· · ────── ꒰ঌ·✦·໒꒱ ────── · ·
Translated by BiasNil
· · ────── ꒰ঌ·✦·໒꒱ ────── · ·
Alright.
Let's lay out the situation.
First of all, my plan was this:
I would scold that Monkey Spanner because he made me mad.
To do that, I'd draw aggro while he was filming his live threatening video.
If he panicked and stopped filming, I'd provoke him and piss him off.
Finally, I'd squeeze out the last bit of my telekinesis and wipe out his men in one shot.
Then he'd think I'm super strong and stay wary.
Eliminating them with a flick of the fingers—scary to imagine what happens if I flick twice…
Usually, I'd teleport right after that.
I was going to grab Seo-eun and Su-bin after saying a line like, "Oh, boring… nothing to see here," and so on.
It's always nice to act like you don't even want to fight common criminals.
Honestly, I was going to get the car, leave chaotic Busan, and head back to Seoul.
However, there was a setback to the plan.
No, this telekinesis thing is a bit much.
I thought I could handle it, but I couldn't do that much.
From the moment I flicked my fingers and started manipulating with telekinesis, I had a feeling. What kind of feeling? The feeling I was doomed.
And at this moment, I can't move. Ta-dah.
So I switched plans.
Egostic's Plan B: wriggle out of hell's trap.
Play the part of a black screen—scare the opponent with words, as if I could kill them with a hand gesture.
Then hang in there. Until when? Until a hero shows up.
North Sea Ice Women will probably come, and it should take some time.
Until then, the key was to keep Monkey Spanner's feet tied… That was the idea.
Oh my! Ta-dah? North Sea Ice Women here already!
With Shadow Walker and Stardust.
"..."
…Fuck, what is this?
"Monkey Spanner! Tell your men to put their guns down and surrender. You're surrounded!"
Stardust's loud voice echoed through the vast hotel lobby.
As a fan, hearing her voice in real life instead of in a comic was a delight. Felt like a live-action movie.
Yeah—but it'd be better if it weren't right now, okay?
"I'll say it one more time! Put the guns down and—"
Stardust's powerful voice…
…gradually weakened.
Because no matter how much she looked around…
There were no armed thugs with guns.
"...?"
She couldn't hide her bewilderment at the unexpected sight.
North Sea Ice Women, who came in with her, also looked confused. Of course—I'd already suppressed the gunmen, and they were lying on the ground.
Monkey Spanner was on the verge of bolting.
"Eek… ugh!"
He tried to flee in the growing chaos but was pinned by Shadow Walker.
"No matter how weak I am right now… I can still catch you, you know?"
Before anyone knew it, Shadow Walker was on top of Monkey Spanner, binding him with shadow.
Thanks to that, Monkey Spanner was rolling on the floor like a rag doll.
Hands, feet, and mouth—all sealed by shadow.
He'd been swaggering around terrorizing people, and in just a few minutes he lost all his men and got arrested himself.
No matter how much Monkey Spanner flies and crawls—
He can't beat Shadow Walker at night.
That much is certain.
Of course, Shadow Walker's condition looked a bit rough.
He was unsteady.
Still, that wasn't the point. Even in that state, he easily subdued Monkey Spanner.
Seeing him flattened by a weakened Shadow Walker, face ground into the floor…
Erm… poor guy.
I almost felt sorry.
If I mess up, I'll be like that too…
Shadow Walker's eyes, still pinning Monkey Spanner, turned to me.
Of course he'd look—some stranger sitting cross-legged on a chair tower.
North Sea Ice Women and Stardust did the same.
North Sea Ice Women looked puzzled; Stardust seemed a little tense.
Well, come to think of it—
They haven't realized I'm Egostic yet, right?
The situation's already over and they rushed the scene; they don't know what happened. I killed the live feed before that Monkey Spanner even finished his entrance.
Crucially, the mask is different. I usually wear the half-gray mask; now it's a full-face yellow mask.
Shadow Walker, having subdued Monkey Spanner, looked up at me with a puzzled expression that said, "What's with that guy?"
He stared up and, looking tired, asked:
"…Who are you? We came to take Monkey Spanner…"
Mid-sentence, he looked around.
Dozens of armed terrorists, somehow, lay bloodied.
Monkey Spanner was frozen in an awkward pose.
And I was up there, cross-legged, looking down at them all.
Anyone with common sense would put it together.
I'm the one who finished them.
So now they're asking themselves:
"Who is that guy?"
Too brutal to be a hero—because I killed them all. And sitting there, chin tucked, cross-legged, masked—like a villain.
But if I'm a villain, then why did I stop a terrorist attack? I confronted Monkey Spanner. Judging purely by actions, I look like a hero. Probably they've just never seen a hero wear a mask like this.
North Sea Ice Women's and Stardust's suspicious stares.
Shadow Walker trying to see right through me.
And me? I can barely flick a finger right now.
What the hell.
Why are all of Korea's A-class heroes here at once? Is Monkey Spanner really the kind you need everyone to handle? He's not!
And why do all three show up when I'm the most helpless?
Guys, stop staring. You're making me nervous.
"..."
A desperate crisis.
My brain started spinning faster than ever.
I could see Seo-eun and Su-bin watching me anxiously from afar. I couldn't make out their faces at this distance, but I know that look. Don't worry. Trust me. I can handle this difficulty.
First, my condition?
My goal: teleport and take those two to the car. Then we bolt.
I only need to teleport that distance. It's not far.
If I were fine, I'd already have done it.
But I'm not fine.
A few minutes.
Give me just a few more minutes and I can get away. I don't know how wrecked I'll feel after the next flick but…
Anyway—just a few more minutes.
And I'm a great villain when it comes to squeezing minutes out of a crisis.
How many hero movies have I watched?
I can pull this off.
Those three are still looking at me.
What was the question?
Oh—who am I?
I have to answer this right.
Saying "I'm Egostic" is suicide.
All three will jump me and beat me down. My body and soul will suffer greatly. So absolutely not.
My purpose is to stall.
To stall, I can't let them attack on sight.
So I have to fake my identity.
They don't know me—time to exploit that.
From their perspective, they've never seen a man in a yellow mango mask who killed a bunch of terrorists in some mysterious way.
I need to intimidate them.
I have to sell a fake profile.
Sitting high above, looking down like a king, I slowly opened my mouth.
No nerves. Leisurely, as if stating the truth.
"…Did you ask? I'm an S-class hero."
Yeah—the best joke here is to pretend I'm a hero. One they don't know, not someone who works openly in Korea. But what should the hero name be? I never planned one. Fine—something cool, abstract, metaphorical—anything!
In the rush, whatever came to mind spilled out unfiltered.
"I'm an S-class hero—Apple Mango."
…Oh, fuck.
"….."
I'd spoken the words "Apple Mango" in the most arrogant, serious tone.
The air instantly went chilly.
All three stared at me like, "Apple Mango," really?
This is those commenters' fault.
They kept typing Mangostic, Mangodan—my brain's contaminated, you lunatics!
I even thought the mask looked mango-colored earlier, so of course my mouth blurted that insanity. I'm finally losing it.
But what if I'm an S-class hero from another country who speaks Korean well?
You can make faces over a person's name all you want, okay?!
Stardust frowned at my answer.
"…Apple Mango? We've never heard of an S-class hero by that name."
A sharp point.
Well—not that sharp. Of course she hasn't. I just made it up…
But these three aren't the type to let something slide.
As a top-tier villain, I've got the gall to keep going.
Serious, weighty, arrogant—my voice lowered:
"Of course. I work in secret. Koreans might not know."
The secrets of Ego.
What do you know?
Got proof?
Anyway, I'm a hero.
I steeled my face and decided to shamelessly double down.
Again, heavy and loud enough to carry:
"You three—I've heard of you. Shadow Walker, North… Icicle. And Stardust. But you're all A-class, right? The gap between senior and junior is heaven and earth. Use honorifics when you speak to me."
I'm a villain who can't even move right now.
Facing three heroes who could crush me between their fingers.
And that's what I said. Brazenly.
I'm S-class. Speak formally.
All three stared at me like they couldn't believe what they'd just heard.
Regardless, I kept brazening it out. Honorifics, please. Isn't this a land of courteous people?
North Sea Ice Women shot back, baffled:
"What did you just say?"
"You spoke informally. Use honorifics."
I don't care anymore. Fuuuck. Let's try and stall them…
And so, that night, in the lobby of a Busan hotel, a crazy party was about to kick off.
Let's head into verse three together.