The Thug Hides the Villainess

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027 – The Heroes Obsessed with Villains #2

I had a knack for quickly figuring people out. So, here’s the three things I gathered about Yu Yeoreum.

First, Yu Yeoreum was a healthy beauty who loved sports.
You’d need to see her naked body to really know, but I bet her muscles are firmer than most guys’.

Second, the strawberry scent emanating from Yu Yeoreum was probably from some kind of deodorant. Does she dislike her own sweat smell?
I mean, a super high school girl’s sweat would probably be popular anyway.

Third, before Yu Yeoreum shot rays from her eyes, her pupils shone brightly.

Ziiing—.
Just like now.

“Wasn’t your house here? Why did you come out from next door?”

Yu Yeoreum seemed curious about why I emerged from next door.
Well, sometimes, a person can come out from an empty house next door, right? Am I wrong?

Might as well throw out an excuse.

“This house is empty. Occasionally, I come and go when I pursue my hobbies. It’s a man cave, you know? A space just for men.”

“A space just for men.”

“Yeah, so can you dim those shining eyes a bit?”

“What kind of hobby are you doing alone in that empty house?”

What? She’s asking that too?
I’ve never met a girl who asked me this many questions before—what is she, a question mark serial killer?

━Ah, ha, ahh!

Just then, a strange sound came from somewhere. It would be more apt to describe it as a bizarre groan.
It was the sound Seoga-eul was making from the basement next door.
Shit! Why?!

“I’m hearing strange noises.”

Yu Yeoreum, who was an elite from Class F, must have had senses that surpassed regulars’ by far. I even wondered if Seoga-eul planned this.

What if Yu Yeoreum goes into the next door and finds me chaining Seoga-eul up in the basement?

It would surely turn me into a donut-shaped wreck!

“There must be something in the next house. A woman’s voice?”

Peeking-.
Yu Yeoreum became interested in the next house. A droplet of cold sweat started to trickle down my back, between my buttocks, and I was facing dire straits.

Maybe Seoga-eul had planned this all along.
Maybe she made those sounds hoping for me to suffer. Better than screaming for help, but it was still a blatantly malicious act.

But Seoga-eul underestimated me.
Did she really think I’d fall for this?

“Actually, I was watching some adult videos. The next house is where I watch them. I thought I turned it off, but it must have been still playing. Since this is the case, do you want to join me?”

“Ah… I don’t think I want to watch together.”

Alright then.
Creaking—. I thought it would be best to leave the scene before Seoga-eul did something weirder, so I took Yu Yeoreum’s hand and pulled her along.

“Then let’s just take a walk nearby.”

I was surprised at how soft her hand was.
I thought she’d have calluses or something.

# # #

Yu Yeoreum and I headed to the park near my house.
A park that was mostly filled with trash and buzzing flies and mosquitoes, but just the right spot to kill time.

“So, didn’t you say you have to apologize to me?”

“Yeah, I hit your chest with my fist. My strength control was a bit off, so it wouldn’t have been weird if you got seriously hurt.”

“Oh, that? It’s nothing. Look.”

Swish—. I lifted my outer coat to show Yu Yeoreum my chest. Under the glaring streetlight of the park, seeing my bare torso made Yu Yeoreum hesitate a bit before breaking into a smile.

“You’re surprisingly sturdy. Next time, it’s okay to hit me with a little more ‘sincerity.’”

It was the first time I saw Yu Yeoreum smile.
She usually had a cold expression. Of course, her coldness was different from the outright contempt of Seoga-eul.
Yu Yeoreum had somewhat muted emotions, or perhaps she just didn’t change her expressions much.

Anyway, a high school girl’s smile stirred the heart like a cool breeze.
Though she was a girl who shot lasers from her eyes and had muscles as solid as steel, she was still just a girl.

My heart, muddled by Seoga-eul’s “groans,” felt healed by Yu Yeoreum’s smile.
Does Yu Yeoreum have some unexpected healer qualities?

“Yeoreum, your smile is beautiful. I wish you’d smile more often.”

“……”

Yu Yeoreum flinched slightly, surprised by my words. And then she touched her lips with her hand, possibly feeling bashful from my compliment.

“Did I actually smile?”

No, she wasn’t surprised by my praise, but rather at the fact that she smiled. Is it really that surprising to notice she smiled? When Yu Yeoreum suddenly got up from the park bench.

“I really got 1st place in the last practical. I’d like to say I won’t let you walk away next time—but you won’t be able to see me from now on. I’m being sent for actual missions.”

“Actual missions? You mean actually exploring the Great Labyrinth and bringing back treasures?”

“No, I’m on the surface side. Have you heard of unauthorized awakeners? Those are awakeners not registered at Yeongsa High School or the Superhuman Management Office. Most of those guys are criminals.”

The physical ability gap between awakeners and normals was about that between high school and elementary school students. Because of that, some awakeners often used their extraordinary physical abilities for less-than-ideal purposes.

“The reason I came to this neighborhood was that I heard some Billunners were operating around here, so I was on patrol. There are a lot of empty houses in this area.”

Our neighborhood had plenty of empty houses. It’s often said that homeless people and criminals do various things in these vacant homes.
What exactly the Billunners do, I didn’t know, but I figured they probably weren’t good people.

What if they break into the ‘next door’ where Seoga-eul is hiding?
It would surely lead to some troublesome events.

“What the hell are those Billunners?”

“They’re an illegal organization formed by a few first-generation graduates of Yeongsa High School. The fact that our Yeongsa High no longer teaches basic fighting as part of the curriculum is because of those guys.”

Yeongsa High School is a school for superhumans. I found it curious that something like sparring was taught only in a “special class” that cost 400,000 points, but I guess it all made sense now.

It’s like they injected combat knowledge into the first-generation students, leading to the creation of uncontrollable monsters because there weren’t enough laws or regulations against awakeners.

“Hanam-jin, since you live in this neighborhood, it’s a good idea to be cautious. Most Billunners are grade three talents, comparable to medium-grade firepower. You’ve heard of Yeomra, the one who set fire to N Mart, right?”

“Yeah, I know. The one who melts steel with flames, right? He’s still not caught. My guess is he won’t be caught anytime soon.”

Yeomra. The culprit who caused my parents’ deaths. That bastard.
I vowed to personally make him a useless shell of a man when Yu Yeoreum clenched her fist tight.

“Guys like that are lurking all over this world, trying to disrupt order and peace. There’s also this guy called ‘The Judge’ who shakes the legal system down to its roots. Ultimately, they’re no different from monsters.”

Ziiing—. Yu Yeoreum’s pupils gleamed. I couldn’t agree or disagree with her about how those who crossed the line were no different from monsters.
I only felt a little worry for Yu Yeoreum.
No matter how amazing an awaker she was, she was still just a high school girl.

“Yeoreum, be careful when fighting criminals.”

“I’ve never met someone who cares for me like that. I’ll be fine. I’m invincible. Plus, I’m not going alone to eradicate criminals. I’m going with Seoga-eul, so there shouldn’t be any danger.”

Wait a minute—
Seoga-eul is in our house basement…

# # #

“I’m pretty sure I told you to come back in ten minutes, right? It would’ve been faster if you just made stockings instead of buying them.”

When I returned to the basement, Seoga-eul seemed really mad. I had something to say too.

“Hey, because you made that strange sound, things almost got weird!”

“Strange sound? I don’t know what you’re talking about. Wasn’t that Yu Yeoreum outside? That bitch.”

“Name: Seoga-eul
Possession: View details ☜
Condition: 《Resentment and Disgust》 – Being rescued by Yu Yeoreum is worse than being kidnapped by a pervert.”

It seemed Seoga-eul didn’t scream for help precisely because she disliked Yu Yeoreum so much. Should I be thankful for that?

“Alright, here’s the stockings I bought.”

Swish.
I laid the stockings I had picked up from the convenience store in front of Seoga-eul.
For these flimsy nylon bundles, the price was disgustingly expensive.

As I expected a few days of poverty-stricken days ahead, Seoga-eul stretched out her white foot towards me.

Does she need more of a “love tap”?

“What are you doing? You’re supposed to put them on for me. You’ve taped my hands up, so I can’t do anything. Start with 15 denier.”

With her hands bound, it made sense that I had to put the stockings on for her.

“What are you waiting for? Hurry up and put them on. If you do a good job putting on the stockings, I might just tell you why I got ‘sick leave.’ I could also give you some useful information about how to kidnap Yu Yeoreum too.”

Slithering—.
Seoga-eul opened her narrow eyes.

“Just to clarify, I’m not suggesting we do anything raunchy? So if you even think about having dirty thoughts, I won’t just keep my mouth shut, I’ll bite my tongue off and die. Got it? I’m perceptive enough to know. I’m also sensitive about the concept of ‘lengthening’ for various reasons.”

Was the gaze and flicking tongue of the snake that lured Adam and Eve hiding in the ivy like that filled with wickedness?

“You said you treasure my ‘body.’ So I’m sure you won’t get hot and bothered just over putting on stockings, right?”

Both the kidnapping of Yu Yeoreum and the stockings seemed like Seoga-eul was pouring her energy into finding ways to get back at me in this basement.

That wicked girl. She must know I have a soft spot for stockings and small women’s feet.
When did I develop such a taste, you ask?
It all began when Seoga-eul came to our house drenched in rain and took off her stockings!

Could I maintain my sanity while putting stockings on Seoga-eul? If I couldn’t hold back and touched her body, that would nullify my “complete education.”

Perhaps Seoga-eul was counting on that.
She might be trying to lure me into a trap to attack her. Yet, because it wasn’t a blatant seduction, it was slyly clever that there was no justification to give her a “love tap.”

“Or how about I directly put them on myself if you untie my hands?”

If I were to untie the tape around Seoga-eul’s hands following that suggestion? She would surely have some nasty plans to mess with me and escape.

I was stuck between a rock and a hard place—.
I could feel that sense of arrogance in Seoga-eul’s eyes as she looked at me.
But I would not easily be swayed by this.
Being swayed by a girl is not manly.

With that in mind, I had only one option.
I balled up my fist and—
—I smacked my own jewels!

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
The pain and shock temporarily disabled my masculinity, allowing me to maintain clarity of mind! With this, there would be no chance for my manhood to rise!

“Guaaaaaak!”
My whole body felt like it was twisting in shock, and I was almost frothing at the mouth, but the effect was brilliant!

“Now’s my chance! Now!”

“Hey you crazy bastard!”

I became a temporary woman due to the immense pain! I couldn’t let this chance slip away!
Zzzzzt—.
I quickly tore open the stocking packaging and began sliding the thin nylon bundle slowly onto Seoga-eul’s white feet.

“You psycho! You sicko! What the hell are you touching?! You bastard!”

The issue was that I felt that I was doing something very wrong by putting on stockings for a thrashing Seoga-eul because my temporary feminization seemed incomplete.
Yet, with supernatural willpower, I successfully completed the mission!

“Alright then, Seoga-eul, now tell me why you’re on ‘sick leave.’ If you’re the only daughter of Seo Nam Group, shouldn’t your disappearance be making headlines? Also, share any information regarding Yu Yeoreum!”

“YAAAAAAGH! AAAAAAAAAAH!”