbit and distributed it on the black market.
“…What?”
The mention of the name made Lee Se-ah stagger.
“Guh, urk!”
Then, as if pulled by an invisible hand, Yoon Byeong-cheol was lifted by the collar.
“Don’t lie!”
“W-what am I lying about! She planned to manipulate you and later frame you as the C-virus distributor!”
“There’s no way Se-young… No, it can’t be.”
Lee Se-young was one of the succession contenders of Seonjin Networks and someone with whom Lee Se-ah shared a close bond.
“Lies…”
“Lee Se-ah!”
As she wavered, Yoon Byeong-cheol was thrown to the ground. Shin Seo-ha barely caught Lee Se-ah as she was about to collapse.
“I’ve told you everything I know. Now, fix my body as you promised.”
“Hm, what are you talking about?”
I smiled brightly at Yoon Byeong-cheol.
“Did I ever make such a promise?”
I wasn’t the kind of person who’d honor a deal made with a piece of trash.
“This pisses me off.”
Perhaps expecting this, Yoon Byeong-cheol only wore a self-deprecating smile.
“Do you really think you can get out of here alive? The remaining hunters won’t let you get away with this.”
“Don’t worry about that.”
I pulled out the watch I had kept in my pocket to check the time. It was about time.
“Do you know how much effort I put in to ruin your shallow plan?”
The moment I finished speaking,
Crash!!
The ceiling collapsed, and heavily armed hunters descended into the lab via fast ropes.
“Special task force! Drop your weapons and surrender!”
The task force rapidly subdued the researchers. Given that they found this place, the outside was likely already secured.
“Yoon Byeong-cheol, it’s all over.”
As the area was being secured, I whispered to Yoon Byeong-cheol.
“I thought it was perfect. Where did it all go wrong…?”
“Think about it in your prison cell.”
Though on second thought, a cozy jail cell seemed too good for Yoon Byeong-cheol.
“You should be dissected in a lab.”
With that, I turned away. I had no more business with Yoon Byeong-cheol. Besides, someone had been waiting for us.
“Are you kids okay?”
The special task force was composed of government hunters. Leading the charge was a familiar face.
“Mom!?”
Shin Seo-ha’s mother, Han Ga-young.
Her tightly tied long hair and the curvy silhouette beneath her tight special suit gave her a formidable presence. The usual gentle demeanor was nowhere to be found, replaced by a serious expression.
“We’re fine. She just fainted temporarily.”
I indicated the unconscious Lee Se-ah. The shock had been considerable, and she showed no sign of waking up.
“H-how did you get here, Mom?”
Shin Seo-ha stammered, evidently unable to process the sudden change in events.
“Ha-baek texted me earlier from your phone. He said you were on a tour at Winners Company and that one of your friends was in danger.”
“What? Seol Ha-baek, didn’t you turn in your smartphone earlier?”
“I did.”
“Then how—?”
I shrugged at Shin Seo-ha, who was gaping at me.
“There’s a feature called scheduled messages.”
I anticipated this situation, so I took precautions. We had exchanged phone numbers during summer vacation, and I sent the message ahead of time as insurance in case something went wrong.
This special task force was led by Han Ga-young. Though it wasn’t an officially filed report, I knew she would come if she received such a message.
“How is it? Not bad, right?”
I gave Shin Seo-ha a thumbs-up.
“Argh! Seol Ha-baek, I really hate you!!”
Shin Seo-ha twisted her body in frustration.
–
(T/N): I’m gonna change Ise-ah to Lee Se-ah starting from this chapter.