I Became an Illegal Cheat User

58 – Villain Response Training (2)

Before heading to the practice area.

Kang Cheol-soo explained to the students about villains.

“Villains, as the name suggests, possess evil tendencies.”

“But unlike the corrupt who must be eradicated, even if we discover a villain, we can attack but must not kill.”

“Does anyone know why?”

At Kang Cheol-soo’s question, a seemingly smart student raised their hand and answered.

“Because they can repent.”

“Yes, that’s correct. But it’s not the answer I was looking for.”

The student who had answered lowered their hand with a sullen expression.

“Is there no one else to answer my question?”

…

It’s quiet.

No one raises their hand.

Kang Cheol-soo let out a thoughtful sound as he looked at the students.

As soon as their eyes met his, the students averted their gazes.

I sighed at the sight of my peers.

‘Well, to those aspiring to be heroes, villains are no different from the corrupt.’

Honestly, villains may not have fallen, but they engage in all sorts of wrongdoing—murder, assault, extortion, you name it.

So even if my peers know the answer to Kang Cheol-soo’s question, they hesitate to speak up.

The moment they voice the answer in their heads, it becomes an acknowledgment.

But my peers need to understand.

Villains are beings just like us, and heroes are not inherently righteous.

In fact, heroes can be more malicious than villains.

Feeling a bitter pang at that cold reality, I raised my hand on behalf of my peers and said,

“Because they also belong to the category of humans.”

It seemed that Kang Cheol-soo finally heard the answer he wanted from my response, nodding his head.

“That’s right. As Yoo-jin said, villains are also ‘humans’ like us, so unconditional killing is prohibited.”

As Kang Cheol-soo said this, one of the students raised his hand, looking confused.

“So, if villains run rampant, we can’t do anything about it?”

“No. Only ‘unconditional killing’ is prohibited; the use of force is allowed. In fact, it is encouraged to use force as soon as you encounter a villain.”

“What if the villain harms someone or commits acts of terrorism?”

“Then you must kill without hesitation.”

The cold words of ‘must kill’ rather than ‘it’s okay to do so’ made the questioning student lower his hand in surprise.

Regardless, Kang Cheol-soo continued to explain the reasons for the necessity of killing.

“No matter how much redemption is possible and even if they fall under the category of ‘human,’ harming others or committing acts of terrorism is tantamount to renouncing their humanity.”

At that moment, another student raised his hand.

However, when it came time to speak what he had thought of, he hesitated and stammered.

Seeing this, Kang Cheol-soo nodded as if to say it was okay to speak.

Only then did the student’s voice emerge.

“Instructor, what if there’s a reason the villain had to act that way? For example, what if the person killed by the villain had harmed the villain’s family…?”

“Yes, that could be the case, as you said.”

However, Kang Cheol-soo added, looking around at the questioning student and the others.

“We are heroes. Whether the villain is born that way or becomes that way for some reason, if they harm others, they must be dealt with, regardless of the reason.”

“Did they not want to become a villain but had no choice? Yes, that is unfortunate.”

“Still, as heroes, we have a duty to protect people. And that duty must be upheld without exception.”

“So remember this, everyone. The honor of a hero is earned by shouldering their duties.”

With Kang Cheol-soo’s weighty advice, the atmosphere in the classroom grew solemn.

In particular, the student who had questioned whether the villain might have a backstory looked at the instructor with a dazed expression, as if he had come to a realization.

As Kang Cheol-soo surveyed the students, an alarm rang from his smartwatch, and he clapped his hands.

Clap, clap.

“Alright, everyone, let’s stop with the solemn atmosphere and start getting ready to move to the practice area.”

At his words, the students rose from their seats in a rush.

And just as everyone was gathering their things,

“Um, um, Instructor. I, I have a question.”

Park Ga-ram, who had been quiet until now, suddenly raised his hand to ask.

“Uh? Uh, right. Park Garam, what are you curious about?”

Since enrolling, Park Garam had shown no enthusiasm for class, let alone asked any questions.

So when Park Garam suddenly asked a question, Kang Cheol-soo was momentarily taken aback, but soon felt a sense of pride and allowed the question.

“Ah, earlier, you said that if a villain commits acts like terrorism, it’s always a death sentence, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Then why, why didn’t my, my master get, get killed?”

“Master? Ah… are you talking about the Gray Witch, Kirke?”

“Yes, yes.”

She was Park Garam’s master.

Once a villain, she had been redeemed as a hero by the gods.

As the topic of the Gray Witch, Kirke, came up, all the students who were packing to move to the practice area stopped and looked at Kang Cheol-soo with intrigued expressions.

Kang Cheol-soo, looking somewhat incredulous, turned to Park Garam and said, “Isn’t it a bit odd for a student to ask why their master didn’t die?”

“Is, is it? I, I was just, just curious….”

Park Garam chuckled awkwardly, scratching her head.

In response, Kang Cheol-soo let out a short sigh and answered her question.

“As I mentioned earlier, villains can be redeemed. And the condition for redemption is ‘not committing murder.'”

Park Garam looked puzzled and asked, “But, but my master turned all the people in the city into, into animals?”

“Yes, as you said, that is terrorism. It’s the kind of terrorism that would leave you with no excuse even if you were killed by heroes.”

“But, um, how?”

“Are you asking how she managed to be redeemed without killing anyone?”

Park Garam nodded.

Seeing her expression, Kang Cheol-soo replied, “Well, because not a single person died.”

“Eh, eh?”

At Kang Cheol-soo’s words, Park Garam’s eyes widened in surprise.

And the same went for the other students.

“How, how is that possible?”

Park Garam asked, as if she couldn’t comprehend it.

The population of a city has transformed into both herbivores and carnivores.

Then, it could have been possible for herbivores to die at the hands of carnivores, yet not a single one has perished?

How is that possible?

“…Park Garam, the disciple of Lady Kirke is not me, but you, right?”

Kang Cheol-soo scratched the scar on his forehead, looking somewhat perplexed.

In response to Kang Cheol-soo’s words, which seemed to imply he wanted to ask something, Park Garam fidgeted with his fingers and said,

“Th-the master didn’t tell me that, th-that incident was a, a dark history….”

…It is indeed a dark history.

After all, he turned the people of a city into animals and was then forcibly converted by the deity.

“Um….”

At Park Garam’s words, Kang Cheol-soo scratched his forehead scar again and checked his smartwatch.

Then, holding the attendance sheet and files placed on the lectern, he said,

“Now that it’s really time to move to the practice area, I’ll briefly explain.”

“Y-yes….”

“The reason why no one died despite Lady Kirke committing the act of terror by transforming the population of a city into animals.”

“W-what is the reason?”

Park Garam swallowed hard, as if feeling tense.

Seeing Park Garam like that, Kang Cheol-soo continued,

“It’s because the deity personally urged them.”

“…Huh?”

“I don’t know the details either. I don’t know why the deity didn’t kill Lady Kirke but instead urged her.”

Why is that?

Why didn’t Baek Yu-hwa kill Kirke but instead converted her?

Even using the absolute contract scroll ‘Gias’ to do so.

‘I should ask when I meet them later.’

As I was thinking this, Kang Cheol-soo declared that this was the end of the answers to the questions and shouted for everyone to move to the practice area.

In response, Park Garam, though not completely understanding, nodded as if his curiosity had been somewhat satisfied and blended into the crowd heading toward the practice area under Kang Cheol-soo’s guidance.

Seeing that, I also left the classroom and headed toward the practice area.

&

“As you can see before your eyes, the theme of the villain response training is urban warfare.”

As Gangcheolsu said, the training ground was a chaotic urban landscape, as if a real terror attack had taken place, with buildings crumbling and the ground caving in.

In such a lifelike setting, my peers marveled in awe.

But that was only for a moment.

“Ah… right. The chief is the villain.”

“…Do you think our chief can be defeated?”

“It seems unlikely….”

As they recalled that I was playing the role of the villain, everyone except for a few main characters and some supporting ones drooped their shoulders, their enthusiasm waning.

Seeing their expressions, I couldn’t help but chuckle and opened my inventory.

‘If they lack motivation, I need to spark it for them.’

I pulled out the elixirs from the inventory.

Then, showing them to my peers, I said,

“I’ll give this elixir to anyone who helps catch me.”

“”…….””

My peers stared at me with blank expressions.

Then, one of them snapped back to reality and, with trembling hands, pointed at the elixirs, asking if I was serious.

“Are you really going to give us those elixirs if we catch you?”

“Yeah, I really will.”

“But you only have two elixirs with you?”

“I have enough, so don’t worry about that.”

“…….”

My peers fell silent.

Then, they exchanged glances with each other, nodding their heads.

Suddenly, their eyes sparkled with renewed enthusiasm as they looked at me and said,

“Make sure you keep that promise.”

“On the honor of the chief.”

Only after I mentioned putting my honor on the line did the doubt fade from their eyes, replaced by trust.

Watching them, I wondered if I really had to go this far, but well, what could I do?

If I wanted to improve my peers’ response abilities, this was the only way.

Instead.

“I’ll show you the spicy taste of a villain.”

Along with the spicy taste of urban warfare.

“From now on, I’ll explain the objectives of the training. Everyone, listen carefully.”

As my peers, including myself, finished preparing for the training,

Kang Cheol-soo began to outline the details.

To summarize briefly:

[Hero Team]

– Members: 99.

– Victory Conditions: Rescue of hostages (3) and capture of the villain (Lee Yu-jin).

– Failure Conditions: Annihilation and 1 hour elapsed.

[Villain Team]

– Members: 1.

– Victory Conditions: Annihilation of the hero team and 1 hour elapsed.

– Failure Conditions: Rescue of hostages (3) and capture.

[Training Rules]

– All weapons must be ‘training-use’ only.

– Fatal injuries that could lead to death are not allowed (fainting is permitted).

– Items cannot be used.

That’s about it.

But isn’t it a bit much that the villain role is just me?

“Well… I guess it doesn’t matter.”

In fact, being alone might be more convenient.

If there were a team, it could get complicated with orders and such.

Thinking this, I approached Kang Cheol-soo.

And I asked if I could use the spatial inventory.

He nodded and said,

“Since you’re the only villain, that level of advantage should be allowed.”

As Kang Cheol-soo said this, he manipulated his smartwatch.

Then, regarding one of the three training rules, ‘Items cannot be used,’…

‘Lee Yu-jin is a single entity, so the use of items is possible.’ was added.

I felt a significant decrease in the difficulty of that added practical goal.

For example, it changed from ‘easy’ difficulty to ‘very easy’ difficulty.

‘Hmm, that’s not much of an advantage.’

Well, Kang Cheol-soo doesn’t know about my inventory or the infinite items.

I gladly accepted the advantage with a cheerful heart.

‘Ah, right. I should ask about that too.’

Suddenly remembering, I asked Kang Cheol-soo whether I could use ‘special bullets.’

“Special bullets? Are they live rounds?”

“Yes, that’s true, but I also have some made of rubber. Can I use those?”

“Sure, rubber bullets should be fine. Go ahead.”

“Thank you.”

Having received permission to use rubber bullets (special),

‘I’ve got it all covered.’

I laughed wickedly like a villain.

&

&

&

To capture the villain (Lee Yu-jin), there were at least ten people gathered.

At that time, I believed that with this number, no matter how much of a villain she was, we could capture her.

But it didn’t take long for me to realize my mistake.

“Hey, where did one person go?”

“…Huh? Where did they really go?”

“What the heck, they were just behind us a moment ago?”

Just a moment ago, there had been ten of us.

At some point, one person who had been at the back disappeared, leaving only nine.

Student A, who had gathered everyone, fell into fear for a moment but pretended to be nonchalant as they spoke to the others.

“…Maybe they took a different path.”

I knew it was a strange thing to say.

We had agreed to move together, yet someone had taken another path.

It doesn’t make sense.

But the kids, feeling the strangeness, chose to believe Student A’s words.

Student A quietly exhaled a trembling breath and resumed the halted steps.

As they moved for a minute, another commotion erupted.

“…Hey, guys. One more person has disappeared.”

The reason for the uproar was the same as before.

Another classmate had vanished.

This time, it was the one at the very back.

“This isn’t just a detour.”

“…Right, this is an ambush.”

“There’s a villain nearby!”

Realizing that a villain was in their vicinity, the kids raised their weapons and began to stand guard.

Student A, like the others on alert, lifted their weapon and activated their talent, ‘Spatial Awareness.’

But.

“Not here…?”

There was no villain nearby.

So they expanded the range of their spatial awareness.

10m.

50m.

100m.

And up to 300m.

Yet still, no villain was detected.

Fear began to creep up on Student A.

In response, Student A tried to inform the others of this fact.

Just then.

Thud.

One of the kids on watch suddenly collapsed.

“Ahhh!”

“What, what’s happening!”

Student A hurriedly checked on the fallen classmate.

“…I fainted.”

They had collapsed with their forehead swollen bright red at the center.

Student A realized.

The villain was ‘sniping’ from a place beyond their detection.

“Guys, it’s a sniper!”

The moment they shouted that.

Tatatatatatang─!

Pervaburaburabuck─!

Gunfire echoed from somewhere.

And at the same time, the kids’ bodies fell to the ground.

“Uh, uh?”

Student A looked at the fallen kids with trembling eyes.

All of them had their foreheads swollen red, their eyes rolled back as they lay unconscious.

Clang.

Student A dropped their weapon.

They had lost the will to fight.

Just then.

Spatial detection sensed something.

Beep.

300m.

It was definitely the villain.

200m.

And the villain was.

100m.

50m.

30m.

10m.

Approaching at an alarming speed.

Student A trembled uncontrollably with rising fear and turned their gaze to where the spatial detection indicated.

And there, was…

Sss…, huff.

Sss…, huff.

A villain clad in a black coat, wearing the crow mask once used by plague doctors of old, stood there, making the distinctive sound of the mask.

“Please, please spare me.”

Student A begged for his life in a voice filled with terror.

But the villain seemed to have no intention of showing mercy.

Slowly, he raised his pistol.

『You are disqualified as a hero.』

And then.

Bang─!

&

&

&

Thud.

A classmate collapsed, struck in the head by a rubber bullet.

I grimaced as I looked at my classmates sprawled on the floor.

『Did they forget this is a training exercise? Why do they keep begging for their lives every time they see me?』

Tsk, clicking my tongue, I kicked the ground and moved away from the spot.