novelraw Chapter 50
Chapter 50
Chapter 50: There Is No Absolute in the World (8)
“…….”
“…….”
A confrontation where neither of us said a word continued for over ten minutes.
Even though I tried my best to control it, cold sweat kept pouring down my back.
If there was a silver lining, it was that the sweat was not dripping down my face.
If it had been, I would have immediately been caught being nervous regardless of the poker face I was maintaining, so it was truly a relief.
Just as the long silence, which I desperately hoped would end, continued, the other party finally spoke first.
Rather than the feeling of trying to have a serious conversation, it felt like she was slightly testing the waters.
“How did you figure out my identity... you do not look that strong.”
“It is a trade secret.”
“Hmm, I do not really like men with many secrets, you know?”
“If those secrets keep me alive, then I do not have much of a choice, do I?”
The words I just spoke were the truth, without a single lie.
The woman before my eyes was someone who moved solely for her own pleasure and interest.
Therefore, I had to pique her interest in some way to survive and continue the deal, did I not?
And her subsequent words proved that my choice was not wrong.
“Kyahahaha! You are fun. I thought today was going to be a boring day, so it is truly a relief!”
“I am grateful you say so.”
“I like that polite attitude too. You, you are a boy I want to have in many ways.”
‘Crazy bitch.’
For a moment, a curse almost burst out, but I suppressed it with transcendental patience.
We just met and only exchanged a few words, yet she suddenly says she wants to have me; is that not a thought that could only come from a lunatic?
Furthermore, it was even more so because that 'wanting to have' me was not the typical possessiveness one might think of.
What that woman wanted to do right now was to turn me into a toy.
Like those villains who died at the hands of Shin Yu-hwan today without even being able to manifest their own will.
‘That is out of the question.’
In my plans, there was no scheduled future where I live my life as a toy.
Therefore, I swallowed the curses in my heart as much as possible and expressed my refusal in a polite voice.
“I am sorry, but as I am a busy man, that will be impossible.”
“What if I force my way?”
“Then I will struggle until you give up. Even if I die.”
It was true that I would struggle until she gave up, but I had no intention of dying.
I was not even dying for the heroes; if I were to die because a single deal went wrong, would that not be a dog's death?
Nevertheless, there was a reason I used such a strong tone.
‘This bitch's persistence is beyond imagination. And anyway, she cannot turn me into a toy without my consent.’
If she could turn someone into a toy without their consent, would she have ended up as a mere S-Rank villain?
The protagonist of the world would have been this bitch, and the genre would have definitely been an apocalypse.
For those complex reasons, it was only natural for me to take such a firm stance.
The other party seemed to understand what I was trying to say as well.
“Mmm. It seems you know exactly what my ability is. I am really curious to know who told you...?”
“…….”
“Well, a stubborn man with backbone is not bad either. One usually gets tired of eating the same thing all the time. Kyahaha!”
Every time I heard words like that, I kept getting confused about whether the choice I made was right.
The thought that perhaps I had made a choice I should not have.
However, once a path is set, even if there are worries during the selection process, one must push through to the end once it is decided.
Furthermore, the text message I received before coming here also respected my choice.
‘It was quite sudden, so I was a bit surprised.’
It must have been while I was constantly worrying about whether it was right to make a deal with this crazy bitch and whether my choice would bring about even more negative results.
I received another text message from the Author, who had been silent since sending a message shortly after I arrived in this world.
‘It is certain that he is checking this side periodically.’
The content of the text was as follows:
This is now your story, not mine. It is not a story of failure, but a new story that will be created from now on.
All choices are according to your will. Both previous choices and future ones are things for you alone to decide and execute.
This is the last communication I can provide to you. Please do not be bound by a failed world and focus on the new narrative.
It was a text that could seem quite irresponsible and unkind. After all, it was the Author who threw me into this world.
However, for me, this was a good enough story.
I suppose it was a good opportunity to reach a conclusion about the things I had been roughly guessing in my head?
‘I do not know if he is a god, but the Author is an existence similar to one. However, due to certain circumstances, direct intervention in this world is almost—no, now completely impossible.’
And it also meant that even the Author does not want the world to proceed toward a tragic development.
‘So, I just need to focus on what I want to do.’
At the very least, the Author cannot intervene in my choices and respects my will.
It might sound like a trivial matter, but I had worried a lot about this part.
Things like whether an unknown intervention would occur in the plans I was trying to carry out, causing setbacks, or whether the Author only wanted perfect heroes and would interfere with everything I tried to do.
But now that I knew for sure that such things would not happen, it felt like my heavy heart had become much lighter.
‘Well, it is a bit of a shame that I cannot receive any help.’
But this much was plenty.
The fact that I could proceed without being hindered by the intervention of an irresistible power was a result I could be sufficiently satisfied with.
I had not made detailed plans for what I intended to do in the future, but sometimes I might have to walk a thin line.
‘Even that is only possible if I get through today.’
Thinking about the future is good, but the future only comes if I get through the present without incident, does it not?
Therefore, I focused once again on the villain before my eyes and slowly opened my mouth.
“Then, since I take it that you view me favorably, shall we slowly move on to the main topic?”
“What? You did not come here to play with me? You are a fellow with quite dark ulterior motives!”
‘They say the pot calls the kettle black, but were those words made for this crazy bitch?’
“Where in the world would there be favor without a reason? Would it not be better to have a reason rather than a favor without one?”
“What?”
“Because it means the favor will absolutely never end as long as our interests align.”
At my words, the crazy bitch frowned for a moment and began to contemplate.
But it was not a long period of contemplation.
Before long, she immediately raised her head and looked at me.
For some reason, she had a face that looked quite pleased.
“Now that I hear it, you are right! Fine, then what is the talk you want to have?”
That pleased-looking face was somewhat unsettling, but still, it was better than her being in a bad mood.
Hiding my tension and maintaining my composure, I continued speaking.
“I would like to make a deal.”
“A deal?”
“Yes. To be more specific, let us call it an information trade.”
“Mmm... what are the contents of the deal? Tell me.”
I had finally reached this point.
However, it would be absurd to let down my guard already. We had only just brought up the topic of a deal, and there was still a long way to go before the deal was finalized.
Therefore, I cleared my throat and spoke about the contents of the deal.
“I will keep it a secret that you infiltrated this place. In exchange, if you plan to cause any incidents in the future, tell me in advance.”
“...What?”
The crazy bitch looked at me as if she found it absurd.
Yes, in fact, it was an absurd thing to say even as I spoke it.
It was essentially the same as making an impossible demand to someone who would not even be caught as long as she discarded her clone.
But what is the most important thing in a deal? Is it not guts? Just as Kim Du-han shouted for four dollars with pure guts.
I intended to continue with that same guts now.
“You are probably thinking that you can just create another clone and infiltrate again. Since you can just hop over to another one anyway.”
“…….”
“But I did not bring this up without knowing that. I even know the organization you belong to, Puppeteer. For example, the place that first manufactured the Blue Nightmare.”
Time has passed, so you might have forgotten, but the item Lee Ho-jae brought out during the previous Do Gang-ho incident was the Blue Nightmare.
And the Puppeteer before my eyes was a person belonging to the organization that started the manufacturing of that Blue Nightmare.
‘A villain organization that appeared constantly until the latest chapter of the novel I last read.’
Furthermore, the identity of that villain organization's boss never appeared until the end.
Because the organizational structure itself moved in the form of a cell-based organization, it did not appear in the novel until the very end.
Likely, even the Puppeteer would not know who the boss of the organization she belonged to was.
As the boss of villains wicked enough to create something like the Blue Nightmare, he would be a bastard meticulous about his own safety.
‘At any rate, the important thing is that I mentioned that place.’
To the Puppeteer, this would carry quite a significant meaning.
Unlike me identifying this crazy bitch's identity, this was information that even those sensitive to information did not know well.
As expected, my thoughts were correct, and the crazy bitch before me began to exude an atmosphere different from before.
“You, I thought you were a bit of an interesting boy at first, but now that I see, you are an incredibly interesting boy, aren't you?”
“I am simply grateful you say so.”
“You know my identity, and you know the organization I am in. With that much, would it not be much more profitable to kill me rather than make a deal?”
“That is because I want to maintain a good relationship with you, Puppeteer. How could I throw away such a good opportunity?”
I spoke like this, but of course, I had considered that too.
The scenario where I come here with Shin Yu-hwan, instill a sense of alarm, find her true body, and kill her.
‘But that actually results in a loss.’
If I were to eliminate this crazy bitch right now, would that villain organization really take their hands off Glory?
I guarantee they would immediately infiltrate someone else.
And in a situation different from the novel, I would not know what form that new person had taken to infiltrate.
‘If it is a continuous cycle of an unstoppable loop, it is much better to keep her under my thumb.’
My position is solely to protect the heroes; I am not in a position to diligently hunt villains like Shin Yu-hwan.
Therefore, while I will not commit evil acts like a villain at the very least, sometimes I might have to join hands with a villain like this.
Since incidents are going to happen anyway, it would be much better if they occurred where I could see them.
‘Besides, even though she is a crazy bitch, she is easy to handle.’
Unlike other villains I know who appeared in the novel, this woman before me is quite easy to manipulate.
She is not a character who calculates and acts, but one who moves with interest and pleasure as her priorities.
Even if it meant her own death, she was the kind of lunatic who would step forward if the pleasure outweighed it.
‘So, I must throw her some bait no matter what and successfully conclude the deal.’
If the deal succeeds, I can gain information in the future, and if necessary, I can even use an S-Rank villain as a pawn by throwing her as much bait as possible.
What a great set of benefits.
Of course, there is the issue of stability since there is no telling where she might bounce off to, but considering the situation where another villain comes after this woman is eliminated, that is a penalty I can laugh off.
Therefore, I asked the crazy bitch before me once again in a low voice.
Like a salesman who has come to tempt a customer looking for an old phone into buying a new one.
“What do you think? I am confident it will be a deal you will never regret.”
It was a voice of devilish temptation, to the point where I wondered if I was actually born with the constitution of a bad guy.