chapter 26
episode 26
I opened the student record book. There was a picture of a male student with comma hair and half-closed eyes as if he was drowsy.
This guy’s name was Bae Dong-min, and he was the one who would become the villain called ‘Bubholic’ in the future. It was nicknamed because he had the ability to hypnotize others with his voice.
This guy was one of the big game I caught, the one I dealt with while chasing the ‘color ghost’. Verbalholic was one of the executives who worked under the evil spirit.
And before that, before going under the color ear, Verbalholic worked for a human trafficking organization.
“We’ll have to catch it before it crosses the line…”
The reason that Verbalholic joined the human trafficking organization was simple. If you use that ability, you can take not only ordinary people but also non-combat Awakened people without resistance.
And he sends a world tour to the victims who came to him on their own feet. The problem is that it’s not your will, and each body part is loaded onto the plane separately.
In addition to such long-term sales, it is also related to prostitutes. Like the case of Min So-yul, the awakened person is sold as a special product in the prostitution industry.
“The colored ghost is grabbing my ankle again.”
Dealing with that organization first will make things easier. However, they were removed by the color demon, so no record was left.
Because of that, I couldn’t pinpoint the location either. However, it was impossible to keep an eye on Bae Dong-min’s house.
Currently, the only clue to trace the organization is Bae Dong-min, and the only clue to trace Bae Dong-min is Catherine.
Because Catherine’s previous case was not a simple attempted rape.
The guy who attacked Katherine was a rogue in the organization like Bae Dong-min. Originally, I approached for kidnapping, but I couldn’t overcome my lust and tried to attack it, but it failed and I was arrested.
“I tried to stop it before then…”
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Looking around the area, there was no income. Apparently, Bae Dong-min already seemed to fit in with the organization.
That’s why he didn’t have to come home, and he hypnotized his parents to make sure they didn’t come out.
Now that this has happened, there is no choice but to stop Catherine before she is attacked.
In this lifetime, I will not allow her powers to be used for evil.
* * *
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Late evening.
‘It’s a bit later than expected…’
Catherine was on her way home. As I was sorting out questions in preparation for the paper test, I ended up leaving work later than usual.
‘It’s fine. It won’t happen again.’
She took a slow, deep breath and cleared her mind. Although the trauma was successfully suppressed, it did not completely disappear.
When the dark alleys and surroundings were quiet, anxiety would tighten her heart.
‘There’s nothing to be afraid of…’
She stood tall. I felt popular.
There was someone in the shadows cast outside in the flickering light of the streetlights with the crackling sound.
Katherine licked her lips and reached for her handbag. Something cold and heavy touched his fingertips.
Since that incident, it has always been a stun gun for self-defense. Of course, it was a weapon of little use against the Awoken, but it was better than nothing.
A cold sweat broke out on his back and sweat broke out on his hands. Again and again, the sound of his own footsteps in the silence lingered in his ears.
‘Nothing will happen. Nothing…’
The closer the streetlights got, the quieter the footsteps sounded. The thump-thump, the beating of the heart filled the void.
Why doesn’t popularity disappear? Who is that person waiting for? Are you just passing by?
A question mark bites its tail. It was difficult to breathe. Catherine had to consciously control her inhalation and exhalation.
Eventually, the moment she stepped into the light of the street lamp, the one in the darkness suddenly appeared.
The hand that held the stun gun was tight. But she couldn’t get it out.
“… Teacher Kang Tae-min?”
It was Kang Tae-min who showed up. Katherine was relieved, but soon hardened her face.
“What are you doing?”
Anxiety subsided and questions and expectations surfaced. Maybe he came to tell the truth of that day.
However, Taemin Kang did not answer. Instead, he looked around with sharp eyes. It seemed as if he was wary of something.
‘Are they still there?’
Kang Tae-min recalled an article he had read before returning. Possessing a shape memory ability, after awakening, he kept every article related to crime in his head.
According to the article, Katherine’s disappearance was not far from here.
“what?”
“Dongmin-ah, put that away.”
Katherine averted her gaze, startled by the sudden voice. People wearing black hoodies and even masks were approaching. Only one was small, and the other three were overweight.
“Oh, what if you call me by name?”
“How about it, no one knows who it is anyway.”
When the big guys laughed, a small man, Bae Dong-min, stepped forward. Blue eyes shimmered in the eyes exposed above the mask.
“Mister, go home and wipe your feet and go to sleep.”
It was a powerful, yet very sweet voice. Bae Dong-min was able to get everything he wanted with this voice.
But not now.
“I run away.”
“Yes? Now, wait…!”
Kang Tae-min immediately grabbed Catherine’s hand and ran. She was taken aback, but soon ran after Kang Tae-min.
“Fuck! what!?”
“Hey! Are you not doing it right?!”
“Oh no! clearly···.”
Bae Dong-min’s eyes shook at the intimidation of the big guys. Obviously, the ability is properly expressed, but why is it not being eaten?
Before he had time to answer the question, the big guys tried to follow him. But I couldn’t.
“what···!”
“Cheak!”
The big ones who were just running suddenly fell forward. In the middle of Bae Dong-min’s eyes wide open and looking around.
Something fell from above with a loud bang.
“100 million!”
Bae Dong-min slumped with a scream. Someone snatched him from behind before his head hit the floor.
“You, you… what the hell?!”
said one of the hulking, flat on the floor, barely lifting his head. Standing in front of them was Kang Tae-min, an iron man wearing a metal suit. And even with an iron bat in one hand.
‘Catherine should be left to the clones.’
The one who ran away with Katherine was a clone created by Kang Tae-min. This was the reason Bae Dong-min’s hypnosis did not work.
Kang Tae-min immediately showed his ability.
A large metal frame wrapped around the prostrate bodies on the floor.
“town···!”
“Eup!”
The bewildered hunks tried to resist, but their limbs were already tied to the metal frame. The iron plate stuck to my mouth and I could feel the fishy taste of iron.
Kang Tae-min grabbed the people who had changed in size and fainted Bae Dong-min and soared into the sky.
‘That place would be nice.’
The outskirts of the city looked down from the night sky, a construction site without a single light was visible.
Kang Tae-min flew over it and landed on the roof after confirming that no one was there. He put down the stunned Bae Dong-min and scanned the figures.
“Hideout location.”
At Kang Tae-min’s short words, the eyes of the big guys shook. Do you mean Ajitra?
‘Do you know who we are?’
‘Fuck, what the hell is this situation?’
They were not Awoken. It was just a matter of taking the hypnotized target and going back, and it was because the organization judged that only Bae Dong-min was enough.
I was thinking about that.
A crackling plosive sound came from the side, and warm liquid splashed down his cheeks.
“town···?!”
“Ughhhhh!”
It was because the metal frame tightened, shattering the head of one of the henchmen. The two remaining figures trembled.
“location.”
“Eup! town! town!”
When Kang Tae-min spoke again, one of them roared violently. Kang Tae-min cut his fingers and tore off the iron plate that was covering his mouth.
“Oh, it’s not far. It is a pig farm located in the suburbs!”
In response, Taemin Kang glanced back at the other guy. Then he screamed louder with wide eyes.
Kang Tae-min closed the mouth of the guy who spoke first and made the last big guy open his mouth.
“A trap, a trap! It is an organ harvesting site!”
Taemin Kang already knew. It was because I was constantly checking the karma log.
In response, he also smashed the head of the guy who said the pig farm.
“Go, thank you. The location of the real hideout is…”
The last one left blew the location of the hideout. I didn’t even ask, but he even told me the number of resident gang members.
“Sah, thank you for saving me. I will never do something like this again…”
His words didn’t go further. It was because the metal frame that restrained him had been folded in half.
Soggy blood ran down the floor along the cross section.
Kang Tae-min had no intention of saving anyone in the first place.
“All that’s left now is…”
Kang Tae-min looked at Bae Dong-min, who fainted.
[Karma Log]
[Name – Dongmin Bae]
[Alignment – Evil (-571)]
[Recently recorded karma activity]
[> Abduction and trafficking of minors (-100)]
Kang Tae-min looked at the list of other karma activities with a cold gaze.
Extortion of money using my abilities, sex crimes, assault, etc.
Unlike other special class students, he had already done too many things. Victims who were hypnotized would not have known who they had been subjected to.
Kang Tae-min lowered the etiquette injector toward Dong-min Bae’s leg, who passed out.
Bae Dong-min opened his eyes with a dull noise.
“Quaaa!”
Bae Dong-min, who was moaning in intense pain, soon looked around and became contemplative.
Aren’t all the big guys who came with him in a miserable state?
“Hideout location.”
Kang Tae-min’s cold voice made Bae Dong-min shake his chin.
“Mo, I don’t know. I, I took this job as a condition of entering. This is my first time!”
It was false.
Just to get out of the situation, it was the same as the other villains. Taemin Kang firmly gripped the etiquette injector.
“Mmm, stop. Stop!”
Bae Dong-min was frightened and gathered all his magic power to express his ability. did that work?
The bat in Kang Tae-min’s hand scattered and disappeared.
‘Okay, is it okay?’
It was a moment when Bae Dong-min was relieved.
Suddenly, an excruciating pain ran through my body.
“Cheer, cooer…!”
Bae Dong-min looked down at his body with disbelief eyes. An iron bar from the construction site was piercing his lungs.
‘Uh, why…’
Why does his ability not work?
As if having read the question, Kang Tae-min removed the suit’s helmet and revealed his face.
“Originally, this is what you should have learned at the academy.”
Taemin Kang said that and showed his ears. His ear canals were plugged with silvery metal, as if they had been soldered.
Kang Tae-min was not listening to Bae Dong-min’s voice. It was because his answer could be read sufficiently through lip-reading.
“And mental abilities can be blocked by discharging mana.”
In addition to these preventive measures, there was also a way to prevent mental interference by directly consuming mana. It was inefficient, so it was not used unless it was an emergency.
“…you could have used that tongue in a more correct way.”
Kang Tae-min forcibly opened the mouth of Bae Dong-min, who was pouring out blood. And pulling his tongue, he showed his ability.
A sharp blade formed above Bae Dong-min’s lips.
“Bae Dong-min, you are expelled.”
The blade fell. The severed tongue fell out. Bae Dongmin couldn’t say anything.
His lungs were punctured, making it difficult to breathe, and his mouth was filled with blood.
Such a painful and slow death came to him.
Kang Tae-min took out a cigarette and bit it, then put it back in.
“I have to finish cleaning up after myself.”
I thought it would be better to clean up their hideout and smoke.
* * *
“hahahaha···.”
Catherine let out a heavy breath. Perhaps because of the sudden run, his face flushed.
I finally calmed down after coming out to the crowded street.
“ah···!”
Only then did she realize that she had been holding Kang Tae-min’s hand all along. My heart was beating wildly.
I’m sure it’s because I ran as hard as I could. She decided to think so.
Actually Kang Tae-min had a nonchalant face. Catherine somehow didn’t like that.
“What the hell, what the hell is going on?”
Because of that, the sharp tone came out as usual. Kang Tae-min, to be precise, Kang Tae-min’s clone stared blankly at her.
‘My thoughts and judgment are the judgment of the original.’
Kang Tae-min was aware of Catherine’s abilities. The ability she had was ‘Memory Shift’, that is, memory manipulation.
The ability to change an unconscious subject’s memories to her will.
Before returning, the abducted Catherine reveals her abilities through the hypnosis of Verbalholic. Because of that, she was imprisoned by the organization without being sold, and manipulated the memories of those who had been abducted.
After living like a tool for several years, a colored ghost appeared and disintegrated the organization. Catherine took the opportunity to commit suicide.
“I don’t know either. Then, take care and go home.”
Unable to explain the fact, Kang Tae-min pretended not to know and turned away.
Catherine blinked for a moment. I hated Kang Tae-min’s back when he turned around, the way he didn’t look at me.
Taemin Kang stopped for a moment. A slightly trembling hand gripped his sleeve.
“You came to see me on purpose, didn’t you?”
Turning around, Catherine asked with a red face. Because he was such a white-skinned person, he was born quickly.
“I am, I am ready.”
Catherine said in a trembling voice. She wanted to tell the truth of the day.
“If I misunderstood anything, I want to clear it up. And just like before…”
She pursed her lips for a moment. Kang Tae-min looked back at her.
He also has memories of teacher Kang Tae-min. Because of this, I knew that there was a sense of kinship between the two that others did not know.
“Then find out for yourself.”
“···Yes?”
However, that was the memory of Kang Tae-min, the teacher.
“Catherine made no effort to find out what had happened that day. I just hid, turned away, and ran.”
Kang Tae-min’s plain voice made her eyes widen.
“I have always been there. It’s you who got away so.”
Kang Tae-min gently grabbed Catherine’s hand by the sleeve and pulled it off.
“You are the one who has to come back. Miss Catherine.”
Kang Tae-min turned around.
Catherine could only stare blankly at it.