· · ────── ꒰ঌ·✦·໒꒱ ────── · ·
Translated by BiasNil
· · ────── ꒰ঌ·✦·໒꒱ ────── · ·
In an underground basement in Seoul.
In one of the many rooms in this place.
In the conference room, I sat with my arms folded, a serious look on my face.
With my back to the blackboard that read "The Sixth Egostic Regular Meeting," I spoke up.
"We need to clearly set our action steps for the future."
"Not all of us—probably only you. You made up that Apple Mango all of a sudden…"
"Seo-Eun. If you bring it up one more time, I won't talk for a week. I'll be in my room with the door closed. And I'm going to cry. You make a grown man cry with your words. Isn't that a horrible, terrible thing to do?!"
"All right. I can't even joke around."
"Of course, I know my Seo-eun is just worried about me. I was touched to see your tears when I woke up after a week…"
"Aaaaah! I—I can't hear you. Hurry up and continue your meeting or something."
Before starting, I stopped Seo-eun from teasing me first. She's been teasing me about the Apple Mango thingy since I woke up… She has to be restrained.
"Well, anyway. We must set our action steps clearly."
I sighed deeply.
"Like last time, I tried to stop that Monkey Spanner or something, but that accident happened. I think I forgot my identity for a moment. I'm not a hero, I'm a villain."
"Well… I'm sorry, Da-in. I think most people these days see you as a hero. Your fancafe already has twenty reasons why Egostic is a hero."
"Oh…"
I gulped. Yeah, I've been neglecting things these days.
My identity as a villain is becoming increasingly blurred.
"Then there's only one answer to it."
"What is it?"
"I'm going to hide under a rock."
Seo-Eun and Su-bin looked stunned when they heard me talking about hiding.
They stared as if wondering how I came to such a conclusion.
I explained to them one by one.
"Human beings… are like pots. Even if you're interested in something, it cools down if you don't mention it for a while. And everyone forgets."
"I mean… you're going to make people forget you?"
"Yeah, for a while."
Seo-Eun looked uncomfortable at my words.
Well, even though Seo-Eun always said she was tired whenever we planned an attack, she was the most excited.
Su-bin asked about my declaration.
"Then in the meantime… what should we do?"
"That's right. If the purpose is to keep out of the public eye, does that mean we aren't going to catch any villains either?"
I nodded.
"That's right."
Although that's what I told Seo-Eun and Su-bin, there's a real reason.
I've already done so much.
Most of the villains from the beginning of the original comic were killed, and the ones who would awaken in the latter half of the current work were eliminated in advance. Just eliminating Enzodiac and Teleporter alone counts as a lot of work.
Also, the terrorist attacks… At some point, Stardust already gained more power compared to the beginning of the comic. I think it's around the middle part of the comic? The plane crash was supposed to happen in the middle part…
On top of that, Stardust's popularity also rose, which was one of the minor purposes of my terrorism. Stardust Union is a fan club that didn't exist in the original. I don't know who made it, but isn't it such a good name?
"Then what are you going to do while you're resting? Are you going to keep running your Stardust fancafe?"
Seo-Eun asked me with a cold expression.
Huh?
"H-Huh? What are you talking about?"
"Aren't you the manager of that Stardust Union fancafe or something?"
Looking at Seo-Eun staring at me, I suddenly felt a cold sweat.
"I—I'm not."
"Da-in… I can even hack into government agencies. Do you think I can't get information from a portal site?"
"Haha…"
I mean… even so, I didn't think you would actually do that.
Well, I coughed to change the subject.
"That's not the point. Actually, we've been running nonstop all this time, right? So you also need to take a break for a while. Think of it as a vacation."
"So, really, you're not going to work for a while and you're resting for real?"
"Uh… except sometimes, when I have to have some chit-chat?"
"Well, alright."
Only then was Seo-Eun convinced.
Gosh, I'm only taking a break, but why do I feel like I just got permission from her…?
Anyway, that's how we went into hiding.
People, please forget me!
***
Just because I don't do any activities doesn't mean I just enjoy playing around.
Since it's a lull, we need to plan our future schedule in advance.
…
In my room, deep under the basement.
Looking at the blackboard on the wall there, I was thinking.
I'm relieved for now.
At the beginning, all the annoying villains were subdued. Now the rest are the ones who'll collapse under Stardust's fist, so it's not something I should worry about. I can just watch it on TV while eating popcorn, so I have nothing to worry about.
Stardust's ability has also been greatly improved, so she'll be reliable for a while. There's no need for me to step up.
"For the main event… we don't really have any."
There won't be a big accident for a while.
Of course, there will be a real big incident in a few months, but it will be prevented then. It means we're going to be fine for half a year.
What should I do in the meantime?
First, I remembered my goal.
The goal is to make Stardust walk only on flower roads.
And finally, to survive to the end.
It's very peaceful now.
Of course, there's one major terrorist attack every month… but it's still very peaceful.
After a few more years, the power balance collapses and all sorts of crazy villains spill out.
Despite the flood of villains, the only real heroes left will be Stardust and North Sea Ice Women, so of course they won't be able to cover it all… Things become a mess.
If the world becomes so hideous, I, a vulnerable villain, will be decapitated while walking down the street. That's terrible.
I cannot let that happen…!
What can I do to stop that?
Apparently, villains will pour out later.
Which means there are people who are not villains yet but are potential villains.
Yes, Seo-Eun is the representative one.
In the original work, she breaks down the administrative system, paralyzes the government, and even robs the association.
She's no longer a villain because I collected her before she could become bad.
So the conclusion is—
Before those who are not villains yet become villains, I have to stop them.
And I'll put them to use. Everyone's got great talent. Just look at Seo-Eun right now. Without her, I couldn't do anything, not even the terrorist attacks. There's a reason why I collected Seo-Eun first in this world.
I looked at the date.
Yeah, now we're no different from any siblings.
I roughly made a plan.
There's only one thing I dream of.
Embracing all the villains of the future, creating a huge union of villains!
I think we can name it Egosquad.
Sounds good.
Having reached a roughly satisfactory conclusion, I erased everything written on the blackboard and sat down.
If I want to survive this damn comic where the power balance is collapsing, I have to at least do this, right?
"Phew…"
I was going to take a break, but I can't rest properly.
I just turned on the laptop at my seat. I used my brain too much. I need to heal.
I naturally entered the Stardust fancafe I bookmarked. The photo on the main page of the cafe popped up as soon as I got in. I could see Stardust's face behind the words "Stardust Union."
Yeah, what's the point of hiding? I made this cafe. I mean! Who can stop me from fanboying over my favorite character from my favorite comic? I was forced to leave the real world where I was living well and kidnapped here, so I think I deserve some small happiness.
"Well, well."
Who am I even talking to? I pressed one of the categories.
"Stardust best cut."
It's a collection of pictures of Stardust.
"Haa… Yeah, this is it."
When Stardust saves the citizens, what should the citizens do?
Run away? Of course they have to run away, but it's still okay to take a few pictures on the way.
They even filmed some videos.
Hmm.
As expected, she's pretty.
If they ever make a live-action movie from this comic, it would still be hard to find the right one even if they cast more than ten million actresses.
So I scrolled through Stardust's pictures for a while to heal my exhausted mind. Yeah, this is enough for me…
FYI, we also held a competition in the cafe with our own money: the prettiest Stardust photo contest.
Stardust doesn't deal with A-class villains like me every day. She deals with a lot of poor brats such as class B and C.
So at times like that, people can take pictures of her.
After saving all the photos from the numerous posts that came up for the competition, I closed my laptop.
I'd rested enough.
What should I do now?
Oh, let's write a diary.
I took out my notebook from the depths of the bookcase.
This is my diary. I even put a lock on it in case Seo-Eun or Su-bin sees it.
This diary is a record of what happened from the first day I came into this world.
These diaries are essential when dealing with villains later, so I'm writing things down in advance.
It's a bit embarrassing to write a diary at this age… Well, even if it's a diary, I'm only writing down the events and feelings I've been through, so I can remember them later.
Maybe no one else will read this diary except me.
…Right?
After I finished writing my diary, I lay down on my back.
Now… I should have some fun again, right?
I started to have some fun again.
It's nice to have a break from doing the terrorist attacks.
I wonder if Stardust feels relieved since I haven't caused any incidents these days.
***
Shin Haru had a plan.
Her plan was to reveal what he's hiding the next time she sees Egostic.
But…
"Why is he so quiet these days?"
Since the last hotel incident, Egostic has never appeared.
It's been three months.
'…It's not like him.'
Shin Haru was feeling a little nervous without realizing it.
Where's Egostic?