Chapter 131 - Seaside

The sound of waves crashing against the shore.

A gentle blue breeze blowing softly.

"Haah... This is nice."

I took a sip from my drink while lying on the sunbed, then let out a sigh.

Yeah... this is the life.

"Oppa. Are you just going to lie there?"

"I'll rest a bit more and join you later. Go ahead and have fun."

"Seriously... Fine. Come quickly, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah."

Watching Seo-eun's back as she ran across the sandy beach, I put my sunglasses back on.

Whew, this is nice.

Yeah. This is the life. Looking at the ocean while sipping a mojito...

That's right.

Our Ego-squad members came on a trip.

To some beach on the east coast.

***

"Wow... So this is the ocean..."

"Come on, you already know what the ocean is. Why are you acting so surprised?"

"Ah! Se-hee unni, stop splashing water!"

"You have to play when you're at the beach!"

Hmm, they're quite lively.

I watched the others playing while sipping my green mojito through a straw.

Yeah. Everyone seems happy now that we're at the beach. There's more energy than during our regular hiking events we used to do.

As soon as my body got a bit better, we rushed straight to the beach.

Of course, I might still cough up blood if I overexert myself, but as long as I don't use too much psychokinesis or teleportation, it's fine. In other words, no problem.

Watching everyone splashing around and having fun, I stretched my legs out on the sunbed again.

"Da-in, would you like one of these?"

"Ah, yes, thank you. Hmm... Oh, this is delicious."

"Right? They were selling them over there with a line of people waiting."

I munched on the fried chicken Su-bin handed me.

This is tasty.

"I'll leave them here so we can share."

"Yes. I should buy some more later when the kids come back."

I said this while still munching on the chicken.

Currently, only Su-bin and I were lying on the sunbeds.

The adults were sitting and resting, while the kids were having fun at the beach.

Ha-yul and her younger sister Cha-yoon were building a sand castle with Death Knight over there. By the way, Death Knight was wearing a mascot costume while playing with Cha-yoon. I figured a ghost in black armor appearing on the beach might cause problems, so we went with this temporary solution.

The ones playing in the water were Seo-eun, Eun-wol, and Choi Se-hee. Se-hee isn't really a kid, so I wonder why she's acting like one... Well, she seems to be having fun, so that's fine. Her mental age might actually be similar to theirs.

"...It's really amazing how warm the weather is."

I never imagined I could go to the beach during this season.

But I didn't know a place like this existed.

A beach managed exclusively by a heat ability user. It's as warm as Southeast Asia just in this area.

Of course, since there's a heat ability user stationed here who seems to be at least B-rank as a hero, the usage fee is quite expensive, but that's not my concern.

Anyway, I took another sip of my mojito.

Besides us, there were quite a few other people at the beach, all enjoying their vacation.

However, thanks to the powerful recognition reduction spell cast by Eun-wol, nobody noticed us. Despite our variety of hair colors—black, white, orange—no one gave us a second glance.

That's why I had the confidence to bring all the Ego-squad members here. Honestly, there's no way we'd get caught.

Just as I was about to take another sip of my mojito, Su-bin, who was lying on the sunbed next to me also sunbathing, suddenly murmured.

"...This brings back memories."

"Pardon?"

"When we went to Busan before with you and Seo-eun. We were sitting on sunbeds like this while Seo-eun was playing in the ocean. I suddenly remembered that time."

"Ah... That's right. And then terrorists showed up when we were about to sleep at the hotel."

"I remember how you suddenly stood up and called yourself Apple Mango. Pfft."

"Please... forget about that..."

My head started throbbing as I recalled that embarrassing memory.

As I pressed my forehead with my hand as if feeling dizzy, Su-bin let out a clear laugh beside me.

"Haha. But thinking about it now, those are good memories. Back then, I had no idea things would become so lively with so many more people joining us..."

She said that while gazing toward the beach.

I also leaned back on the sunbed, holding a mojito in one hand, looking at the ocean.

Our members laughing and playing, couples playing with their children who seemed to be here on a family trip, people running around.

...This is a scene that would be unimaginable in the original story. By this time, everyone's lives would have been so miserable that a resort like this wouldn't be functioning normally.

Right. Come to think of it, this is the scenery I created.

Well... it's not bad.

Plus, this time I got to meet the heat ability user in charge of this beach who never appeared in the original story. I think it's that woman wearing a life vest, red hat, and sunglasses over there. To heat up a beach this size, her ability must be quite powerful. Might be worth looking into later.

"Da-in. Where should we eat dinner later?"

"Let's have a barbecue at the pension behind us. It's always fun with this many people."

"Hehe. Sounds good. Should I prepare the ingredients?"

"I think Choi Se-hee probably already took care of everything... I'll check in a bit."

I said that while looking back.

A pension directly facing the beach.

That's where we planned to stay for two nights and three days.

By the way, I've stashed all sorts of things there. Guns, masks, and even cameras. I prepared everything just in case, due to an uneasy feeling. It's become a habit after the Monkey Spanner incident at the Busan hotel. You never know what might happen... Though I don't think anything will happen this time.

"Oppa! Unni! Stop just lying there and come play with us!"

"Yeah, you two! How can you come all the way here and not even touch the water?"

While I was thinking about this, voices called out to us. Seo-eun and Se-hee were waving at us from the front, and Eun-wol's eyes were sparkling too.

"Su-bin, shall we go join them for a bit?"

"Yes, let's do that."

With Su-bin smiling and answering me, I got up.

Since we were both already wearing swimsuits, we just took off the cardigans we had on and headed toward the ocean.

"We're coming now!"

Ah. It's been so long since I could empty my mind and relax like this.

Yeah. I've been too busy until now, I need to rest too. People die if they overwork themselves.

Surely nothing bad will happen on such a joyful day?

If God has any mercy for me, it can't happen.

So I entered the ocean.

What could possibly go wrong?

***

"...Da-in must be having fun at that beach right now."

Lee Seol-ah, who had been working, momentarily put down her pen with that thought.

She remembered how he had spoken with unconscious joy when he mentioned going on a trip with the Ego-squad members.

"..."

Egostic. It doesn't make sense for him to turn to the villain side.

For Lee Seol-ah, who had been trying to draw him to the hero side, to her side in the long term, it was like a bolt from the blue.

Considering the excessive wariness that other Ego-squad members showed toward her, it was enough to give her a headache.

"...Right."

Pouring herself another glass of wine, Lee Seol-ah fell into thought.

Egostic. He clearly showed signs of slight obsession with Stardust.

And that was what she was most wary of.

Someday Ha-ru would learn all the secrets about Egostic, and Egostic liked Stardust.

If Egostic and Stardust became a team.

It wouldn't be easy for Lee Seol-ah to wedge herself between them.

While thinking about this, Lee Seol-ah had a change of mind.

Yes. She should keep Stardust in check.

However, there were more dangerous people who had been ensnaring Da-in without her knowledge.

The Ego-squad members. What if they claimed Da-in first?

"...I'd rather let Ha-ru have him than let that happen."

It wouldn't do. If his bond with those who were wary of her grew stronger, they might even persuade him to cut ties with her.

That must not happen.

Then, what about thinking in reverse?

It's a fact that Da-in thinks of Stardust as special, whether as a fan or something else.

So.

"......"

Since there would be recognition reduction in place, Ha-ru wouldn't be able to recognize him as Egostic at all. Da-in had boasted that one of his members had mastered an exceptional recognition reduction spell.

If he could meet the Stardust he admires so much in person and even become friendly with her, wouldn't Egostic's heart gradually lean toward the hero side?

Hero Apple Mango. He looked cute in the video.

Yes, by pretending it's a coincidence...

Thus, Lee Seol-ah, slightly irrational from the alcohol,

Formulated a plan that would make Egostic faint if he heard it.

She turned on her phone and began calling Ha-ru.

"Hey~ Ha-ru. What are you doing?"

"I was wondering, would you like to go to the beach with me?"

***

Living room, sofa.

Shin Ha-ru, who was lying on the sofa absentmindedly during a rare break, was fiddling with her phone.

But while her fingers were on the phone, her thoughts had long since drifted elsewhere.

'...That was definitely Egostic...'

She was certain she had seen someone on the rooftop.

But it was frustrating that no one else claimed to have seen anything.

"Haah..."

Come to think of it, this thought has been occupying her mind all day.

...Right. Maybe it's strange that she believes a villain like him appeared at the scene.

...This is giving me a headache.

While Shin Ha-ru was thinking about this,

Her phone started ringing.

"...Seol-ah?"

What could it be?

She answered the phone, puzzled.

"Oh, Seol-ah."

"What? The beach? You want to go tomorrow? There's a warm place..."

At Lee Seol-ah's sudden proposal to go to the beach tomorrow, Shin Ha-ru, who would normally have declined, started to consider it.

Yeah. Lately, I've been getting headaches just thinking about Egostic.

It might be good to go to the beach and forget about all that.

After thinking for a moment, Ha-ru answered Lee Seol-ah.

"Okay. I'll go, to the beach."

***

"Ah, I should have brought a water gun, I forgot."

"Oh come on, Se-hee. Are you a child?"

"What, a child? You think I can't splash without a water gun? Take this!"

"Kyaa! Unni, why are you splashing me too!"

"...Wait. Hey! Da-in, are you not going to put that down? Using your ability for water bombs is cheating!"

"Nope. I've layered multiple recognition reductions so no one will notice~"

"Wait! I surrender, I surrender!"

While playing happily, I suddenly thought of Stardust.

...I wonder what Ha-ru is doing right now.

Well, with her personality, she's probably either at work at the association or resting at home.

Come to think of it, I won't see her again until my next terror attack.

With that thought, I threw a water bomb at Choi Se-hee.

"Ah! Hey!"

Oh. This is pretty fun.