Chapter 42 - Bombs Are Not Art (4)

* * *

“But we'll need to divide the work.”

Hyeonyul added a condition, since there were still magical bombs he hadn't examined. He didn't have time to handle everything alone. Someone else would have to defuse the bombs they already knew about.

“How are you defusing the bombs?” Hyeonyul asked the Bomb Disposal Team.

They had already failed. Reinforcements from the police had failed too. Was their method wrong?

“Since we can't enter the building from outside, we keep a camera trained on each magical bomb and view the feed on a tablet.”

“What do you do once you have the feed?”

“Hmm... We put our heads together and examine the magical formula. We need to erase the part that says ‘explode.’”

As one would expect of professionals, their method wasn't wrong. It seemed they simply hadn't been able to read the formulas properly. Just as handwriting could be messy or elegant, every mage wrote formulas differently.

“Understood. Show me, and I'll mark it.”

At Hyeonyul's words, one of the Bomb Disposal Team members immediately ran off.

'... They trust me that easily?'

Hyeonyul watched warily. He had been thinking about how to persuade them.

“Asking whether you can do it or not would be childish. The Black Eagles sent you because you can, and you're here from Team Three to help us.”

A man from the Bomb Disposal Team spoke up. He was the one who had quieted the team earlier.

“We have to trust you.”

He handed over the tablet his colleague had brought. His broad grin only struck Hyeonyul as ridiculous.

Did that make any sense? They were only using him anyway. How many times had he been stabbed in the back? He could feel every arrow pointing his way.

[“If you fail a mission? Hmm, I can't imagine you failing, Hyeonyul, but I suppose it would have some repercussions...? Still, I've never actually seen that happen. It can't happen.”]

Haeryeon had seemed to be glossing over something, but he knew the price of failure was steep.

Hyeonyul took the tablet without a word. The stage was set; all he had to do was demonstrate his ability.

“Use this to mark the parts we should erase on the screen,” the man explained, handing him a pen.

“Thank you.”

Pen in hand, Hyeonyul looked at the screen. A magical formula covered a desk, packed so densely that it filled the entire surface. There were useless formulas meant to mislead, too, but he precisely circled the part meaning ‘explode’ among them.

“Please check it.”

At Hyeonyul's request, the man spoke up.

“Check it.”

A hand appeared on the screen. Judging by the power gathered at its fingertips, it seemed to be magic. It carefully erased the part Hyeonyul had circled. With the crucial formula removed, the remaining formula stiffened and lost its glow.

It was defused.

Hyeonyul looked at the man, who smiled as he listened to a message through his wireless earpiece.

“It's defused!”

His exuberant shout was followed by countless cheers in that brief instant. Hyeonyul frowned slightly. The noise was loud enough to make his ears feel as though they would burst.

“We did it! It's really defused!”

The man was so delighted he looked ready to throw his arms around Hyeonyul.

“Yes. Give me the next one.”

Hyeonyul held out his hand. They had seen him succeed, so surely they would give him the next one.

“... Oh.”

The man closed his mouth, apparently only then realizing how carried away he had gotten. He reached out a finger and swiped to the next screen.

“You can swipe through like this.”

“Understood.”

After answering, Hyeonyul moved his hand. He found and circled the relevant formulas, swiping through until he had marked every magical bomb they had found. Then he stood up at once.

“I'll find and defuse the magical bombs we haven't discovered yet.”

He needed to repeat the process of finding them and erasing the traces quickly. Working alone was easier.

“... What?”

“I'll be going.”

“Wait! We'll come—”

“There could be another attack like the one earlier. Tell them to keep a closer watch on the area.”

Hyeonyul turned away. There was nothing more he needed to hear.

Once Hyeonyul disappeared, the man absently fiddled with his hair.

There were so many rumors about Team Three's new recruit. The recent flood of rumors had died down, but the old stories were still circulating, enough to make his ears hurt.

'Is he running off like that because of the rumors?'

That would be understandable. The rumors were deeply malicious: that a villain had deliberately planted him among them, that he was actually a major villain himself.

The man paused as he gripped the tablet, his eyes widening.

'... Blood?'

Blood had dripped beneath the tablet. Only then did alarm strike him.

* * *

Hyeonyul appeared on the outskirts, beyond the CCTV cameras' view. Wiping the blood from his mouth, he took medicine and a syringe out of his shadow.

Once he started bleeding, it rarely stopped easily. He knew he needed to use the medicine quickly, but he hadn't wanted to inject himself in front of everyone. Even if they surely already knew, having his weakness exposed didn't feel pleasant.

As Hyeonyul plunged the syringe into his abdomen, one eye collapsed. Only blackness remained there. He had to keep searching even while injecting the medicine. More than eight minutes had already passed.

He hastily stuffed the medicine into his mouth and chewed.

CRUNCH.

His other eye melted into the darkness as well, moving through the university buildings as though swimming. He made sure to travel through shadows to avoid being caught on CCTV. Whenever he found a formula, he swallowed it up out of the cameras' sight.

One by one, the number steadily grew. He remembered to check the time along the way.

Eighteen minutes.

Thirteen minutes.

Six minutes.

As the time dwindled, Hyeonyul spotted students.

'... Why are they there?'

Hadn't they heard there were bombs? Surely not.

He moved his eye. There was an entrance in the direction the students were heading.

—A detonation condition has been added: anyone inside leaving the building.

They must have been warned when that condition appeared. Were they ignoring it?

Three minutes.

'I can't waste any more time.'

There was little time left.

But the instructions had said student safety came first.

—Not all students in the building have evacuated. Student safety comes first.

People he had never cared about in his life were holding him back. What should he do in a situation like this? What should take priority?

Unable to make a decision, Hyeonyul felt confused. His thoughts couldn't keep up. Would other people also struggle to judge what to do, or was it only him?

“... Found you!”

The voice reaching his ears sent a chill through Hyeonyul. He hadn't heard any footsteps, even with the person so close.

“Why are you somewhere so secluded—”

The man who had given him the tablet swallowed the rest of his words and ran faster. Hyeonyul looked pale. The man couldn't even tell where he was bleeding from.

“Are you all right?”

Hearing the man speak again, Hyeonyul quickly regained his composure.

“The students are trying to leave.”

“Which building are they in?”

“That one.”

As Hyeonyul pointed, the man whipped his head around. The instant he saw the building, he touched his smartwatch. Meanwhile, Hyeonyul covered his eyes and quickly searched for the magical bomb's location. He could clearly see traces of mana in that building.

“... Ah. Thank goodness. We have a team member here. I'll tell them to stop the students immediately—”

“There's a magical bomb in the projector in Engineering Room Three on the second floor.”

“One moment!”

The man paused in the middle of operating his devices and glanced at Hyeonyul.

“You must have been in quite a bind.”

Hyeonyul didn't answer. Why was he making idle conversation at a time like this? The clock was ticking.

“The students first, or defusing the bombs first? That's a genuinely difficult decision, and you were already under pressure. You held up well.”

The man praised Hyeonyul. He was a new recruit. It was still too early for him to face a situation like this; he lacked experience.

“There's no time for that now. We haven't found all the magical bombs yet.”

“They say they've found more bombs. I came to tell you.”

“Those might not be all of them.”

“We were told there are fifty in total, and the one you just mentioned is exactly the fiftieth.”

“Who said there were fifty?”

“The man who was unconscious woke up and told us. He said he'd heard there were fifty magical bombs in total. Probably from the Bomber.”

'... Does that bastard think this is a game?'

Hyeonyul's neck tensed. If he hadn't saved the man from Team Five, wouldn't they have lost that hint entirely?

'But is it really true?'

As Hyeonyul wrestled with his doubts, the man held out the tablet and pen.

“Finish it off. You've earned that right.”

Hyeonyul looked at the shaky feed. There was no audio. The ceiling came into view, followed by the projector.

He moved the pen. As though following his instructions, a hand erased the part he had circled.

CLAP, CLAP, CLAP, CLAP.

Applause came from speakers everywhere, as though prepared in advance. The sound was utterly innocent.

<Congratulations. I hope you'll enjoy my art like this next time too, my dear Black Eagles.>

“...”

Hyeonyul's gaze darkened.

'... Art?'

His head went cold.

His livelihood was at stake. Only after becoming a Black Eagle had he gained medical support and the chance to have a new home. Even so, his remaining debt was considerable, and the interest was still a burden.

He had only just gained room to breathe, only just stopped going hungry, and this bastard was going on about art.

“... Don't take what you just heard to heart,” the man said with an awkward smile.

“Does he do that every time?”

“Not every time, but sometimes. He seems to enjoy toying with us. Still, the fortunate thing is that, unlike other villains, he'll tell us the number or the types of bombs. In some ways, he's better than the others sometimes.”

Listening, Hyeonyul quietly smiled.

'... Ah. You won't be able to play these games when you're dead, will you?'

The only good villain was a dead villain. Once they were dead, the Red Witch and the Bomber would be good villains too.

“Anyway, thank you for all your hard work.”

The man bowed to Hyeonyul. Not only had he come to help, but he'd found more than half of the fifty magical bombs by himself. His performance was so flawless it was hard to believe he was a new recruit.

Where had he been all this time? If the man had known, he would have pestered his Team Leader to recruit him.

“We'll handle the cleanup, so you can head back first.”

The man beamed.

“Oh, and don't forget to see a doctor.”

There were no major wounds visible, but who knew? Hyeonyul had been caught in an explosion.

“I'll take you—”

“There's something I'd like to ask.”

Hyeonyul interrupted him.

“Go ahead.”

“How complicated is a situation like the one just now?”

When both things mattered, which should take priority?

“Very complicated. I'm coming up on my fourth year, and I still find it difficult. And I always regret it afterward. There's no right answer. We just have to believe we made the right choice.”

“Is that so...?”

Only then did Hyeonyul exhale. It was difficult even for ordinary people. Perhaps it was only natural that he hadn't been able to choose.

“I'm Pyo Yujin, with the Bomb Disposal Team.”

“Seo Hyeonyul, Team Three.”

“I look forward to working with you again.”

Yujin bowed deeply, then hurried off elsewhere.

Hyeonyul operated his smartwatch where he stood. The mission was over. He needed to call an eagle.

“Do you have something to say?”

He raised his head and looked ahead. It was the man from Team Five. Had he followed Pyo Yujin here to pick another fight? Hyeonyul still didn't want to deal with him. His insides throbbed.

“... I'm sorry.”

“...?”

The unexpected apology startled Hyeonyul. Had he misheard?

“I... did something insane. Not only did I interfere with the mission, I behaved in a way I never should have. I'll accept disciplinary action when we get back.”

“What are you doing?”

What was he trying to pull? Hyeonyul looked around. They were alone here. There wasn't even anyone whose opinion he could manipulate.

“I resented you because I thought our team had fallen apart because you exposed our former Team Leader as a collaborator. Instead of thanking you as I should have, I spouted nonsense. Please don't let what I said hurt you.”

The man kept apologizing.

“... And thank you for saving my life.”

When he had regained consciousness, he'd been told the new recruit had saved him. Hyeonyul could have let him die simply by leaving him alone.

“Yes. Thank you for your hard work.”

Hyeonyul offered no other response. He didn't know what to say, and he simply didn't want to talk to him.

He turned his head. The eagle he had summoned had arrived. It caught hold of him and carried him away.

The man from Team Five watched Hyeonyul go. That new recruit had endured more criticism and abuse alone than their whole team had faced. Yet the man had lost control after only a few days of being treated that way.

He was ashamed.

* * *

“... Didn't I tell you not to eat just anything?”

Jeongmin slapped Hyeonyul's upper arm.

SMACK.

Despite the sound, Hyeonyul merely gazed at Jeongmin. It hadn't hurt at all.

“It wasn't just anything. I absorbed the bomb when it exploded. If I hadn't—”

“That is eating just anything!”

Jeongmin raised his voice. Hyeonyul studied his expression.

“Stop looking at my face and lie down. Now.”

“I'm lying down.”

“Your arm.”

At Jeongmin's request, Hyeonyul rolled up his sleeve.

“You're driving me crazy. Absolutely crazy.”

Hyeonyul's body was abnormal. Much of it was difficult to explain through medicine. Put simply, an unknown power was imitating his limbs, organs, and so on. The medicine he continually took, the injections he needed, and the IV drips helped maintain that state.

Hyeonyul also used that unknown power to absorb things. A bomb just before it exploded, for instance, was fine. After it exploded, however, absorbing it caused damage. There was a subtle distinction.

Jeongmin had thought Hyeonyul would handle himself sensibly, but that hadn't been true today, at least. He needed a scolding.

KNOCK, KNOCK.

Jeongmin sighed at the knock.

“Who is it?”

He got up for a moment. When he opened the door, a woman with wavy, deep-purple hair stood outside.

“Hello. I'm Ye Juhyeon, Team Leader of Team Seven. Is there someone here from Team Three receiving treatment?”

Juhyeon lowered the phone in her hand and looked at Jeongmin.