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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: The Bull
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"Wow, what a sight…"
[Ah, it's such a shame I can't put this in the novel. It's incredibly cool.]
"…Cool? That?"
The battle began the moment we stormed the Übermensch base.
From my vantage point in the sky, I could confidently say that the one who stood out most was Investigator Yi Hayul.
No, seriously, what is that?
[An ability to turn one's entire body into mist! Isn't that just so cool! I'm glad I kept her alive!]
"No, it *is* cool, but…"
Yeah, well. It's certainly cool.
An ability to turn into mist, it has a certain romance to it.
But that's a bit… it's just… too…
"Wow… I think that's less in the realm of 'cool' and more in the realm of 'horror,' wouldn't you say?"
I once saw a movie like that.
A horror movie where an unidentified monstrous creature emerges from the mist and attacks people.
When I watched that movie, I was scared of the monsters that could appear at any moment in the zero-visibility mist.
…Now that I see this, I almost wonder if it would have been better to have those monsters instead.
"Gurgle…"
Thump.
Another villain collapsed.
One by one, amidst the panicking villains.
Those who had been moving fiercely dropped like puppets with their strings cut.
No blood. They weren't dying from wounds.
"I wonder what it feels like to have your lungs fill with water…"
[Hmm, I wonder?]
As people around them writhed, gasping for breath, the villains who sensed danger tried to escape, but it was futile.
The mist had already settled all around.
Even if they tried to run, their lungs gradually filled with water, they couldn't breathe, their bodies twisted, and then they drowned.
…No matter how superhuman, it's not easy to train one's internal organs.
To see people who used their superhuman status to torment ordinary individuals now falling like ordinary people without even putting up a proper fight.
How ironic.
"Spira fights well, as expected, and Laira is fighting better than I thought. There was nothing to worry about after all."
Spira, moving through the hideout as if it were her own living room, goes without saying. Laira was also fighting surprisingly well.
I had been a little worried about both of them.
I thought Spira might feel some aversion since it was a place she used to belong to, but she was surprisingly unhesitant.
I suddenly remembered her clinging to me for survival back then. …Well, she did betray them, so what's a little more?
As for Laira, hmm…
Given her 'underachiever' setting, I didn't expect her to fight much, but her style had completely changed.
It was now a style that overwhelms opponents with sheer power and speed.
She definitely used to have some finesse, but it seems she's completely abandoned it.
"Everyone seems to be fighting well, so perhaps I should go meet the executives beforehand!"
I jumped down from the thread and immediately regretted it a little.
A lot of sticky blood had splattered.
"Ugh. I shouldn't have come down. I was just trying to get into the mood."
I just changed into these stockings; what am I supposed to do if they get dirty already?
Muttering, I entered the building from which the villains had emerged.
Leaving the collapsed puppets behind.
***
"…What do we do?"
"Yeah? Aren't we doomed?"
"Wow, seriously. They're getting mowed down."
The executives each offered their comments.
…Far from feeling any crisis, they displayed a nonchalance as if it weren't their concern.
"Are you guys even planning to fight?"
"Of course we are?"
"Yeah, yeah. Of course we're planning to fight."
"But think about it. If we go, won't those guys just get caught in the crossfire and die?"
"…"
"Right? Can't argue with that, can you? Isn't it more advantageous to let them wear themselves out a bit more?"
—CRASH!
Unable to contain my rage, I slammed my fist on the table.
What in the world are these guys thinking?
We clearly discussed this at the last meeting!
"You guys know that the more our numbers dwindle here, the more dangerous it gets!"
"…We know. That's why we're reducing them, Mino."
"What?"
Where had their nonchalant demeanor from moments ago gone?
Before I knew it, they were watching the CCTV with cold eyes.
"Listen, even if Marmot's location was easy to expose, how did they figure out *this* place?"
"You thought it was strange too, didn't you? Me too. This place is deserted. How did they find it?"
"Wh-what are you talking about?"
"And over there, that CCTV. See it?"
"…That's!"
"Ah, you saw it? Good. I thought a dullard like Mino wouldn't see it. Glad you found it quickly."
It's strange.
No, more than strange, it's impossible.
Wasn't she dead?
"…Spira, why?"
"Who knows. Wow, she's fast, isn't she? Her knack for bursting out of the ground is superb."
A woman with the lower half of a snake's tail.
Her appearance reminiscent of a Lamia, straight out of a myth.
There was no mistake. It could only be Spira.
"W-wasn't she dead?"
"To be precise, she was missing."
"But everyone thought she was dead!"
I was confused.
A comrade thought dead had returned alive.
If so, I should naturally be happy.
…But that comrade was killing her comrades.
"Wh-why…"
"It's betrayal, Mino. What else could it be?"
The word I had thought of but forcibly erased from my mind, he spat out cleanly.
I couldn't believe it.
Especially since her carefree smile came to mind.
"How, how could she…!"
"Who knows. Whether she defected, or if she was deceiving us from the beginning. …What's certain is, she's an enemy."
Even as my body trembled with betrayal, they continued their conversation coldly.
"Listen, Mino. We can't believe it either, but there was a traitor. And among the executives, no less."
"…"
"If there's one more traitor among the executives, then Übermensch is finished. If we catch the traitor, we won't be able to trust each other, and if we don't, every little thing will be interfered with, and we'll be ruined."
"Excluding the worst-case scenario, there's only one conclusion we can draw. …A traitor is hidden among the rank-and-file members."
"…I see."
I couldn't argue with what Rabby, the rabbit beast-human, and Habby, the monkey beast-human, said.
As they said, there was a traitor hidden among the ordinary members. That was the only conclusion possible.
"Of course, it's quite a painful loss. Even if only we survive here, it's dangerous. It's hard to guarantee whether the plan will succeed or not."
"But think about it, Mino. What if we let even one person live, and an enemy-planted traitor infiltrates? The plan wouldn't even be able to start."
"Alright, I understand."
"Good. It's heartbreaking for us too, but everything is for the plan. They'll understand."
I looked at the CCTV once more.
The screams gradually faded, and soon, only a few people remained standing.
…Everything for the plan.
"…By the way, what exactly do they dislike about us so much that they hate us like this? Is it because we're villains?"
"No way. If that were the case, they would've attacked long ago. Why attack now?"
"That's true. Then why?"
"Perhaps they didn't like our goal? The Human Superhumanization Project."
"…Hmm, is that all it could be?"
The teacup he was holding to calm himself instantly crumpled.
Yes, the Human Superhumanization Project. That is our organization's goal.
The countless invisible discriminations and injustices between superhumans and ordinary people.
The front lines, which can barely be pushed forward because superhumans are too few compared to the human population.
The Übermensch organization was created to solve such problems.
We had achieved some success, reaching a point where ordinary people could be turned into superhumans if they had an aptitude for animal factors.
And so, we believed that if we just had a little more time, we could achieve our goal.
But it was ruined in an instant.
The goal that was once so close had suddenly fled far away, and it became uncertain if we could ever reach it.
"…I can't forgive them."
"Huh?"
"Ah, he's angry."
"Wooooooah…!"
Unable to contain his rage, he punched through the wall.
"My name is Minos! Where are the intruders! Come at me!"
"…Hmph. He's such an idiot, isn't he, Habby?"
"You're right, Rabby. Hey, get up. You lazy bum. It's this loud, and you're still sleeping?"
"Huh, …wh-why? Is there a problem?"
"Problems are overflowing, overflowing. Intruders. Get ready to fight."
"What?!"
"Just so you know, everyone who went to stop the intruders is dead."
"What?!?!"
***
"What's that sound?"
Thump, thump.
Suddenly, a strange booming sound began to echo from somewhere.
Like the sound of a construction site.
…What is it? What's that noise?
It's not just coming from one place.
The source of the sound was moving.
The sound was gradually getting louder, as if it were approaching this way…
"Crazy…!"
It wasn't *like* it was approaching. It *was* approaching!
Feeling uneasy, I tried to move my legs to get away, but it was too late.
The sound of something collapsing rapidly approached, and before I knew it, it was so close I couldn't even tell where it was coming from anymore.
—CRASH!
"…Found you, intruders!"
"Too late, huh… Ah, hello? You're kinda big?"
Laira stared blankly at the man who had burst through the wall.
An enormous size, almost 3 meters tall.
Bulky muscles, incredible strength and durability, showing no injury despite having punched through a wall.
…And finally, an incredibly enraged expression.
Laira realized they were in deep trouble.
"We're screwed…"
"DIIIIIIIIIIE!"
The enraged bull began to charge at the wolf.