BXBX NOVEL Chapter 240: The Sea
“Hmm…”
It was Seo-eun’s underground facility, a place that had been idle for a while. Standing alone in the meeting room, which was primarily used for planning terror operations, I quietly gazed at the massive screen affixed to one side of the wall.
Filling the entire wall was a huge map, and on it, the faces of various villains were marked like icons.
The locations of the S-Class villains I’ve uncovered up to now. Given that we’re now reaching the chaotic latter half of the original storyline, with many villains emerging one after another, I’ve marked only the ones I’ve managed to find so far.
My role is to decide who among them I should leave alone and who I should eliminate instead of Stardus. Even though it’ll be a while before they start their activities, I believe it’s better to prepare in advance. Time may become scarce later… and I might not be here.
“Shall we take a look…”
I muttered to myself while clicking the pointer. Most of the villains can be easily dealt with by Stardus, but some of them are difficult even for her. They’re either overwhelmingly strong, like someone who’s just too powerful, or someone like a Scream Maker who appears once and slaughters hundreds.
If I don’t take care of these types, there’s no other way. Since Stardus is the only one, I have to handle this. It’s the same for this country if it goes completely haywire. In the story, how many times has Seoul been destroyed or collapsed?
Still, the thought that my actions might be responsible for Stardus getting a good night’s sleep every night empowers me. People probably don’t realize. They probably don’t know that if I hadn’t intervened behind the scenes, the number of deaths this month would be several times higher…? No matter how I think about it, I feel like it’s a miracle that the country was preserved in the original work.
“Hmm…”
Right. I’ll stop these stray thoughts.
I started my analysis in earnest. Who to eliminate, whether I should turn off broadcasts for this guy when eliminating him, or whether Stardus can handle him, and so on.
Especially considering some of these guys in the original work were like idiots, causing terror at night and then getting torn to shreds by Shadow Walker. I need to consider the possibility that these guys could carry out terror during the day due to a butterfly effect.
I earnestly examined my memories of the original work and the data. Before I knew it, some time had passed.
I leaned on the desk in the meeting room, silently gazing at the conclusion I had come up with.
“…”
Xs were marked on the icons of almost all the villains on the map. When did these guys get so powerful?
I scratched my head. Well, I have my reasons, too. As I imagine these guys fighting with Stardus, I can’t help but remember their appearances in the original work, and my cold sweat starts to flow, thinking of Stardus tumbling on the ground…
In any case, I feel like some of them should be excluded. Apart from when I decide to eliminate them if I kill all these guys, who will Stardus have to deal with?
Oh, of course, there’s a solution. I could carry out terror attacks in their place.
“Um…”
But this isn’t as easy as it sounds.
I pondered for a moment, rolling my pen. My purpose for carrying out terror is multifaceted. One is to make my presence known, both in South Korea and worldwide, to remind everyone that I am a villain, and to showcase my abilities…
Most importantly, another one is to help Stardus grow.
That’s right. When I carry out terror, I want to give Stardus, wearing the red hood, the opportunity to grow. To do that, the best way is to bring in other powerful ability users to engage in fights, specifically focusing on those from whom Stardus can learn something during a month or so.
It’s about time for me to carry out a new terror operation. But more importantly, Cartel is right around the corner… Oops, I need to think about my strategy for the East Asian Villains Alliance, too…
As I was lost in thought, the door to the meeting room was gently knocked.
Knock, knock.
Then it opened, and Eun-wol’s head peeked in.
“Da-in, Soobin said that dinner is ready, so come and eat with us.”
“Oh, really? Is it already time?”
I muttered, looking at the time. It’s already nighttime. Strangely, time flies by when you’re busy.
I stood up, turning off the lights, before walking towards Eun-wol.
“Sure, Eun-wol. Let’s go.”
“Okay.”
“Ugh, my back… Eun-wol, what were you doing before dinner?”
“I was trying to study what Da-in told me last time in my room. But it’s a bit difficult to do it alone. Could you maybe help me with it today?”
“Huh?”
After walking to the underground teleportation device, on the way back up to the mansion’s stairs, while casually chatting with Eun-wol, she asked me that.
Difficult, huh… What was it that I told her last time?
I started to move the gears in my brain, which had been clogged due to constant villain research and quickly remembered. Ah, right. I asked Eun-wol to help me with the magic circle research.
With the upcoming crisis at Wolgwang Bridge, naturally, Eun-wol held the key to resolving the issue. As a former member of Wolgwanggyo, she knew the cult better than anyone and was the only one who could decipher and modify their magic circles.
So, I was slowly introducing her to advanced magic circle research, combining my original knowledge with what the Vine Witch had taught.
…I should start having some serious conversations with Eun-wol soon. Well, for now, it’s commendable that Eun-wol is working so hard to study, so I should definitely help.
So, when I raised my gaze, I couldn’t bring myself to ignore Eun-wol’s pleading eyes.
“Sure, after dinner, I’ll help as much as I can.”
I can at least contemplate and assist with the knowledge from the original work.
Upon hearing this, Eun-wol smiled and expressed her gratitude.
…Alright, Eun-wol’s bright smile is all I need. There are still a few things left to do, like figuring out how to manipulate the Chinese villains, but I can handle that tomorrow.
With those thoughts in mind, I finally reached the kitchen. After having dinner with everyone, I followed Eun-wol to her room and spent time researching together. Just so you know, I pulled an all-nighter to catch up on the work I missed that night.
Anyway, time passed quickly, and before I knew it, the day was upon us. It was time to attend the regular Villain Meeting. And…
[Da-in, you haven’t forgotten, right?]
“Yes, Katana.”
[Yes. See you then.]
Before heading to the meeting, I went to meet Katana. We had promised to meet when attending the Cathedral next time. More precisely, we had arranged to meet Atlas, who had strongly requested our presence this time.
And now…
“Da-in?”
“Yes?”
“I think we’ve arrived.”
“Oh, yes. We’ve arrived.”
Lost in thought about today’s events, I had been gazing out into the sea outside the submarine. However, Katana’s words snapped me out of it.
“Alright, let’s get off.”
“Sure.”
So we’ve got the submarine Atlas prepared for us… The very mysterious-looking crystal-colored clam-like figure set foot in Latice City on something. Atlas invited me and Katana together to come and visit him.
I couldn’t help but be amazed at how Atlas had prepared everything. As we emerged, there was no water in the city itself, and we entered the city’s interior.
“Wow…”
“Haha, it’s fascinating, isn’t it? I was amazed when I first came here, too.”
I looked around, expressing my admiration to Katana. Latice City was the headquarters of Atlas’ organization, the Latice Guild, and it was a city established at the bottom of the sea, truly an impressive city of ocean dwellers.
Even Katana, who was usually emotionless and reserved, was impressed by the city’s grandeur. It was situated in a transparent dome in the clear blue sea. Looking up, the sea could be seen as if it were morning, it was so bright. You could hardly believe it was the deep sea.
This surreal underwater landscape was surrounded by white buildings, adorned with swaying seaweed, turtles, and colorful tropical fish, and was nothing short of a fantastic view.
…It’s supposed to be the deep sea, but I don’t really know how there are turtles and colorful tropical fish. I just let it go. It must be Atlas’ preference.
However, as I looked at the city, which had now become familiar to me after a few visits, Katana gazed at it with a sense of wonder. It’s worth noting that apart from the Cathedral, this was the first time she had left Japan, which made her all the more impressed with the city. After all, the last time she had traveled abroad was when she followed me to Korea.
Accompanied by Atlas’ faithful subordinate, the fish-human whose face resembled that of a fish, Katana looked at the city with curiosity, unlike me, who had become accustomed to it. We made our way to the central temple where Atlas awaited us, and the fish-human acted as our guide.
Upon our arrival at the central temple…
“Hahaha! Greetings, my friends!”
Atlas, who had risen from his throne, welcomed us warmly with a hearty laugh.
“Oh, hello…”
It was his daughter, Ariel, with her long blue hair and slightly flushed cheeks. She looked a bit shy, and she was with Atlas.