Chapter 35

Chapter 034

What is a demon?

Is the succubus tied to that pillar a demon, or are the people who have been conducting all sorts of biological experiments on her the demons?

"Kyaaaah!! Ohh."

"A demon...!"

Or could it be that I, who is smashing these inhuman beings, am the demon?

[Your screams make me feel no hesitation at all.]

Kwaang.

I swung the bat and shattered the spine of the person trying to escape.

"Kuh, hah...."

The white coat began to turn red, and I swung the bat hard at the back of the fleeing researcher.

Pwaah.

The researcher could no longer run.

He couldn't even crawl, and his breath was cut off.

Today, I killed a person.

Or perhaps, a demon.

Someone who might be someone's child, or someone's parent.

But these people are clearly 'villains.'

They study the seeds of demons, and those seeds will eventually sprout and become a threat to the world.

"Kuh, ugh...."

[You're still alive?]

From inside the glass, a groan came from the room where the succubus was held.

-Warning, warning, warning, intruder detected, warning, warning.

The warning sound had started when I broke the glass, and the machine that was about to dissect the succubus had stopped.

"This, I can't let this go...!"

Perhaps thinking that I had come to rescue the succubus, the researcher tried to activate the internal device to restart the machine.

"A, ah...?!"

Whiiing.

The mechanical drill was aimed not at the succubus's abdomen but at her face.

The succubus looked at me with eyes filled with fear, and her eyes clearly said:

-Save me.

[......]

Without even thinking, my body was already in motion.

Kicking off the ground, I leaped over the broken glass, gripping the bat tightly in both hands.

"Kuh, hahh!!"

The researcher was twisting his body, trying to manipulate something.

If I don't attack the researcher now, he will surely try to escape by any means.

It's a moment of choice.

Should I bend down and subdue the researcher?

Or should I stop the mechanical drill?

[Huh.]

The trajectory of the bat, which I had slung over my shoulder, naturally aimed at the mechanical drill.

[Because I'm not a stuffy hero.]

Kaaang!

I swung the bat hard at the arm of the mechanical drill.

The succubus turned her head to the side, and the twisted end of the drill barely grazed her cheek.

"Kuhahaha! Success! Fool! I-"

The researcher, who was about to flee through a door that seemed like an emergency exit, froze in place.

[It's a gift.]

I kicked the arm of the mechanical drill in mid-air as I landed.

Pwaaah!!

Naturally, the spinning end of the drill aimed at the researcher, and it pierced his abdomen precisely.

"Kuh, hah...."

The researcher spat blood from his mouth and died.

It was a grotesque scene that couldn't be described in words, but considering all the situations that must have occurred in this room, it might seem fitting.

"Hahaha!"

At least, seeing the succubus's tear-soaked smile would make you think so.

"Aahaha, you died well, you bastards...! You kept tormenting me...! Hah, hah...!"

She was still tied to the pillar, so she could only gasp and laugh, but if I were to untie her, she would have immediately run over to stomp on the corpses.

[What's your name?]

"...Jeon Yubin. 22 years old. Have you heard of me?"

The succubus gave a resigned smile and looked me up and down.

"You were just an ordinary villain when you were kidnapped here, how strong have you become...?"

[When were you kidnapped?]

"Last fall."

[It's an awkward timing. At that time, I was known as a C-rank villain.]

I tore off the restraints one by one with my hands.

[I'm now an S-rank villain.]

"Amazing. How did you become so strong so quickly?"

[It's a secret. Of the Guild.]

"Right. A secret, got it. Then... why did you come to save me?"

[To save you?]

I took out the rope I made using my goblin bat.

[I didn't come to save you.]

"......?!"

Kwaah.

Before Jeon Yubin could move, I tied her up with the rope.

Tightening it so she couldn't move her wings or arms, I bound her and made her lie on the ground.

"What are you doing!!"

[Why did you think I came to save you?]

I stepped on her back and wings and raised the bat over her head.

[It's certainly sad that you were subjected to biological experiments by humans disguised as demons, but that doesn't make you an angel disguised as a demon, does it?]

"No, no! I'm not a bad person!"

[Have you ever killed a person?]

"......!"

Jeon Yubin couldn't say anything.

Of course.

The basic condition for becoming a demon is 'killing a fellow demon,' and since Jeon Yubin is a 'pure demon' who became one through normal means, not by being forcibly turned into a demon through the seed of a demon.

[You didn't become a demon due to a power surge, and you must have pursued strength by using your powers to kill people. How many have you killed?]

"No, I didn't...! No one!"

[You're lying.]

I'm not judging by her heartbeat or eye movements or any physical symptoms that occur when lying.

[The investigation is already complete. Jeon Yubin, you killed your junior, Hwang Dohee, and stole her magic power, and then you became a demon and went berserk. The security forces of Sejong Island said they detained and imprisoned you, but in fact, it was a secret research facility... something like that.]

Using prisoners as experimental subjects is a common story.

[Since you became a demon, human rights don't matter anymore, do they? Don't you think that, by definition, demons aren't human?]

"Hah, hah... If I escape from here, I will definitely join 'Pandemonium' and expose the ugly truth of this place. And I will demand the right for all demons to live as humans."

[You have big dreams.]

I raised the bat high.

[The conversation is over. Do you have anything to say before you die?]

"...Wait, wait. Are you really going to kill me? Huh? Really...?"

[Did you think I would just scare you, or that I would make you confess the reason you became a villain and repent for your sins?]

"Stop! Wait! You're not really going to kill me...! Why are you doing this to a fellow villain?!"

Jeon Yubin's expression began to show urgency.

"Someone told you I was here, and someone asked you to raid this place, but they didn't tell you to kill me, right!!"

She started to struggle, trying her best to get away from me.

"I can expose the ugly truth of Sejong Island, or use me to uncover the truth of this research!!"

[You might be mistaken. Do you think you're the only one being researched on Sejong Island?]

"Surely... there are other demons besides me?! Why are you saving them and trying to kill me!!"

[Well.]

It makes sense, but it does.

[The person who requested your death is Hwang Dohee's parents.]

"......"

Jeon Yubin couldn't say anything.

She looked at me with a dazed face, as if she had been hit by something she never expected.

"How could they...?"

[They wanted to see the face of the murderer who killed their daughter, to see how she lived, but they couldn't even visit or approach you. It started from there.]

It's the Guild's job to handle how the request came in.

[Do you think the person you killed wouldn't request your death?]

As a solver and 'section chief' of the Guild, I simply carry out the given task.

"Hah, hah...! You're no different! You hypocrite! You're the same as me!!"

[I know. I've killed many people, and their families want me dead.]

There are more people who hate and want to kill goblins more than Jeon Yubin.

[They can wield a sword against me. But I don't plan to take that sword.]

I'm not a stupid and stuffy hero.

[And.]

I shaped the end of the bat into a sharp spike and gripped it in reverse.

[The thing I hate the most after villains is demons.]

Pwaaah!!

Red blood splattered.

Red blood, no different from a human's.

Clap, clap, clap.

Beyond the exit the researcher had opened.

"Wow, that's impressive."

A man began to approach, clapping his hands.

A man in a black hanbok, wearing a black mask and a ridiculous face, with a conical straw hat on his head.

"You handled it so decisively, goblin. Was it really necessary to kill her?"

[Who are you?]

"I, for one, belong to a different organization than you, but I have the same mission as you, yet I made a different choice."

The man slung a rod similar to a ruler over his shoulder.

"I am the one who wants to expose the ugly truth of this place to the world and reveal the true nature of the high and mighty."

Flutter.

The man raised the rod over his shoulder, gripped it with both hands, and bowed like a nodding doll.

"I am 'Pile Driver' of the [Revitalization Party]."