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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: The Main Event
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The battle, planned as the main event of this terror attack.
Egostic versus Icicle.
The prelude to that battle was revealed.
"Hahahaha! Let's see you weather this one!"
As I shouted that, I simultaneously maneuvered the ship to launch a few more cannonballs at Icicle.
*Boom!*
*Boom!*
Countless cannonballs plummeted towards her with a thunderous roar.
Halting mid-air, Icicle, witnessing dozens of shells hurtling her way, soon inhaled deeply before unleashing ice in every direction.
"Hmph!"
Sky-blue ice enveloped her body, spiraling outwards, and in moments, the countless cannonballs hurtling towards her all froze, suspended mid-air.
"Oh, impressive..."
And witnessing that sight, I marveled inwardly.
Icicle... she handles her abilities better than I expected?
In the original story, Stardust received so much focus that Icicle was barely mentioned, but seeing her now, she seems quite capable in a fight. Her ice-spewing ability is pretty cool and refreshing.
Anyway, that's not what's important right now.
I glanced at the chat window.
[Whoa, how'd she block that?]
[No way, Icicle's actually a good fighter???]
[See, Lee Seol-ah's no slouch. She's a Busan specialty, I tell ya.]
[Third-gen chaebol blasting ice like that, ooh la la]
[Her presence was overshadowed by Stardust, so I didn't realize, but she's actually pretty strong, isn't she?]
The reactions towards Icicle were quite favorable.
I gave a small nod, sensing the situation was unfolding favorably, and refocused on the battle.
She was already breaking through the bomb barrage, generating ice platforms in the air as she rapidly approached the ship I was on.
I offered her a wry smile and shouted again.
"Hmm, quite the performer! Then how about this? Go, Number One!"
"Huh?"
I thrust a gun into Number One's hand, who was operating beside me, and then hurled him towards Icicle.
Seriously, we practiced all this; how can you just freeze up?
"Aaaaahhhh!"
Number One, suspended in the air by my psychokinesis and flung from the ship, soon collected himself and shouted at Icicle in a trembling voice.
"U-u-u-aaaaahhhhh!"
...More like screaming than shouting.
Anyway, the fighting spirit is good. He charged at Icicle, screaming with gusto, firing his gun 'rat-a-tat-tat'.
"Hmph! Do you truly believe I'd be hit by something like this?"
As a hail of bullets rained down on her, Icicle crossed her arms into an 'X' and conjured an ice shield directly in front to block them.
Blocking the gunfire with ice, she steadily pressed forward.
"Ugh... Aaaahhhh!"
And finally, Number One, having reached Icicle's immediate vicinity, eventually clutched his gun, attempting to strike her directly through her icy shield.
Seizing the moment the gunfire ceased, Icicle extended her hand and unleashed a freezing beam at the approaching Number One.
"Aaaaaagh!"
With a final gasp, Number One was transformed into a solid ice statue.
Ah... he was a good extra indeed.
I dabbed at my eyes and used psychokinesis to transport his icy form back to the ship. I'll thaw him out later.
[Number One, LMAO, why's he so pathetic? LMAO.]
[Seriously, his treatment, WTF, LMAO.]
[Number One's achievements today: self-intro, a battle cry, some gunfire, then ice-bound...]
[As they say, when whales fight, the shrimp gets trampled. While Ego and Icicle duked it out, poor Number One just got iced, LOL.]
[Icicle could probably take out most villains with that ice beam, LOL.]
[She gets right to it, LOL.]
The chat window mourned Number One.
If Number One's gone, then what comes next, of course?
"Next up is you! Mr. Number Two, sally forth!"
"Yes? Uh, ugh. Understood! Aaaaaaah!!!"
So Number Two also sallied forth.
And moments later, two ice statues wearing rabbit helmets appeared on the ship.
"Tsk... Mr. Number Three, you..."
I looked at Number Three, wearing a yellow rabbit helmet, trembling and watching me, and changed my mind.
Right, someone has to steer the ship.
"Splendid! Truly splendid, Ms. Icicle. You've vanquished all my loyal subordinates!"
[Just a moment ago he called them friends, now they're demoted to subordinates, LOL.]
[Friend? Where?]
[So they really were just subordinates, LOL.]
[Seriously, who throws their friends at an enemy, LOL.]
[The Mango Squad's subordinate Rabbit Squad... how adorable.]
[Ice statues for sale, make an offer.]
[He's such a scumbag for not stepping up himself and sending his subordinates first, LOL.]
Don't worry, I'm stepping in now.
Watching Icicle, who had now defeated Number Two, advance unimpeded towards the ship, I finally took a step.
"Remarkable, truly remarkable. It seems I'll have to face you myself now!"
I declared, my cloak fluttering as I leaped from the ship. Simultaneously, countless weapons scattered across the deck began to levitate.
Me?
I remained suspended in the air, simply extending an arm to point at Icicle, and shouted.
"Everyone, charge!"
The moment my command ended, a torrent of weapon attacks rained down on Icicle.
And seeing the weapons raining down on her, Icicle gritted her teeth, simultaneously unleashing freezing beams in all directions.
The full-scale battle had officially begun.
***
[Ugh, Mangostick is so infuriating, LOL.]
[For real, LOL, he just stands there, tormenting her.]
[Starting to feel bad for Icicle, boo hoo.]
[Has Icicle even moved 5cm? She's so preoccupied with blocking with ice, she can't budge.]
[Mango, you bastard, move!]
Hmph.
These people really think psychokinesis is easy.
Do they have any idea how much effort it takes to lift all these things? I'm practically scheduled for a blood transfusion already.
However, a first-rate villain never lets on how much they're struggling.
I simply stood there, smiling faintly, and declared:
"Ms. Icicle, is this all you've got? Hahahaha! I had such high hopes, but this is all? My disappointment is truly immense!"
I said that with an exaggerated voice, flailing my arms. Icicle, still encased in ice, silently endured my weapon bombardment.
Just as even the viewers began to murmur about how pitiful Icicle was, something unexpected started to unfold.
Icicle, who had been silently enduring, encased in ice.
Then, in a brief moment when my attack coordination faltered slightly, she suddenly dropped the arm shielding her face and began to unleash ice directly forward!
"Urgh!"
With a battle cry, she instantly unleashed the power she had accumulated while enduring my attacks, projecting it straight ahead.
A freezing beam—no, a veritable destructive ice ray, far thicker and more potent than usual—was fired at my airship. And though I rapidly teleported away upon seeing it, the attack wasn't aimed at me in the first place.
*CRACKLE!*
The destructive ice ray struck not where I stood, but directly at the front of the airship.
As her concentrated power slammed into the ship, its front section immediately began to freeze.
Sky-blue frost, brimming with ice, rapidly enveloped the ship's bow.
"Agh! Boss! Help me!!! The ship's tilting!"
When I turned to look at the ship, responding to the wail of Number Three, who was steering from above.
The airship's front was already almost entirely frozen, listing precariously.
And me?
Seeing that, I slapped my forehead as if I'd been outmaneuvered and shouted at Icicle.
"Unbelievable! So that's what you were aiming for all along! Not me, but the very core, this airship!"
I declared, letting out a hearty chuckle.
"It seems I've been well and truly outsmarted."
Outsmarted? What outsmarted? This was all pre-arranged between her and me from the start. "How about attacking the ship?"
However, the viewers had no way of knowing this. They were cheering enthusiastically, just as we'd predicted.
[Whoa, didn't see that coming.]
[Icicle's grand scheme, OMG.]
[Is this that feinting east, attacking west strategy?]
[Mangostick got schooled, LOLOLOLOL.]
[Uh oh, that ship looks like it's about to capsize.]
[But in the midst of all this, Number Three trembling is the killer detail, LOL.]
[That ship looks unusable now, what's next?]
What next? What next?
"Egostic! That airship you prepared is now useless! What will you do now?"
Watching Icicle shout at me from a distance, I grinned.
"What else can we do?!"
Now, what was it?
"We run! Farewell!"
The show's over, I mean.
At my sudden declaration of escape, the viewers' reactions were pure shock.
[?????????]
[No!!! How can it end like this!!!!]
[Don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go don't go]
[Already over? Already over? Already over? Already over? Already over? Already over? Already over? Already over?]
[It didn't end this quickly when he fought Stardust... it's all because Icicle was the opponent...]
[Where's 'one more thing'???? What is this????]
[No, my chicken just arrived, how can you do this!!!]
My apologies. This is how it is.
Regardless, despite the viewers' pleas, the airship's engines roared to life, and it began to move again.
"Are you running away like a coward?! Fight fair and square!"
"Cowardly? Not at all! This is a fair and square retreat. I won't back down so easily next time, so be prepared. Oh, and if you try to chase, I might just unleash the dozens of bombs I've prepared in Busan, so stay put!"
"Tsk..."
Leaving Icicle behind, who was now so adept at acting she wore a genuinely regretful expression, I waved goodbye to the camera.
"Then, everyone! The Egostream Show concludes here! Farewell, everyone!"
[Don't gooo]
With that final chat, the camera also flickered off.
And I, who had been standing on the ship, still smiling, immediately slumped against the bow once the camera was gone.
"Ugh, I'm exhausted..."
"Are you okay?"
Icicle, whose expression had been hostile moments ago, now looked at me with genuine concern. To her, I could only reply weakly.
"Ugh... I'm practically dead on my feet, but I'm fine. More importantly, can you really talk to me like this? Isn't this still being recorded?"
"Hmph. What do you take Lee Seol-ah for? Everything on this end is well within my control, so don't worry."
"Oh? Then that's a relief."
"Anyway, Mr. Egostic. Thank you so much. My name is already in the news alongside yours. Yoo-sung Enterprises' stock price is already stirring. The effect is truly remarkable, isn't it?"
"Yeah. Be as grateful as you like. I can't do this often, so don't get your hopes up. Oh, and by the way, could you melt Number One and Number Two's ice?"
"Oh? Right."
As soon as she snapped her fingers, the two ice statues swiftly melted away.
And so, the three members of the Rabbit Squad reunited in a tearful embrace, then began operating the ship. The vessel was slowly picking up speed.
"By the way, your ice ability is stronger than I thought. I didn't expect much."
"That's a bit hurtful. I'm quite strong, even if I'm overshadowed by Stardust... by our Haru? Let's have a proper fight sometime."
"Right, right."
I chuckled and replied.
But now that I think about it, is this really okay?
This scene where the hero and villain, who were fighting to kill each other just moments ago, are now laughing and chatting as if nothing happened the moment the camera turns off. If anyone were to see this, it could truly be a huge problem.
Just as I was about to tell Icicle, who was still chattering away in front of me, that it was time to part ways.
Something far behind her was rapidly approaching us.
Wait, what's that? Did that President fire another missile? Is he still out of his mind?
"Hey, wait a second."
"Yes?"
The moment I spoke, looking past her, Lee Seol-ah sensed something amiss and immediately spun around.
Is that really a missile?
No, it's too small for a missile.
...Is it a person?
Even as I was momentarily confused, that 'something' flew towards us with terrifying speed. And once it became visible to the naked eye, I could make out the approaching figure.
The person flying towards us, golden hair streaming behind her, was a woman in a red latex suit.
....Stardust?
"....No, wait, why is *she* here?"
I muttered that without realizing it. Lee Seol-ah seemed equally flustered.
Before I could even properly grasp the situation, with a first-rate villain's reflexes, I quickly shouted at the Rabbit Squad.
Egostic's Secret Technique No. 36, deployed when an unpredictable situation arises—
The Great Escape.
"Hey!!! Step on it! Full speed!"
I don't know what's going on, but let's just run first!!