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Translated by BiasNil
· · ────── ꒰ঌ·✦·໒꒱ ────── · ·
I woke up after being in a coma for three days.
As soon as I woke up, Seo-eun welcomed me with tears.
"You're really crazy!" Seo-eun hit me. Gosh, Seo-eun. It really hurts! Stop it!
As I sat up and tried to calm her down, I could feel how shocked she was. I guess she was worried because I suddenly passed out and looked like a dead body for three days.
Still, I was a little touched by Seo-eun's tears as I woke up from the coma. The time we've lived together wasn't wasted—she shed tears for me. I finally see the effects of playing games and hanging out with her!
I smiled at Seo-eun, who told me through her tears to take care of myself and to be careful in the future. Well, there's no guarantee I won't do it again.
I thanked Seo-eun, and I thanked Su-bin for taking care of me. Then I went through public opinion right away.
What did people say about me?
What did they say about Stardust?
Well, the result of the analysis is: my popularity is at its peak. Many articles said people seem to think of me—a villain—as a hero.
Hmm… As expected, it turned out like this.
I only killed him because I was put to shame, but it became a favorable factor. I guess I feel great.
And the shocking part was that this Crocodile Man was alive. He didn't die after being hit by the poisonous gas? Well, of course, I used a weak one just in case… but I didn't know he would survive. Then again, he faced the same situation in the original comic and had a hard time because of it.
He is said to have returned to his normal human form from the crocodile state, and after treatment he was placed in the Superpower Detention Center of the East.
Well, it went the way it was written in the original.
The Superpower Detention Center of the East. It's called East Carcer. Specifically, it's where they gather and imprison villains with superpowers.
Like the Hero Association, each country has a place called "Carcer"—Latin for prison. Immediately after the first Superpower Detention Center, "America's Carcer," was established in the U.S., all Superpower Detention Centers built in other countries since then have been called Carcer.
It's the highest-security facility in each country, and it's equipped with all kinds of tools to limit each prisoner's abilities according to their characteristics. It's built on an uninhabited island in the East Sea and protected with such strict security that people say no one can leave once they enter. Of course, in the original comic, Seo-eun hacked it and broke it open.
Anyway, he's trapped there alive, so he may die there someday. He's a little dumb, so I think he will die easily. But I'm not sure if he's like that only in crocodile mode or even in human mode.
Anyway, I played and rested for a few days after that.
I'm a normal citizen in the first place. After working so hard, I have to take a break since I was worn out.
…And I think Seo-eun has been staying by my side and hanging out with me more than before. What's up with her?
Of course, I don't just lie down and play every day. Sometimes, I tell Seo-eun and Su-bin about Korea's hero society. They both stayed in their rooms and studied computer technology, so they didn't know much about current events.
"Now, today, let's learn about the reality of heroes in Korea. Su-bin, do you know how the public thinks about heroes?"
"Hmm… They must like them, right? Because they're the ones who save people."
"No, they don't. Korea is a bit different. Let me give you an example. A family is attacked by a villain, so they call a hero. But before the hero arrives, the villain has already killed them all and run away. Do you know who people blame?"
"Obviously the villain, right?"
"Oh, of course they blame the villain. They resent the villain, but they also blame the hero just as much. 'My family died because you came late,' they would say."
"…But it's not the heroes' fault, is it? They didn't come late on purpose."
"That's right. But the citizens don't care about that. They think the heroes could have come quickly, but they were slow, so the family died. That's how people resent them. Well, that's not all, but anyway, these kinds of things piled up and turned into distrust of heroes. In conclusion, the Korean people don't trust heroes very much."
My throat hurt because I'd spoken for too long.
I took a sip from a PET bottle with the label torn off.
"Don't touch your lips while drinking it."
I did as Seo-eun said. Gosh, Seo-eun. I thought you were looking at your phone—since when did you start taking an interest in me?
After eyeing me, she eventually took a sip too. You should've gotten your own water instead… As my throat moistened, I continued.
"Honestly, heroes are stuck in a crazy, jumpy situation. It's sad—they work with their lives on the line, and they still get cursed at. In fact, there are only a few heroes in Korea, so it's hard for someone to get to a scene quickly in an emergency. Delays are inevitable. But they still get cursed at."
"Ah-hah…"
Su-bin nodded, beginning to understand. Seo-eun, who was looking at her smartphone, was also listening to me. So… does that mean I'm good at explaining?
In fact, my dream was to be a teacher before I fell into this world. Of course, there are so many other things to do now, and I can't do anything because I don't even have an ID. Later, when everything is done, I'll try to clean up my identity and become a teacher.
This isn't the point anyway. I continued.
"So it's a chain reaction like dominoes. Heroes who are tired of the public's distrust quit being heroes. The number of heroes decreases. Fewer heroes make responses to crime scenes slower. That adds to the distrust of heroes. It's a vicious cycle. There's a reason why there are fewer B-class and C-class heroes. The country's security depends on three A-class people."
"It would be nice if the police could help them, but the law prohibits the police from being dispatched in the event of a crime involving superpowers. In fact, a single villain can wipe out all the armed cops, so they wouldn't be much help."
So, this is the conclusion.
A complete mess.
Heroes are despised, and villains are growing in number.
There are too many villains compared to the number of heroes.
This is why Stardust is rolling alone.
"…That's why you're getting rid of villains? You're like a dark hero."
Seo-eun, who had been listening quietly, was sarcastic. Ugh, Seo-eun. You were nice to me for the past few days, and now you're back to normal.
"…I'm not a dark hero. I'm just interested in the fate of Korea."
"You're not doing that woman's job just because you like Stardust, right?"
"Hey, Seo-eun. What do you mean by 'that woman'? Speak nicely."
But… that's true.
How did she figure that out?
Still, it'd be a waste to admit it right away in this situation.
I changed the topic as if nothing had happened.
"It's not that—I just feel uncomfortable…"
"I also think you're very interested in Stardust."
Su-bin cut in and challenged me.
Su-bin cut me off. Our nice Su-bin.
When I say something, Su-bin, who used to be scared and teary-eyed, doesn't just back down anymore…
I raised a tiger cub.
The girls suddenly fixed their gazes on me.
Under their interrogating stares, I was taken aback.
"Now, now, am I interested in her? Yeah, it's true that I'm interested in her. But that doesn't matter. There are no other heroes besides Stardust. And a villain needs a hero to be a villain, right? So… I mean, yeah, contrast structure. I've set Stardust up as my arch enemy for now…"
I realized I was making excuses before I knew it. Wait, why am I making excuses for this?
Still, Seo-eun was looking at me suspiciously. Seo-eun, what's wrong with you? It's unfair.
"Anyway! That's not the point. Let's start planning another terrorist attack."
Seo-eun's interest shifted away from Stardust.
"Terrorist attack? Again?"
"Yeah. Well, my affinity has gone up too high. It's not exactly likability, but expectations? Anyway, the only way to lower it again is a massive terrorist attack."
"Haa… When are you going to prepare that?"
"Don't worry. I'm going to take a break for a while after this one."
I said it with a smile at Seo-eun's grumbling.
"You're going to take a break? Really? Then shall we go on a trip?"
"A trip?"
Seeing Seo-eun's sparkling eyes, I agreed without thinking.
"Sure, a trip. That sounds great. Let's go after this."
"Yay! You promised!"
Then suddenly, Seo-eun ran off somewhere.
Wait, I told you to prepare a terrorist attack with me… She's not going to start planning the trip, is she?
Su-bin just smiled quietly at us.