022 – Target Scorpion Sediel #2
Smack!
I struck Seugal’s exposed thigh with a flyswatter.
The muscles of an Awakened One are more than twice as solid as those of a regular person, but not many can train the resilience of their skin to the same degree, so a wide strike like this was surprisingly effective.
“Aaah! You crazy b*stard!”
Eventually, after getting hit repeatedly by me, Seugal seemed to have lost her mind and screamed loudly.
Of course, even if she screamed like that, the only person who would listen to her hysterical cries would be me.
Geographical imbalance. Wealth disparity. Low birth rates and failed redevelopment.
What were once symbols of misfortune for me had ironically turned into fortuitous events. That’s why they say luck and misfortune are just a piece of paper apart.
Anyway, it was my duty to protect, guard, and simultaneously develop Seugal.
“You crazy b*stard, I’m going to k*ll you. Really, I’m going to k*ll you.”
Hiss-hiss.
Seugal, breathing heavily while glaring at me, made the following words float in front of her.
「Name: Seugal
Condition: 《Intense Hatred》 – Confusion due to severe dehydration and overwhelming hatred.」
This was the first emotional gap Seugal had ever shown me.
I actually felt happier and more awkward at this emotional crack than her blatant seduction where she pulled the blanket to expose her white skin.
She finally seemed to have opened her heart to me!
Is this what they call love? Do people always gradually progress like this?
Anyway, I had one task to accomplish.
“Seugal, I’m going to save you! You must live!”
I then forcefully poured the water from a bottle into her open mouth.
Gulping-gulping-gulping-gulping.
“Ugh, Grrgh!”
“You need to drink! Drink it all! You must live!”
Of course, given that Seugal hadn’t had a drop of water since last night, it was only natural that she developed dehydration. The active metabolism of an Awakened One demands more water than that of a regular person.
“Ugh, Grrgh, You crazy b*stard! Grrgh!”
Gulping-gulping-gulping-gulping.
I emptied three 1.5-liter bottles into Seugal’s mouth. With this much water, she could definitely last at least a day without drinking anything.
Of course, with Seugal rejecting my kindness and struggling, her face, body, blanket, and the floor all got soaked, but these were issues that could be easily resolved.
“Now I need to give you food.”
With the water out of the way, it was time for a meal.
I also needed to bring her a few changes of clothes.
With this thought in mind, I decided to head home for now.
“I’m going to k*ll you! AAAAAAAH! AAAAAAAH!”
# # #
“How surprisingly quiet.”
Seugal was likely causing a commotion in the basement of the house next door, but our house was completely serene.
Of course, if you strained your ears, faint cries of “AAAAH!” could be heard. But only an Awakened One like me with hyper-sensitive perception could manage to pick up those sounds.
Anyone else walking around here wouldn’t hear anything. You can rest assured.
Ding-dong.
At that moment, someone rang the doorbell.
I froze. Timing is everything when boiling ramen, but who’s here at such a crucial moment?
Ding-dong.
“I’m coming.”
Clink, creek-k.
When I opened the gate, I saw a man in a suit and several others gathered behind him. Their postures were straight and rigid, clearly not regular folks.
The smell of iron was strong, too.
Police? No, they weren’t exactly police, but they were definitely similar. Why are they here? What’s the matter? There’s nothing that comes to mind.
“Who is it?”
I asked the man wearing a fedora and big sunglasses.
Despite covering his face so much, it felt somewhat familiar for some reason.
“I’m Chief Kim Jang-dong from the newly established ‘Superhuman Management Agency’ under the current government.”
Huh? Chief Kim Jang-dong?
The regular client I used to work for is here? Should I feel happy or awkward?
“Hey, have you seen these guys?”
Whoosh. Chief Kim Jang-dong entered our yard and handed me a few pieces of paper. Written on them were the words “Wanted – Kim Tae-yang” along with a photo.
That’s a familiar face.
One of the loan sharks who visited our house, right?
“We are investigating locations where these loan sharks visited before they were killed. You’ve heard they are dead, right? It was all over the news.”
“I have.”
“Are you the one who did it? The killer was an adult male with outstanding physical capabilities who brutally attacked and murdered three men wielding weapons. In other words, an Awakened One.”
“Oh, I see.”
“Hannamjin. Aren’t you a student at Yeongsa High? You had a grudge against these loan sharks, right? Aren’t you that ‘Judge’? The psycho killer who selectively targets criminals.”
Ah, Chief Kim really misjudged this.
I was the one who was inconvenienced by the d*ath of those loan sharks. I had wanted to ask them about their expertise in kidnapping.
Had I been able to get that information from them, I wouldn’t have even considered my laborious plan to climb up to the 40th floor of a corporate headquarters.
Chief Kim slightly opened his narrow eyes and took out a business card from his pocket, handing it to me.
“Get in touch if anything comes up.”
“Alright.”
“Oh, does a student named Seugal attend your school?”
“Huh?”
“Do you know anything about that student?”
This surprised me.
The conversation suddenly drifted toward Seugal.
Was it related to a kidnapping or disappearance? As I was considering my response, a female staff member said, “Chief, it’s not yet…,” and nudged him in the ribs.
“Ah, never mind. You were cooking ramen, right? The smell’s filling the house. Enjoy your meal.”
Chief Kim Jang-dong suddenly changed his tone, put on his shoes, and left the house. After everyone had quickly departed and no more signs of their presence were left, I was finally able to relax.
Though I felt as if my lifespan had shortened by five years, it was still too early to let my guard down.
First, I checked underneath the table and every corner of the house.
“There it is. A bug.”
Whenever Chief Kim asked me to whip myself with a whip-like task, he would plant bugs all over our house, making things very inconvenient for me. Apparently, he hadn’t changed that habit. Again, I found the same number of bugs—five in total. Finding the last one took a bit more time since it was hidden in a tricky spot.
# # #
“Dammit, the ramen’s overcooked.”
The unexpected visit delayed things for an hour.
What if Seugal gets angry because she’s hungry? I’ve heard from MyTube that women get really irritable and aggressive when they’re hungry.
I hurriedly picked up the pot of ramen and headed to the basement of the house next door.
Clink, creek-creek.
When I opened the basement door and walked in, Seugal was sitting much more quietly than expected. However, there was an odd atmosphere.
Her face was red, her breathing was labored, and she was nervously twitching her thighs while slightly twisting her body. There was a strange, unsettling energy coming from her.
What’s going on? Full IQ140 brainpower engaged!
Conclusion!
“Do you need to use the restroom?”
“k*ll you!”
「Name: Seugal
Condition: 《Intense Rage》 – Truly pissed off!」
Seugal was genuinely angry. At that moment, it felt like something inside my head clicked like a fountain spouting water.
Of course, I gave her a lot of water, so according to the law of conservation of mass, a similar amount would have to be stored in her body and eventually come out.
“Seungal, if you hold it in, you’ll get a bladder infection.”
“AAAAAAAAAAH! Grrrrrahhhh!”
Seugal turned red like Maple leaves and began acting like a madwoman again, making me incredibly nervous.
She was probably incredibly hungry.
“Alright, alright. Have this first. It’s your meal. Spicy Spam ramen.”
“Who’d eat this cr*p? Are you enjoying tormenting me? You b*stard! How low can you stoop to torture me with food like this? You pervert!”
I’m not tormenting you.
I even specially added Spam to the ramen today, you know.
But Seugal, as if something else was bothering her, kicked the pot over with her foot, spilling the carefully prepared ramen I had worked so hard on.
Plop-plop.
“Perfect!”
“…”
The veins on my forehead popped instantly.
I hate people who mistreat food like this. But it was Seugal, so maybe I could let it slide this one time. After all, she’d given me a second chance, so I wanted to give her one too.
“Seugal, we’re going to be seeing each other for a long time. We’re soul partners, best friends. We’ll inevitably get along, so stop being so prideful.”
“f*ck off!”
“Already did! Back when I was in 6th grade! She tricked me with a promise of buying me a pork cutlet!”
“You psychopath!”
Ah, such sweet curses.
I cleaned up the spilled ramen and went out of the basement.
I was increasingly seeing Seugal’s “bottom side.”
But love also grows stronger when we see each other’s scars and less desirable sides, isn’t that right? Indeed, I liked Seugal even more.
Still, I had to admit it honestly.
I’m a beginner at teaching or tutoring. I was at a loss on how to design her curriculum.
If those loan sharks had been alive, they could have taught me how to properly deal with hostages.
Whoever this “Judge” really is, they interfered with my plans and are truly despicable. If I ever meet them, I’ll kick their balls for sure.
Wait, if the “Judge” is a woman, what do I do? They don’t have any balls to kick.
There were several things I seriously needed to think about.
Anyhow, what’s important is the curriculum.
So I went home and watched the movie “Perfect Tutoring” from episode 1 to 10.
In this movie, the hostage falls in love with the kidnapper.
That is the ultimate form I aspire to achieve.
“The phenomenon where a victim sympathizes with the abductor is called Scorpion Sediel. You know, I’m smart, right? I did thorough research for your sake.”
“Stockholm Syndrome, you idiot b*stard! Arrrrrrrrrrgh!”
This… This is how our story began.
“Alright Seugal, you have to guard the house well today.”
I couldn’t afford to be late.
Now that Chief Kim Jang-dong is keeping an eye on me, it would be best to be cautious about my every move. So, I closed the iron gate with a creak and started heading to school when Seugal shouted.
“Heyyyyyy!”
“What is it?”
I opened the gate again and asked.
Do you need to use the toilet urgently? Are you feeling the urge?
“Do you actually need to go to the bathroom?”
“Because of your help, I had a realization last night. It’s called ‘Princess Mode’. So, I don’t need to go to the bathroom anymore. I guess you’re disappointed that your chance to see my humiliation is gone?”
That’s right! It turned out that my method of training Seugal and making her stronger was the right one!
Just as I was feeling proud, Seugal, having regained some composure, narrowed her eyes and glanced at me.
“You mentioned wanting to train me, right? Sure. sh*t, I’ll let you, why not. But there’s a condition. If you meet this condition, I’ll cooperate fully, or I won’t help you at all.”
“A condition?”
I was happy! It seemed like Seugal and I were finally on the same page! No matter how I interpreted it, Seugal must have liked me as well.
Just like the heroines in the perfect tutoring movies!
“What kind of condition?”
“Do you know Yu Yeo-reum?”
“Yu Yeo-reum? Sure, she’s my best friend.”
“Kidnap her too and put her next to me.”
…
The movies I watched never included content like this.
