Chapter 58 - Counseling

"I can't believe our Haru actually fell for the Apple Mango conspiracy theory... Gasp!"

Her friend, Lee Seol-ah, covered her mouth in mock shock as she spoke.

When Shin Haru glared at her with a sullen look, Seol-ah finally lowered her hand, grinning sheepishly.

"Hehe, I'm just kidding, just kidding. Don't be mad."

"I'm serious."

"Aww, is baby Haru sulking? Oh no~"

Seol-ah, who had been teasing her with a bright smile, cleared her throat before returning to her usual expression and speaking again.

"Okay. Well, hearing it out loud, it certainly is strange. A villain who commits terror attacks but doesn't want anyone to die..."

Lost in thought for a moment, Seol-ah twirled a lock of her sky-blue hair around her finger before continuing.

"...Isn't it possible, though? You know, like an entertainer. Maybe he's the type who just enjoys drawing people's attention? Yeah... how should I put it."

She chose her words carefully for a moment before clapping her hands together.

"You could just see him as a villain who wants to commit terror but hates killing civilians. Considering he contacted you to save the people who were about to die because of the incident he caused."

Having said her piece, Seol-ah crossed her arms and nodded, as if the problem was solved. She then took another sip of green tea to moisten her throat.

Shin Haru, who had been listening quietly up to that point, finally spoke up.

"....Then, do you think he's harmless?"

"Huh? Well, I wouldn't say harmless... Since it's true he destroys buildings and airplanes and stuff. He's definitely a villain. Just a villain who hates seeing civilians die. Could you call that harmless? Well, he's certainly better than the villains who try to kill everyone."

"And looking at his hacking skills and how he scattered money this time, he's definitely got something up his sleeve. But hearing you talk about it actually makes me feel relieved. If he had that kind of ability and actually wanted to kill people, that would have been horrific."

Seol-ah took another sip of her tea.

Seeing Haru still wearing a troubled expression, she grinned again.

"Our dear Haru, did you ask this Unnie for advice because you were worried about that? Because you were curious whether that Egostic guy is a villain or not?"

"Who's the Unnie here...? No, well. It's just that something bothers me..."

"What's there to be bothered about? The world is full of all kinds of villains. There are villains who dismember five people just to perform a ritual, so couldn't there be a villain who doesn't really like seeing people die? If anything, there's no need to worry. It just means that any terror attacks he causes in the future will be within a range where you can prevent civilian casualties. As for him going around killing other villains... well, it is vigilantism, but it's not like he's killing civilians."

Watching Seol-ah, who spoke as if asking why she was worrying when it was actually a good thing that he didn't kill people during terror attacks, Haru felt a strange mix of emotions.

Right. Thinking about it rationally, Seol-ah was right. He was simply a villain who wanted to cause terror without civilian casualties. Egostic. The problem would be solved if she just defined him like that.

As for the reason behind his terror, she could just assume it was for simple pleasure, like other villains.

That would probably be the normal interpretation of Egostic.

However, she still harbored a lingering doubt. She couldn't explain it in words... but it was her 'Intuition' strongly resonating within her.

The thought that causing terror wasn't simply for his own pleasure, but that there might be some other reason.

When she watched him commit acts of terror, it felt less like he was enjoying the act itself and more like he was aiming for something.

The feeling that he was causing terror with some other intention, planning something specific.

What could that be? Since she didn't know the answer, all her thoughts were currently dismissed as mere delusions.

Seeing Haru's face fall into deep thought again, Seol-ah laughed.

"Oh, Haru. You called me all the way here, so I thought it was some huge problem, but it was just talk about a villain? What are we going to do with you being such a Workaholic, huh?"

She shook her head from side to side as she spoke.

"Haru. We're people, too. When we're not working, we need to empty our heads and rest. Okay? If you're a university student, go to some events. How are you going to make friends like this?"

"....I have friends."

"Ah, that senior you mentioned? That's not a friend. That's an Unnie! Anyway, my point is, let's rest when it's time to rest. At this rate, will you ever even date a guy?"

"You've never dated a guy either."

At Shin Haru's retort, which hit close to home, Seol-ah's face turned slightly red.

"No, that's because my privacy is controlled at the Group level... If it weren't for the surveillance, I would have totally..."

"Yeah, yeah. Got it."

Seol-ah grumbled at Haru's smirking response, but soon she ended up laughing too.

With that, the conversation about Egostic fizzled out, and they began catching up on their personal lives.

Lee Seol-ah brought up her recent worries.

"Haa... It's so stressful having my every move reported in the media."

Lee Seol-ah.

She was Haru's friend, an ice-user, and the A-Rank Hero in charge of Busan.

At the same time, she was the daughter of the chairman of Yuseong Enterprise, one of South Korea's largest conglomerates. In other words, a third-generation chaebol.

"I mean, I enjoy Hero work, and it has a positive effect on the company, so that's good... but why is everyone so interested in what clothes I wear...?"

She stretched her arms out across the table and sighed.

Haru could only say, "That must be tough," to her friend.

Unlike Stardus, who thoroughly concealed her identity through measures like Recognition Interference, Icicle did not hide hers.

Even before she awakened her ability and was called Icicle, she was already a widely known public figure as the third-generation chaebol, Lee Seol-ah.

Therefore, she did not hide her identity and operated under her real name, Lee Seol-ah. Even during Hero activities, she didn't use Recognition Interference and appeared with her bare face.

"Still, it's good that they don't interfere as much as they used to since I started this. Honestly, it's probably because they think I'm having a positive impact on the company's image."

"You have a hard life, too..."

"Yeah. At least it's fortunate that Busan has fewer terror attacks than the Metropolitan Area. If it were as frequent as where you are, wow..."

Lee Seol-ah shook her head and pulled out her phone. Then, after reading an article, her face crumpled.

Wondering what was wrong, Haru asked her.

"What is it?"

"You know our competitor, Haneun Group? There's this nutjob named Kim Seonwoo who was one of their technical advisors. Apparently, he got released. He was caught doing human experiments, so how did he get out? They must have lobbied hard again."

"Kim Seonwoo..."

"Sigh. Nothing seems to go right these days."

Seol-ah clicked her tongue and placed her phone back on the table.

They continued their conversation for a while longer.

Time flew by, and before they knew it, it was deep into the night.

Outside, the rain was falling steadily.

"Shall we get going?"

"Sure."

The two decided to part ways there.

As they stepped out of the cafe, a line of bodyguards wearing sunglasses and suits stood waiting.

"Miss. Please get in."

"Yeah. Haru, do you want a ride? It's raining."

"No, I want to walk for a bit. You go on ahead."

"Really...? Alright. But do you have an umbrella? Mister, give me a spare umbrella!"

Haru received an umbrella from one of the men in suits and expressed her thanks.

"Haru, I'm off. If you have anything else on your mind, call me right away, okay?"

"Yeah. Get home safely."

She watched as her friend left in a black limousine.

Once the car had disappeared from sight, she turned and began walking towards her home.

Raindrops drummed against the umbrella.

She walked through the night streets, where only the sound of rain could be heard, relying on a single umbrella.

It had been nice to meet a friend after such a long time.

Seol-ah was the only friend she could speak openly with, after all.

Walking slowly, she lifted her head to look at the sky.

Since it was late evening, approaching dawn, the sky was pitch black.

Looking at the sky where only the moon floated lonely, she fell into deep thought once more.

In the end, even Seol-ah only advised her not to worry too much about that guy, Egostic.

That he was just a villain who was reluctant to harm people, nothing more and nothing less.

However, Haru was still bothered by him.

The feeling that there was something both she and Seol-ah were missing.

An intuition that his actions so far were painting a bigger picture.

And the thought that he might not be as bad a person as she thought—it was baseless and nonsensical... but it kept hovering in her mind.

In this way, Stardus was unknowingly trying to pierce through to Egostic's true nature with her Super Sense.

Of course, since she didn't know his true reality yet, she just felt unsettled and couldn't help but be concerned about him.

"Haa..."

Staring at the dark night sky, she simply sighed.

While she was this distressed because of Egostic...

That guy, Egostic, was probably lying in his house with a full stomach, living his best life, wasn't he?

***

"Cough, cough."

"Kyaaaah!! Oppa, seriously, what is wrong with you?!! Don't we need to go to the hospital for this? Let's go to the hospital!"

"Seo-eun, how can I... cough... go to a hospital? I'll be fine in a little bit... cough."

"You're pouring out buckets of blood! How is that fine?!!"

"Hyung, you can't die... Sniff."

Inside a massive mansion nestled deep within the mountains.

Lying there, I was currently coughing up a bucketful of blood.

The mansion's residents had flocked around me, their faces filled with worry.

Over by the door, I could see Ha-yul staring at me, her face pale as a sheet.

Ah, shit.

Did I push myself too hard at the bridge?

"Cough."

And just like that, another round of hemoptysis.

I felt so wronged I could die. It's not like I used that much power, so why is this happening all of a sudden?

What a shitty ability...

After collapsing the bridge and returning home, I had passed out immediately, only to wake up three days later.

And the moment I woke up, I started vomiting blood by the gallon.

I feel like I'm going to die.

Will the day ever come when Stardus finds out I'm going through this hell just for her?

No. Probably not.

Ugh...

"Cough, cough."

"Kyaaaaah!"

And Seo-eun, please stop screaming...