Leather of the Sage.
Dragon Sword.
Three Potions.
Having prepared everything for battle, I surveyed the situation from the rooftop of a building near the K Comprehensive Technology Institute.
In front of the K Comprehensive Technology Institute building, heroes and soldiers had set up barricades and defensive positions.
On the other hand, Mabo Sung’s Undead Legion was encamped at a slightly further distance, surrounding the building.
Initially, the Undead Legion only consisted of zombies but has evolved significantly.
Dozens of B-rank monsters known as ‘Abominations’ have been added, unlike before.
‘Abominations’ were grotesque creatures made by fusing human flesh together.
It was clear that Mabo Sung had reached A-rank.
The only fortunate thing was that the original ‘K Pharmaceutical Villain’ had an S-rank monster, ‘Balrog,’ accompanying him when attacking the K Comprehensive Technology Institute, but the one below hadn’t summoned it yet.
Given the accelerated storyline, his powers seemed insufficiently mature.
“Still, A-rank….”
From my memory, Mabo Sung was initially nothing more than a trash-level Awakened One like Shinnoda.
Yet, he’d rapidly climbed to A-rank in no time.
“Doesn’t this mean ‘Necromancy’ is faster than ‘Succession’?”
[The ‘Succession’ that only accepts pure power cannot be compared to ‘Necromancy,’ which indiscriminately absorbs negative energy. He’s bound to fall under demon possession and collapse too soon. Do I really have to explain such trivial things to you?]
I pouted and replied.
“I would have preferred if his mental breakdown came sooner.”
[Why not wait till then? That seems reasonable.]
“Then Yang Min-seo would die.”
And hundreds of people would meet the same fate.
In the original story, the hero fails against Mabo Sung, and the people of the K Comprehensive Technology Institute are slaughtered.
[Ah, that impolite girl. I see she’s got no abilities at all. What’s so pretty about her that you’re willing to take the risk to save her? Are you in heat or something?]
As expected, dragons, being the ultimate individualists, think quite differently.
Still, even dragons who become Dragon Lords are usually more socially adept.
“It’s because she’s human.”
Yang Min-seo’s death—it was heartbreakingly tragic.
I wanted to stop it.
I recalled the scene where she died in the game.
‘K Pharmaceutical Villain,’ Mabo Sung, forced Yang Min-seo to wear a distorted mask and cheap speaker.
Her eyes were covered by a blindfold, her mouth gagged, and her ears blocked by headphones.
To prevent her from walking properly, he severed the tendons in her left leg and tied her hands behind her back.
Just before fitting her with headphones to block out sound, Mabo Sung whispered.
“If you’re set free like this, how about we play a game?”
“Mmmph!”
“There’s a hero in front of you, and I’ll send zombies after you from behind. If you get caught and eaten by zombies, I win, and if you reach the hero’s side, you win.”
He sent Yang Min-seo ahead and soon after ordered the zombies to charge.
Yang Min-seo ran for her life, but with her left leg lacking strength, her movements were unstable.
The hero’s side, seeing Yang Min-seo leading the zombies’ charge, assumed that ‘K Pharmaceutical Villain’ had started the attack.
The limping Yang Min-seo was seen as just another zombie.
The A-rank hero ‘Voltman’ was quite irritated to have been forcibly summoned by the Hero Association.
Seeing the soldiers ready to fire, Voltman thought.
“I need to vent some stress.”
He asked the commander.
“I’ll handle it all.”
The commander nodded.
‘Voltman’—a top-tier hero ranked among the best in the A-rank category—could be trusted.
Volatile emerged from behind the barricade and approached the struggling Yang Min-seo, drawing his sword.
With a slight exertion of his speed-enhancing abilities, he swung his sword in a flash of light, striking Yang Min-seo’s fragile body.
Her torso and lower body were instantly severed.
Internal organs spilled grotesquely, painting a horrifying picture.
‘K Pharmaceutical Villain’ roared with laughter at the sight.
“Hahahaha!”
‘Voltman’ asked curiously.
“Why are you laughing?”
Mabo Sung then had another zombie remove Yang Min-seo’s mask, blindfold, and gag.
“Help… me…”
Yang Min-seo’s trembling voice—those were her last words before she died. Her small chest movements ceased shortly.
‘K Pharmaceutical Villain’ loudly mocked the scene.
“Mr. President, are you watching? Your granddaughter is in two pieces! Ha! Just so you know, she’s not a zombie—she’s a normal person. The hero killed your granddaughter!”
…
This future must be prevented.
Dealing with ‘K Pharmaceutical Villain’ isn’t difficult. As one of the main story villains, I’ve fought against him countless times, and being a magic-wielder type, he’s highly advantageous to me.
An A-rank necromancer with his skills sealed. If I lose to someone like this, I should just give up on everything, from Demon Kings to any other challenge.
I double-checked with Laura just in case.
“A-rank awakened ones… their intelligence is beyond S-rank, right? Is it possible to disable the abilities of such individuals?”
Without hesitation, she replied,
[Intelligence? Indeed, the system that governs mana and magical talent. Dispel is like measuring the weight of an industry. We can disintegrate most of the powers wielded by your short-lived kind.]
Her arrogance slightly irritated me, so I couldn’t help but challenge her.
“If that’s true, then why didn’t you use it in that dungeon earlier…?”
[……I could have done it. I refrained, considering the aftermath.]
Even though it doesn’t seem entirely plausible, I decided to let it go.
Dragons live off their pride and breaking it might cause them to react negatively, like last time.
From ‘K Pharmaceutical Villain’s camp, a horde of zombies emerged, leading a small one at the forefront.
‘That must be Yang Min-seo.’
She looked similar to the rest of the zombies. It makes sense that ‘Voltman’ would assume and attack.
I leaped down from the rooftop.
I will alter the future!
*
“Hello there! Heroes and villains alike, this is ‘Deacon’ live-streaming the scene for you on the Hero vs. Villain LIVE program! Today we have a stand-off between the infamous ‘K Pharmaceutical Villain,’ Mabo Sung, and the heroes! Zombies are everywhere outside here! I’m risking my life to deliver this broadcast, so please drop likes and subscribe!”
Black Streaming.
A streaming platform headquartered in Paraguay that deals with highly stimulating content unsuitable for major platforms.
‘Deacon’ is a renowned broadcaster on Black Streaming for live-streaming battles between heroes and villains. Having learned that ‘K Pharmaceutical Villain’ planned to attack the K Comprehensive Technology Institute, he rushed to the scene.
He sneaked into a nearby building to begin broadcasting.
Extremely close to the site of combat—there are even zombies just below the building, so the reaction was intense.
<This guy is going to die, no doubt.>
<Still, thanks to him, we get to see awakened ones battle.>
<Weren’t villains in the K Pharmaceuticals scandal an A-rank? Weren’t they C-rank before?>
<Necromancy is known to boost ranks easily, but you risk mental illness. This guy looks like he could be prone to that too.>
Just then, a group of zombies from ‘K Pharmaceutical Villain’s camp began charging.
Deacon focused his ultra-high-definition camera to capture every moment.
At the front, a small-framed zombie was rapidly advancing.
Suddenly, from the heroes’ side emerged a figure. It was ‘Voltman,’ dressed in tight-fitting spandex.
Deacon added commentary.
“Ah! There’s Voltman, the renowned hero known for his time acceleration skill. He’s about to meet the leading zombie!”
Voltman drew his sword. Just as he was about to cut down the small-framed zombie:
A cloaked figure appeared.
Deacon was stunned.
“W-Wait… That is… the Dark Knight? Wh-what is this?! The Dark Knight just appeared out of nowhere!”
Comments flooded the screen.
<DarkKnightDarkKnightDarkKnightDarkKnightDarkKnightDarkKnightDarkKnightDarkKnightDarkKnightDarkKnight>
<What's happening? Is this an unexpected thrilling moment?>
<Has he come to help 'K Pharmaceutical Villain'?>
<No way, more likely to punish him.>
The abruptly appearing ‘Dark Knight’ stopped Voltman’s blade with a dagger.
Voltman, bewildered, spoke.
“Dark Knight? Why are you..”
The Dark Knight removed the zombie’s mask, blindfold, and gag. Beneath it was a lively face with clear eyes. Not a zombie, but an ordinary girl.
“I merely saved her because she was human.”
The Dark Knight’s signature raspy voice caused Voltman to awkwardly scratch the back of his neck.
The girl quickly bowed in gratitude.
“T-Thank you, Lord Dark Knight…”
“Let me escort you somewhere safe.”
He casually ignored her thanks, picked her up in a princess carry, and began to run at incredible speed, quickly disappearing from sight.
Deacon grinned. The girl the hero tried to kill turns out to be an innocent human saved by the Dark Knight. This was a huge scoop.
“Did you all see that? That was a regular person, not a zombie! And Dark Knight stepped in and saved her! What is this magic?”
The chat exploded.
<Is Voltman an idiot? Why not confirm before trying to kill someone?>
<Nearly killed a regular citizen. What fools these heroes are.>
<This is why there's only one real hero—Dark Knight.>
<Dark Knight is the GOAT. He does this without payment.>
<What would've happened if Dark Knight hadn't been there?>
Deacon checked his screen.
Viewers: 15k.
His smile widened.
“Record high number of viewers! Clearly many people came in thanks to Dark Knight!”
