How many bombs are there, seriously…?
Four buildings at Hero University had already collapsed.
A total of 32 explosions had occurred, and the villain had used a whopping eight bombs per building.
– Mom… Mom…
– Please save me… Someone’s here… Please…
– Somebody, please help! Hurry…!!
First, I rushed into the engineering building, which was closest to the entrance.
I had no idea what department Seo-yoon was in.
There was no way for me to know which building she had gone to.
So I decided to search through every collapsed building—
It was the most complicated, but also the most certain method.
…Not here.
Without resting, I kept moving toward wherever there were bloodstains or the sound of people’s voices,
And began searching for Seo-yoon’s location.
“The door… the door won’t open…!”
At the sound of a woman’s tearful voice nearby, I immediately ran in that direction.
Thud… Thud…
From inside, I could hear the sound of someone throwing their body against the metal door, trying to force it open.
But the door was badly warped by the debris of the building,
And it didn’t show any sign of budging under normal force.
Krrrk—
I grabbed the misshapen metal door and tore it off.
Then immediately checked to see if Seo-yoon was inside.
…She’s not here.
Inside the room that appeared to be a professor’s office, there was a female college student staring at me with a frightened expression.
But since I was a villain, I had no obligation to safely escort her out of the building, as long as she wasn’t Seo-yoon.
“Get out on your own.”
After telling her to find her own way out, I resumed searching for any place Seo-yoon might be.
She might be trapped in one of the rooms.
Thud—Crash!
Thud—Crash!
Thud—…
To save time, I broke down every visible metal door and checked each room for people inside.
Because I couldn’t shake the thought that Seo-yoon might be trapped somewhere in this building.
Please… please… let her be here… please…!
The first floor… second floor… third floor…
I searched every classroom on all five floors of the engineering building…
Is she in the next building…?
Although I managed to find a few trapped students here and there,
I didn’t see any sign of Seo-yoon anywhere.
Ignoring the frightened eyes staring at me, I shattered a window and leaped straight into the neighboring building.
– Aaaahhhh!!
Even in the building I landed in, screams echoed through the halls.
But I had come here for one reason only: to save Seo-yoon.
“P-Please save me… please…”
Is that Seo-yoon? …No, it’s not.
Thud—Crash!
Once again, I smashed through every metal door one by one.
And as I checked on the people trapped inside…
“L-Lift it! Hurry!!”
“Stop crying and fucking move!!”
“I can’t! I hurt my leg…!”
“We have to save the girl at least!!”
In the distance, a group of five or six people were struggling to lift the debris of the collapsed building in any way they could.
…No way.
I ran straight toward them and lifted the rubble they couldn’t move to take a look underneath.
Rumble…
“.……”
But…
Whether it was fortunate or unfortunate…
The woman trapped under the remains of the huge building wasn’t Seo-yoon.
Rumble…
Frustrated, I shoved the debris aside with force and ignored the others as I headed upstairs.
…Should I call her name?
At first, I couldn’t bring myself to call Seo-yoon’s name.
I was afraid that if people found out she had any connection to a villain, it might put her in danger.
…Ah, but in that case…
Seo-yoon would already know my voice.
“Little girl!! Hey, little girl!!”
Calling out to Seo-yoon with a name only she would recognize,
I began checking every closed room again as I searched throughout the entire building.
But…
“Little girl!!! If you can hear me, answer!! Hurry!!!”
There was no sign of Seo-yoon anywhere. No voice, and no trace.
“Haa… Haa…”
I felt I had searched every possible place in this building, so I jumped down from it without hesitation.
This time, I ran toward the building in the distance engulfed in flames.
If only I had the new model villain suit…!
If I had the latest villain suit in my hands right now…
I could’ve ensured my safety inside that fire…
“Little girl!!”
At that moment, none of that mattered to me, so I rushed into the burning building without a second of hesitation.
“Little girl… are you not here? Please… please be here, just this once…”
I kept pushing my tiring body to move, trying to avoid the rooms engulfed in flames.
“Haa… damn, it’s scorching hot… Never thought I’d actually miss Pyro Bomber.”
I tore the inner shirt I was wearing under my outer coat and tightly wrapped it around my right hand.
Once again, I began moving through the entire building, checking all the places where Seo-yoon might be.
“Little girl?”
“Please save me… please… please…”
“Get out on your own. Can’t you see I’m busy right now?”
“A-Aren’t you… a villain?”
“Exactly. So get out on your own.”
I could see many students and professors trapped inside the laboratory.
I didn’t care how they escaped the burning building…
…No way.
But the thought crossed my mind. Seo-yoon might be stuck inside, unable to escape because of the flames.
Thud—Thud—
I grabbed a nearby fire extinguisher, tore it from its place, and hurled it toward the flames.
Boom!
With a loud bang, powder burst in all directions.
The fire extinguisher’s contents spread instantly, calming the flames.
Thanks to that, I could search for Seo-yoon again in slightly better conditions…
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
“Haa… haa… haa…”
No matter how many floors I searched…
Seo-yoon was nowhere to be seen.
…Did she manage to escape safely?
At this point, I could have felt relieved, thinking Seo-yoon hadn’t gotten caught up in the attack…
“.……”
But memories of my little sister kept overlapping with the image of her.
“…Not again… Not a second time… I can’t let it happen again…”
Driven by instinct, I started running toward another building that had also exploded.
…A hero, huh?
Since the university was located on elevated ground, I could see the heroes gathering down below.
Just check one more place… If she’s not there, I’ll run. She probably made it out safely anyway.
There was only one more building left to check.
Without hesitation, I entered the university building labeled “Hero AI Center”.
“Little girl!! Hey, little girl—!”
Just like before, I called out for her.
I went around looking for any place Seo-yoon might be…
“Little girl!! Over here!!!”
A man’s voice called out from somewhere, and I had no choice but to sprint in the direction it came from.
“Here… She’s trapped in here…!”
The man, whose hands were covered in blood, pointed to a steel door, showing clear signs of being rammed.
Thud—Crash!
I immediately tore the door open and checked the room inside…
“Mommy… Daddy…”
And there, literally just like that, I saw a young kid I had never seen before sitting on the floor crying.
“……..”
The moment I saw the scene, I froze in place.
Was it because I finally felt relieved that I could save Seo-yoon?
Was it because I felt relieved that I wouldn’t have to let my little sister go in vain again…?
My relief turned into rage.
“Let’s go…! Let’s go… Ha-yoon, Daddy’s here… Daddy’s here…”
I wanted to grab the man who had toyed with me and scream at him…
But now…
This wasn’t the time to waste on something like that.
“Ha… Haa…”
Without a word, I turned away, just about to run toward another location when…
“Thank you… Thank you so much…”
That wretched voice rang out behind me…
“Get lost!!”
Unable to hold it in, I shouted.
Even though I was in a situation where I had to carefully conserve my energy and even my words…
At that moment, I couldn’t suppress the rage. I yelled at the man to get lost.
“Yes…!”
I watched his back as he disappeared down below, then, dragging my exhausted body once again…
I broke through the metal doors.
Checked beneath the rubble of collapsed buildings.
Examined every corpse to see if it was Seo-yoon…
And began searching for her.
…
“Little girl? Hey, little girl… You’re not here, right? You’re not here?.. Haah… Thank God… You’re not here…”
It was a relief.
There were no signs of Seo-yoon inside this building either…
Seo-yoon must have safely escaped the university when the terror attack occurred.
Only I need to go… That’s it… As long as I go, everything will be fine…
Relieved by the thought that she was safe, I let my guard down for a moment and began to rest my exhausted body while sitting down.
“You must run away immediately!! Is no one here?! If you can hear me, you have to respond!! This is a hero!! Over there—!”
One hero, who had arrived at the scene of the attack a bit too late, entered the building to rescue people.
“…Villain Hunter?”
“…….”
Our eyes met.
“…….”
The hero immediately dropped into a combat stance.
Of all times… Why now… Why now, of all times… I’m dead tired, seriously…
With no choice, I got up from my seat and faced the approaching hero head-on.
I waited for him to come in.
What is it? What kind of ability does he have? What supernatural power does he use?
He looked strangely familiar… but nothing came to mind about what kind of power he might use.
All I could focus on was the burning pain all over my body and the throbbing in my hands.
“.……”
Saying nothing, I kept completely silent, hoping to recover even a bit of strength…
Then I saw his hand move to the radio on his shoulder. Perhaps to call for backup.
“Ghk!”
I raised both hands high and slammed them straight down into the floor beneath me.
Boom! Thud…
The floor beneath me collapsed with a jolt.
And just like that, I fell straight down to the floor below.
“Villain hunter is on the ru—”
I caught the neck of the guy who had jumped down the hole to follow me, grabbed him in midair, and hurled him right out the window.
Thud…
During that scuffle, the hero’s radio dropped to the ground with a small clatter.
From that radio came a voice:
[Inside the Guidance Hall building, a large number of students are being held hostage by the villain. Due to threats to kill the hostages, proper access is currently impossible…]
“…Guidance Hall.”
I heard them say there were a large number of students being held hostage in the Guidance Hall.
If that was the case…
“Seo-yoon-ah. Right now… right now… your Oppa is coming… Just wait for me…”
At the very, very end,
I decided to at least check if Seo-yoon was in the Guidance Hall.
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