novelraw Chapter 200 : Chapter 200
Chapter 200 : Chapter 200
Chapter 200: Return
The spiderweb-like underground waterway, the sewer, was pitch dark with not a single point of light.
Splish—
Splosh—
The water, which came up to his ankles, splashed, and the sound of someone walking was clearly heard.
A nauseating smell echoed every time he took a step, but Hong Beom-do walked on diligently without a care.
But for a moment, he didn't see a stone on the floor, and his body staggered greatly.
Normally, he wouldn't have fallen even if he had tripped on such a stone, but this was not a normal time.
He stopped and leaned his back against the wall of the waterway.
He punched the wall.
Kwang—
“Damn it! Damn it!”
In the end, unable to hold it in, he repeatedly cursed.
Why on earth had things gone so wrong?
He caught his breath and recalled the events of the day.
The business of selling achievements to corrupt heroes.
It was one of Hong Beom-do's organization's most important businesses, not just for the money, but also for the purpose of making connections with active heroes.
Naturally, Hong Beom-do, the boss, had also personally coordinated the situation on site and had prepared for any variables.
And there were plenty of ‘achievements’ to sell to the heroes.
The ‘traitors’ who had been caught thanks to Ho-cheol.
It was much more to their advantage to be caught by a hero and rot in prison for a few years than to die or have one of their limbs cut off, so they had readily been sold as achievements.
At first, it seemed to be going well.
But suddenly, other rival organizations and villains had appeared from all over and had interfered with their work.
He had rushed around to try and resolve the situation, but the first place to be breached was.
“Damn it. That fool!”
He recalled Ho-cheol and ground his teeth.
A business partnership.
No, it wasn't even a partnership.
It was closer to a subcontract, where they had been assigned only a part of the area they were in charge of.
Naturally, it was much looser than Hong Beom-do's organization.
Normally, that would not have been a problem at all, but it was almost impossible to deal with an unexpected situation.
How had the enemies known about the area in charge of Ho-cheol's organization?
They had attacked that place intensively.
In the end, Ho-cheol's organization had not been able to hold out for long and a hole had been pierced through.
Once one place was breached, the rest collapsed in an instant.
The most frustrating part was that he didn't even know if this was an accident caused by Ho-cheol's carelessness, or if it had been done out of malice.
There was no information coming in to this side, but the enemies knew this side's inner workings and information in detail and had only picked out the weak points to deliver a fatal blow.
He, who had been leaning against the wall of the waterway, muttered softly.
“Damn it…”
He clenched his fists.
His nails dug into his palms.
“Should I have gotten rid of all the traitors?”
Among the few traitors Ho-cheol had pointed out, Hong Beom-do had trusted a few executives to the end.
There was no way that was possible.
They were trustworthy guys to whom he could entrust his life.
Of course, he had not completely erased his suspicion, and had installed a minimum safety device by excluding them from important missions.
Ho-cheol had seriously warned him that he would regret such a complacent response someday.
At that time, he had scoffed, but was that really the cause?
It was natural to have such a question.
But it had been fine until then.
In any case, the enemies were mostly half-baked villains who hadn't even made it to S-rank.
Hong Beom-do had been able to move personally and subdue them all before they could ruin things.
Just as he was about to subdue them.
Eclipse had appeared.
Hong Beom-do's body trembled slightly at the memory of that moment.
Two suns floating in the sky.
The scene of the buildings in the area melting just by its existence was a horror in itself.
Although they had the title of S-rank No. 1, in reality, they were completely different.
In the first place, Hong Beom-do had become No. 1 10 years ago when all the villains above him had been killed or incapacitated by Ho-cheol's hand.
On the other hand, Eclipse, who had become No. 1 purely through his strength despite his declining popularity.
The difference between the two was clear.
And the biggest difference was that the system for determining the ranks of heroes and villains was different.
For heroes, even if they ran an agency, their rank was determined by measuring only their individual capabilities, but for villains, the danger of their ideology and the danger of their affiliated organization also had a huge impact on their rank.
Naturally, Hong Beom-do's organization, which had the largest scale and a long history, was bound to receive a much higher evaluation than a villain of the same level.
In fact, there were even villains who were stronger than Hong Beom do among the S-rank villains.
It was just that they were not affiliated with anyone, and their evaluation was low because their danger level was low.
And so, with the appearance of Eclipse, the tide of the battle had been completely turned.
No, the tide of the battle that was about to be turned had been completely shattered.
Hong Beom-do had also fought desperately against Eclipse, but in the end, all he could do was to save his own life by sacrificing his subordinates as a shield.
He frowned at the intense pain he felt in his left leg.
He had only been grazed by Eclipse's attack, but his left leg had been burnt black.
Thanks to that, he had been walking for 30 minutes in a waterway that he could have passed through in 5 minutes.
After recovering some of his stamina, he started walking again.
A small light twinkled in the distance.
It was the end of the long sewer.
But just before he reached the exit, the light suddenly shimmered.
Someone was standing there with their back to the light.
“Who is it!”
Hong Beom-do tensed and placed his hand on the axe hanging from his waist.
No matter how tired and tattered he was, he was still an S-rank villain.
The aura that emanated from him seemed to crush the entire sewer.
But he soon relaxed his aura.
The person standing there was not a hero or another hostile villain, but Ha-rin.
“Ah. It’s you. I don’t know how you knew this place, but I’m glad.”
Normally, he would not have remembered a low-level subordinate who was not even an executive, but he had remembered her face thanks to seeing her so often because of Ho-cheol's case recently.
Hong Beom-do seemed to be relieved at the appearance of an ally, but that feeling did not last long.
He met her eyes as she came down from the sewer exit.
The look in Ha-rin's eyes as she looked at him was not that of a subordinate to her organization's boss.
A gaze in which hostility, and even killing intent, was clearly felt.
Ha-rin slowly opened her mouth.
“Finally, we’re alone.”
An intense heat could be felt in her voice.
An opportunity for revenge that would never come again.
Ha-rin clenched and unclenched her fists.
Sparks flashed repeatedly on her palms.
“Insolent.”
Hong Beom-do, who had finished grasping the situation, drew his axe from his waist.
***
Heok—
Heok—
Hong Beom-do bent over and panted.
He was already at his limit from a series of battles, and his left leg was not moving properly.
And to have to fight again in that situation.
In fact, even in such a bad condition, his opponent was a low-level subordinate who hadn't even been promoted to an executive.
Naturally, he had thought he would be able to take her down in one blow, but she had shown a strength and tenacity that was beyond his expectations and had continued to fight with Hong Beom-do.
They had been fighting for nearly 20 minutes.
“Damn bitch…”
Looking at the fallen Ha-rin, Hong Beom-do took a deep breath.
“It’s… it’s not over yet…”
Ha-rin barely managed to stand up.
But she soon lost her strength and fell with a thud.
Blood from her torn forehead flowed and obstructed her vision.
She bit her lip.
To think the difference was this great.
Ho-cheol's plan had all succeeded.
The only thing that had failed was her own incompetence and weakness.
If she were to fall here, she would let Hong Beom-do escape.
She could not tolerate that.
“You weakling, making things so annoying.”
Looking at the fallen Ha-rin, Hong Beom-do re-gripped his axe.
The axe he had raised high, its blade held a dangerous light, as if he were about to swing it at her head at any moment.
But Ha-rin was faster.
She, who had fallen, reached out and grabbed Hong Beom-do's pant leg.
“If I can’t kill you…”
She raised only her head and glared at Hong Beom-do.
“Let’s go together.”
“You crazy bastard!”
Hong Beom-do shouted in a fluster and swung his axe.
But before that.
Kwaaaang—
A huge explosion engulfed the two of them.
The black smoke cleared, and Ha-rin, whose entire body was burnt black, fainted.
A self-destruction that had squeezed out all her strength and stamina.
For her, it had been a life-risking attack, but unfortunately, the humidity in the waterway and the wastewater on the floor had halved its power.
And that insufficient power.
“A completely crazy bitch.”
Could not defeat Hong Beom-do.
He looked down at Ha-rin with a completely fed up expression.
And unlike before, this time, he did not deliver the final blow.
If it was that kind of stubborn person, it would not be strange for her to have a bomb in her heart that would react when it stopped.
His physical condition was at its worst to take such a risk.
He instead kicked Ha-rin and pushed her to the side.
He dragged his left leg, which had lost all sensation, and escaped from the sewer.
And in front of him.
“Well. It’s the result I expected, but I guess there are no miracles.”
Ho-cheol was standing there.
He had been watching the battle from a distance.
If it had been a situation where one of them was about to die, he would have intervened, but this special environment of the sewer had dulled their bodies, making it difficult for them to take each other's lives.
He hadn't expected Ha-rin to self-destruct at the end, but thanks to her fainting, things would be easier to handle.
“Heo.”
Hong Beom-do, who saw Ho-cheol, laughed as if dumbfounded.
There was no need for any other conversation or information.
Just the fact that Ho-cheol was standing here was a sufficient answer.
However, he asked the most important thing.
“How much of this was a picture you drew?”
“From beginning to end.”
Ho-cheol shrugged his shoulders and answered.
At his faint sneer, Hong Beom-do forgot even his pain and became angry.
“I’ll definitely get you!”
Hong Beom-do threw the two axes hanging from his waist.
The axes, which spun rapidly like boomerangs, rushed at Ho-cheol.
He must have shown himself so brazenly because he knew he was in a dying situation.
Hong Beom-do, who knew that Ho-cheol had no combat power, was confident that this blow would be more than enough to end Ho-cheol's life.
But Ho-cheol neither blocked nor dodged the pair of axes.
Just very simply.
Thump—
Thump—
He caught them.
As if they had been in his hands from the beginning.
He shook the axes he was holding in both hands up and down.
“I used to use axes often too.”
At that sight, Hong Beom-do's complexion turned pale.
“You, what the hell are you!”
If he had blocked or dodged it, no, even that was incomprehensible.
But catching them was a completely separate matter.
At the very least, it was a feat that could never be done without having more than one level of capability.
“I told you. It was all my plan from beginning to end.”
Ho-cheol re-gripped the axes.
“If I had shown that I was strong from the beginning, would you have met me so calmly? Well, it wasn't that you were unlucky, so don't be too disappointed. In fact, you were so absurdly lucky that you were supposed to die 10 years ago, but you've survived until now.”
There was no time to interpret Ho-cheol's meaningful words.
A pair of axes being swung at him.
That was Hong Beom-do's last memory.
***
Cough—
Ha-rin coughed up a handful of blood and stood up again.
The rotten water of the sewer soaked her entire body, and a nauseating smell pierced her nose, but she had no time to care about that.
She hurriedly looked around.
She had definitely been inside the sewer when she had fallen, but not now.
It was an abandoned construction site near the sewer exit.
“H-how did this happen?”
She muttered with a displeased expression.
“The self-destruction at the end was a success.”
At the voice from his side, Ha-rin hurriedly turned her head.
Right behind her, Ho-cheol, who was sitting on a brick, solved her mystery.
“H-Hong Beom-do?”
“He had fainted when I arrived.”
Ho-cheol, who had said so, pointed to the side.
Hong Beom-do, who was unconscious in the distance, was tied up tightly with a thick rope.
“Thank God…”
Ha-rin was genuinely relieved.
Well, since she was alive, Hong Beom-do couldn't have been fine either.
For her, who had no idea of the situation after she had fainted, she could not help but think so.
“Can you get up?”
“Of course.”
Ha-rin stood up with difficulty, placing both hands on the ground.
Her legs were trembling, but in any case, she was able to stand up properly on her own.
“Then it’s time to choose.”
Ho-cheol picked up the axe that had fallen below and held it out.
Ha-rin took the axe with a puzzled expression.
But she soon understood the meaning of this axe.
“Ah.”
She looked back and forth between the axe and Hong Beom-do.
The embers of revenge flickered in her eyes again.
Ho-cheol did not go out of his way to say anything.
Of course, he would stop her if she really tried to kill him, but until just before that, he would just quietly watch her choice to the end.
“Revenge. I have to get revenge.”
Ha-rin muttered, holding the axe.
She had always lived dreaming of the situation where she would end Hong Beom-do's life.
But now that the situation was right in front of her, that scene did not come to her mind.
She could guess it instinctively.
She had crossed the line several times as a villain until now.
But this was different.
The final line that could never be returned to.
She was standing in front of it now.
“I, I…”
Ha-rin closed her eyes.
After thinking about something for a long time, she opened her eyes again.
And holding the axe, she approached Hong Beom-do.
She raised the axe high and brought it down on the unconscious Hong Beom-do.
Kwajik—!
Kwajik—!
Kwajik—!
Kwadeuk—!
She swung the axe ten times in a row.
Blood flows.
Pieces of flesh roll on the floor.
Ha-rin stared blankly at the result she had created.
10 fingers rolled on the floor.
It was fatal, but not to the point of losing his life.
Her hand lost its strength, and she dropped the axe she was holding.
“Is that your revenge?”
Ho-cheol, who had been holding his breath since he had handed her the axe, asked.
Ha-rin slowly nodded her head.
“He will never be able to hold an axe and kill a person again.”
The last, last line that could remain as a human.
In the end, Ha-rin had been able to stop in front of it and come back.
She, who had fallen, buried her forehead in the ground and muttered as if sobbing.
“Mom Dad…”
Whether it was the pity of not being able to complete her revenge, or for some other reason.
She cried for a long time.
***
Ha-rin, who had been sobbing for a long time, only calmed down after another hour had passed.
Still shedding tears, she said to Ho-cheol.
“Thank you.”
It was a thank you filled with many emotions.
“For what.”
In fact, Ho-cheol waved his hand nonchalantly.
“In the end, will I be caught while putting this guy away? How many years will I have to rot in prison?”
Ha-rin muttered gloomily.
As a villain, she had committed a lot of illegal things.
And for a long time.
Of course, if she were to say that it was all to catch Hong Beom-do, there might be room for consideration, but that was a story that was only possible for a hero.
For her, an ordinary person, not a hero, it was an absurd story.
“I don't know if I had some high-ranking connection.”
Ho-cheol said, as if teasing her, even though he knew full well.
She had a connection called the dean, so what prison?
That old man would probably use his discretion to get her out.
At most, she would get a suspended sentence.
In fact, for Ho-cheol, there was a bigger problem than her being caught.
Of course, he had approached her with good intentions, but in any case, he had been deceiving her for over a month.
What kind of reaction would she show if she found out the truth?
Perhaps it would be best to just break up and never see her again.
As he was wondering how to break up cleanly.
“Boss! Boss!”
From a distance, Wolf Fang ran at full speed.
“Why the fuss again.”
In the first place, he had entrusted him with the clean-up, so it was a mystery why he had come here.
But before he could point that out, Wolf Fang shouted even more urgently.
He did not stop talking even while panting.
“Th-that's not the problem! Your phone, quickly! The news! You have to see the news!”
Even though he had known him for several years, it was the first time he had been so flustered.
Ho-cheol, with a pathetic expression, took out his phone and pressed the internet window.
And he realized that Wolf Fang was not making a fuss at all.
The front page of the internet news.
A breaking news story was on the screen in red letters.
The news channel was broadcasted on the full screen, and the low and heavy voice of the announcer hit his ears.
Breaking news.
At around 10:42 this morning, the hero academy ‘Clington’ was attacked by unidentified villains.
Currently, the academy’s faculty and nearby heroes are responding.
Behind him, a huge screen was visible.
On the screen, a panoramic view of Clington, filmed from a helicopter, was clearly displayed.
Black smoke rose high into the sky.
Flames shot up from here and there, and the debris of a collapsed building was rolling around.
In the midst of it all, a strong explosion and a flash of light were seen somewhere, and the ground shook.
It is believed that more than 30% of the school’s facilities have been destroyed, and the extent of the damage to students and staff has not been confirmed.
The police, fire department, and the Hero Association have been dispatched in an emergency.
Ho-cheol's hand, holding the phone, trembled.
The news presenter was maintaining a calm voice, but the reality on the screen was a despair in itself.
It has not been revealed whether this attack was a planned terror attack by a specific organization, or a simple rampage by individual villains.
However, numerous traces of battle between powerful individuals have been captured at the scene.
The camera screen changed, and the main gate of Clington Academy was zoomed in.
The main gate was half-destroyed, and there was a deep crack in the road.
A black shadow passed over it with a flame.
I will repeat myself.
The hero academy ‘Clington’ is currently under attack by unidentified villains.
The Hero Association, the police, and the fire department have been dispatched, but the scale of the damage is continuously increasing.
We will bring you more news as it comes in.
And the focus of the camera on the helicopter shook and turned towards the main gate.
Ha-rin, who had been looking at the phone with him from behind, shouted urgently.
“G-grandpa!”
She, who had felt Ho-cheol's gaze, hastily waved her hands and made an excuse.
“No, that’s not it!”
But now was not the time to listen to her excuses.
And it was not the time for him to hide either.
He grabbed Ha-rin's wrist.
“You’re coming with me too.”
Just now, as the screen had passed by, it had only been captured for a fleeting moment, but Ho-cheol could clearly see.
The villain who had confronted the dean, he had only seen the back of his head for a brief moment, but.
That was a person who should not have been at Clington.
No, he should not have been in this world either.