Being a Villain is My True Calling

Immediately after Maker’s terrorist broadcast ended,
a chilly atmosphere pervaded the Operations Analysis Room.

“Madman.”

Amidst the silence, Ice Queen, who had been sitting quietly, frowned as she glared at the darkened screen.

The terrorist’s excessively polite demeanor, the fact that he had planted bombs solely to threaten those inside the building he occupied, and his constant smiling and nonchalant attitude – all of it.

‘He’s not sane.’

He was not of sound mind.
Rather than anger towards the world, what seemed to drive him, based on his appearance on screen, was mere amusement – the antics of a madman.

“Haah…”

Already overworked, and now another new villain…
Ice Queen couldn’t help but sigh.

“…What should we do?”

At someone’s voice, Ice Queen turned her gaze toward the people before her.
She was one of the few A-rank heroes in the Korean branch.

With most of the A-rank and B-rank heroes either on assignment in other countries or stationed in districts other than B District, she would effectively be the leader in resolving this terrorist attack.

Seeing the new heroes looking to her, Ice Queen let out a deep sigh before continuing.

“First, let’s deploy. We can think about the plan afterwards.”

At her words, the heroes began to move out to the scene.

Not long after, the hero squad arrived near the B District mall.

“Um… will this be okay?”
“What do you mean?”

Ice Queen briefly turned her head at the voice of one of the heroes.
What she saw were the uneasy expressions on the heroes’ faces.

“Everyone here besides Ice Queen is only C-rank…”

Seeing their demeanor, Ice Queen curtly responded, “The recommended rank and number of personnel have been exceeded, so it’s fine.”

“But, but that villain’s rank hasn’t even been determined yet.”

Villain Ranks.
A new ranking system created after abolishing the existing hero ranks.

While hero ranks are solely evaluated based on abilities and combat prowess,
villain ranks also consider the overall danger they pose, including their abilities and combat prowess.

Meaning even with weak abilities, the higher the potential impact a villain can have through any means, the higher their rank.

“You’re all familiar with the response manual based on the villain rank table, right?”

“Yes, yes.”

“You can handle C-rank villains one-on-one, and even B-ranks are possible if there are multiple heroes.”

“In my case, I can generally handle up to A-rank and below.”

Turning her gaze again, she requested a situation report from a police officer and began stretching.

‘If that guy is A+ rank or higher, I might not be able to apprehend him…’

“As you know, our goal this time is not to defeat the villain, but to rescue the civilians. Furthermore, I’ll be drawing his attention, so don’t worry too much.”

On the way to the B District mall,
the association members had discussed how to handle this terrorist attack. And…

‘First, rescue the civilians.’

‘Are you sure that’s okay?’

‘There’s no guarantee the civilians will be safe even if we follow the villain’s demands.’

‘So you’re suggesting we ignore the villain’s time limit? But what if he realizes it?’

‘As long as there’s someone capable of drawing his attention until the civilians are rescued, it’ll work.’

Someone strong enough to face the villain one-on-one, yet also represent the heroes.

Ice Queen.
As an A-rank hero, it wouldn’t be strange for her to be chosen as the representative.
Moreover, it would be easier to control the variables of the villain’s ‘game’.

‘While Ice Queen draws his attention, the C-rank heroes can swiftly rescue the civilians. Got it?’

‘Yes!!’

Rather than negotiating with an unpredictable villain, it’s better to pretend to comply with their demands while striking from behind.
This was undoubtedly the right approach. It seemed right, but…

‘Why do I feel so uneasy?’

Ice Queen felt a peculiar sense of frustration, but she quickly shook her head to clear her mind.

-Three minutes before the villain’s time limit, all heroes take positions.

-The C-rank heroes will stealthily head to the ‘restaurant area on the 15th floor’ where the villain showed the hostages on screen.

Soon after, an association staff member’s voice came through the communicator, and one of the C-rank heroes with a stealth ability used it on the dozen or so other heroes besides Ice Queen, allowing them to infiltrate the mall unnoticed.

“…Phew.”

-A-rank hero Ice Queen, immediately head to the rooftop and draw the target’s attention without provoking him.

After a brief moment to catch her breath, Ice Queen raised her power output upon hearing the voice through the communicator.

Zzzzzzzz!!!

In an instant, an icy slope connected the ground to the rooftop.

Tak

With a snap of her fingers, the slope transformed into stairs.

“……”

Ignoring the gazes directed at her, Ice Queen made her way to the rooftop.

“It’s about time they should arrive, don’t you think~?”

I lazily swung my legs, feigning boredom.

‘Surely the heroes won’t fail to show up after causing such a commotion on the news?’

For a moment, I considered the worst possibility, but I quickly shook my head.

‘With the ruckus I’ve caused and revealing myself as an executive of Eclipse, I’ve likely been rated at least B+ rank.’

In that case, at the very least, some B or A-rank hero scrubs would show up, and if I was lucky, perhaps even ‘those women’ from the original story.
…Will they really come? I’m starting to consider detonating some bombs.

‘Maybe I should reduce the number of detonations and give them another chance?… No, that’s a bit too lenient.’

A villain needs a worthy opponent.
That’s what makes them more compelling and formidable.

If I were to carry out a terrorist attack with no one to stop me, unless I was exceptionally powerful, I would merely be an extra villain.

‘Hmph… with communications and the internet blocked, I can’t even check the situation.’

I had the airwaves jammed as soon as the broadcast ended to prevent the hostages from communicating their situation, but now I’m wondering if that was unnecessary.

As I lamented for a moment…

“Are you Maker?”

Zzzzzzz!!! With that sound, a figure appeared.
Seeing her, my eyes widened.

‘Sky-blue hair and eyes, a cold, beautiful countenance.’

Wearing a form-fitting shirt and leather pants, with a fur-trimmed cape draped over an outfit that could hardly be called a hero costume.

There was no doubt.
That woman was undoubtedly…

Concealing my pounding heart as a former reader, I managed to put on a relaxed smile and continued speaking.

“Well, for an A-rank hero to come in person, I’m honored beyond words.”

“…You seem to know me.”

Of course I do.
Your unusual yet strangely rule hair color was quite distinctive.

“A-rank hero Ice Queen.”

Real name Seo Yun-hee.
One of the few A-rank heroes in Korea and…

‘One of the heroines from the original story.’

To encounter her in my very first terrorist attack was truly fortunate.
I smiled faintly and lightly tapped the table.

“It seems you’ve had some trouble getting here. Please, have a seat and join me for a cup of tea.”

With a snap of my fingers, one of the organization members, having noticed with ghostly perception, set up a chair and an empty teacup.

“……”

Without a word, she approached and plopped down on the chair, folding her arms and crossing her legs.
I smiled at her and asked,

“Did you come alone, without anyone else?”

“…Most others were busy, so I came alone.”

“Hmm~”

Her curt manner and apparent disdain for frowning, yet responding obediently, was quite amusing.

“But there should have been plenty of C-rank heroes, no?”

“Heroes do not create meaningless sacrifices.”

In other words, they were excluded from the main force as they couldn’t handle a villain.
Although phrased indirectly, when you understand the meaning, it’s quite a cold statement.

‘Though it seems to apply to herself as well.’

“Not to mention, you’re an executive of ‘Eclipse’, aren’t you?”

Ice Queen regarded me coldly.
A chilly expression that contrasted with her sky-blue eyes and hair, reminiscent of a clear sky.

“I’ve seen plenty of grunts and squad leaders, but this is the first time I’m dealing with an executive-level terrorist.”

‘Is that so?’

Since Astra had readily permitted it, I thought it was a common occurrence.
For a moment, I contemplated the other executives besides Astra.

‘…Hmm.’

“Indeed, those individuals tend to favor emotion over reason.”

Whether they ran amok on their own or not, they were not the type to think and act like me.

I shrugged and continued speaking.

“As you can see, my personal combat abilities are quite lacking. That’s why I had to resort to this form of terrorism.”

As I spoke, I picked up the teacup and took a sip of the chilled tea.
Likely due to the icy aura emanating from the woman before me, it had practically become iced tea, but surprisingly, it was still drinkable, so I drank it without a second thought.

“By the way, it’s a pity. While it’s fine that you came alone as the representative, Ice Queen, it would have been better if more heroes had accompanied you.”

“……”

In reality, it didn’t matter.
The situation had unfolded even better than I had hoped, so I was quite pleased.

I stood up from my seat and slowly walked past her.

“Hmm~ Then what kind of game should we play…”

“Wait.”

As I pondered while walking, Ice Queen looked at me with a sullen expression.

“Before that, you should keep your promise. The promise to release the hostages if the heroes came. Did you forget?”

“Ah~ I did make such a promise, didn’t I?”

I kept walking without stopping.

“Promises are important. Of course, it’s only right to keep them.”

Step step
To heighten the tension, I deliberately walked with heavy footsteps.

“However.”

Thud

“Do I have any reason to keep my promise to those who broke it first?”

“…!”

Having put some distance between us, I stopped in my tracks, smiled slyly, and turned my body around.
In my left hand was a detonation switch that had appeared there at some point.

“Did you really think I wouldn’t know?”

“…Wait, wait, just calm down.”

Ice Queen, her eyes now trembling, stood up from her seat and looked at me.
Without a word, I snapped my fingers.

Chyak chyak

-Is that them over there?

“!!”

Then, sounds came from the direction of the mall’s billboards.
The video was likely being broadcast on those screens as well.

-Found them!! Everyone, they’re over here!

Chyak chyak

-It’s okay now, everyone! The heroes have arrived!…

The bright voice of a man and the faint chyak chyak sounds.
Seeming to sense something, Ice Queen hurriedly rushed towards the detonation switch I had taken out of my pocket, but…

Chyak chyak chyak chyak chyak chyak chyak chyak chyak chyak chyak chyak

“For liars, punishment is the only cure.”

-…Oh shit, those aren’t hostages!! They’re mannequins!!!

“Game over.”

Kwaaaaaaaaang!!!!!!

In truth, I had never prepared any ‘game’ mentioned in the broadcast.
I knew it would turn out like this.

I smiled broadly and used my ability to greet the rapidly approaching Ice Queen.