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From Hongdae Street to Jamsil is about an hour on subway, to give a sense of the distance between the two.
https://i.imgur.com/aJnrNex.jpeg
Alice's magic had now reached the same level as in the original plot. Like a siren, she could draw people to her with her singing. Normally, she would have gained this power later, but thanks to my loving guidance, Alice got stronger a bit earlier.
"That was excellent. There's nothing more for me to teach you."
"It's all thanks to you, Ms. Producer."
"You don't have to call me Producer from now on, because after today, I will not be teaching you anymore."
"...What?"
My preparations were done. Now all that remained was to wait for the day of the attack.
So, I wouldn't be coming to the Hero Association to coach Alice anymore. If I ever saw Alice again, it would be after the Monster Association's attack.
Shin Chul-Min was supposed to be the one who helped her grow in the first place, not me. I shouldn't even support her anymore.
"Then, Ms. Producer... I mean, Ms. Hye-Rim won't be teaching me magic again?"
"Yes, that's right. I can't take up more time from a busy popular idol."
"...That's a shame."
Alice smiled bitterly and scratched her cheek.
"I've been having a lot of fun with you, Ms. Hye-Rim."
"Considering that, I see fatigue on your face all day long, though?"
"That's because Ms. Hye-Rim is strict."
Still, Alice said she enjoyed our time together.
Without realizing it, I put my hand on Alice's head. It had become a habit to stroke her hair while we were together.
"I was ready to be hated, but I'm glad you see me in a favorable light. Our professional relationship has come to an end now, but if you don't mind, Ms. Alice, I'd love to meet you again when you're free."
"Really? Is that okay?"
Alice's eyes lit up, and her smile returned.
"Then maybe we can get together the next time you're free, and we can just go out and have some fun instead of stopping terrorism."
"That sounds good!"
Of course, even if Alice said so, there was no way she'd have any time to spare. There's never enough time in the day for a star idol.
She's saying it out of politeness. It's basically the equivalent of, "Hey, let's grab a bite to eat sometime together?"
I'm sure Alice won't care about me after she falls for Shin Chul-Min anyway.
"Well, see you next time."
After saying goodbye, I left Alice's private practice room, which I had been using for a while.
With a wistful look in her eyes, Alice saw me off, and I left the Hero Association. I went to the Team 5 office of the Awakened Crime Division for the first time in a while.
"Hey, guys, it's been a while."
"Ah, Team Leader, are you finished with your work?"
"Welcome back, Team Leader."
"I thought you wouldn't be back in the office until next week."
As soon as I entered the office, I was greeted by Lee So-Young, followed by Park Oh-Jin and Shin Yu-Sung. The whole team was here.
"Attention, everyone."
At my words, three pairs of eyes turned to me. All of them looked fine on the outside, but there were dark circles under their eyes from all the hard work they'd been doing.
"The Monster Association is going to strike in a few days, and from what I've heard from the chief, you guys have been working hard, and preparations are well underway."
I draped my coat over my chair and sat down.
"I can assure you that this attack will be a complete failure for the Monster Association."
At this rate, the Monster Association will accomplish nothing, and it will be a victory for us.
"But that doesn't really matter."
But for us, that's not what's important.
Stopping terrorism is a given. Taking on dangerous villains is a given. That's what we do, and it's the whole purpose of this team.
"Doesn't it suck?"
What really matters is that because of those bastards, everyone who has been trying to stop this attack has been overworking like crazy.
"These arrogant bastards are planning a terrorist attack in the middle of Seoul, using monsters at that. I know they're crazy psychos who don't mind human experimentation, but this is way out of line."
All three of them nodded in agreement. Their eyes were already glowing with killing intent.
"Let's give those bastards who don't seem to fear death a lesson. Let's teach them what happens when they run amok in the middle of Seoul."
I've been waiting for the day of the terrorist attack, too. Not for any special reason; I just can't wait to beat the Monster Association members with my own hands.
"It's been a while since we got to work. We don't have to go soft on the Monster Association, either. There are monsters this time, so we don't have to control our power like we usually do when we catch criminals."
In short, what I want to tell my team is this:
"Let's kill them all."
"Yes!!!"
The day of the Monster Association's terrorist attack had dawned. Overlooking the amusement park with a sly grin, the small-headed monster sneered at the unsuspecting crowd below.
"You cheeky bastards. So carefree, oblivious to what's about to happen."
The amusement park was bustling with people laughing and talking. There were fewer people than usual, but still, a good number had gathered to celebrate the weekend.
"Well, it's time for a revolution. You humans are about to realize that monsters are the true embodiment of evolution."
The cow-headed monster glanced at the time. 11:59. One minute from now, this amusement park will turn into hell in an instant.
"10... 9... 8..."
With ten seconds left, the cow-headed monster's eyes narrowed in anticipation.
"3... 2... 1!"
-Keeeeeeeeeeee!
-Cuoooow!
-Kuuuuuuuk!
As the countdown reached zero, countless monsters emerged from the nearby mountains and attacked the amusement park.
"W-what?!"
"Monsters?!"
"Crazy...! There are so many of them!"
People panicked at the sudden appearance of the monsters. The orderly lines for the rides immediately scattered in all directions.
They must have realized this was no longer an amusement park but a living hell.
"Hahahahahaha!"
The small-headed monster roared with joy.
This was it. He had been waiting for this reaction. What would happen if a monster appeared in front of a group of people gathered to have fun? This is what happens.
As they ran to escape, people tangled up with each other, falling and becoming easy prey for the monsters—
"Kill them all!"
"How dare you attack an amusement park!"
"Everyone, prepare for battle!"
...It was supposed to be a bloodbath; that's weird.
As soon as they saw the monsters appear, the people in the amusement park took out their weapons and started fighting back.
"...Huh?"
The small-headed monster suddenly realized that something was amiss.
Were there heroes mixed in with the civilians? That could be possible. But there were too many of them.
It was harder to find civilians in the group. Everyone in the amusement park was fighting the monsters.
Every single one of them. Everyone.
"W-what...?!"
"What the hell is going on?!"
The snake-headed monster couldn't help but panic. Something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong.
"Why are all the people in this public park Awakeners?!"
As soon as the monsters appeared, everyone in the park drew their weapons and started fighting back. Every single person was a Hero.
"This can't be happening. There's not a single civilian in this huge park, only Heroes?"
Impossible. This shouldn't be happening.
There could be only one explanation.
"The terrorist attack was leaked...?"
How? Was there a traitor among them? If so, who?
The snake-headed monster's mind raced. Behind it, a human silhouette emerged.
"I see. You must be an officer of the Monster Association."
"...!"
Startled by the sudden voice, the snake-headed monster turned around to see the S-ranked Hero, Lee Shi-Hwan.
"Lee Shi-Hwan?! How the hell did you get here?"
"That's none of your business."
Lee Shi-Hwan spoke coldly, raising his sword and slowly walking toward the snake-headed monster.
"What matters is that you're going to die right here and now, villain."
Cold sweat dripped from the snake-headed monster's head.
The situation was much, much worse than it had thought.
Extremely unusual for a weekend, the streets of Hongdae were deserted, all thanks to Alice.
The news of Alice's free concert was suddenly announced, and it spread like wildfire.
"Hey, where are you going all of a sudden?"
"I heard that Alice is giving a free concert in Jamsil!"
"What? All of a sudden?"
"Hey, that guy said Alice is giving a free concert!"
"What?! Let's go!"
Everyone who heard the news rushed straight to Jamsil. This is the power of Alice.
Her popularity is beyond imagination. Just like in the manga, Alice's influence was considerable.
"Did you evacuate all the other people?"
"Yes. Everyone who was left in Hongdae has also been evacuated."
Kim Min-Seok, next to me, confirmed that everyone had left. If, by chance, any civilians were still around, the Heroes and I would protect them.
All the people remaining in Hongdae now are either Heroes or members of the Awakened Crime Division. They were here because they had been ordered to deploy.
[Wait in plain clothes, disguised as civilians, at designated locations.]
Then, when the monsters showed up, they were supposed to kill them.
The Heroes hadn't heard anything about the terrorist attack until today. Only a few people outside of the Awakened Crime Division were aware of the Monster Association's plans. The fact that we were planning to stop the attack hadn't leaked out.
Thanks to the hard work of the section chief, we were able to close the amusement parks and great parks to civilians and fill them with Heroes and members of the Awakened Crime Division.
Everything was ready.
We've even gotten permission to kill the Monster Association members.
"Now, it's time for a bloodbath."
Not human blood, but the blood of monsters and villains.