I'm Not Your Dad, I'm a Villain - Chapter 56

Chapter 56

Guilt (4)

“…Have you ever thought about starting over?”

He finally spoke after a long silence.

He must understand her feelings too.

He had survived countless hardships and reached this point.

“Starting over? What do you mean?”

But she was still tied to the past.

Ironically, unlike him, she had long since abandoned any lingering attachment to her former glory.

“You must have realized by now, Anatomy organized this meeting…”

“Ouroboros is a group formed around the Boss.”

Yes, back then, she was able to channel her desire for revenge into a larger cause because of the protective presence of the transcendent.

But with that transcendent now weakened after defeat.

Without her help, it was impossible to rebuild the organization as it was.

“And the Boss… she can no longer return to the battlefield.”

Before talking about willpower.

From the start, Ouroboros needed the halo of Angol Moa, the transcendent.

“You know this, so you didn’t build a new force, right?”

Yes, he must have known.

Even she had given up immediately, having been apart for three years, so he, who had stayed by her side, must have known too.

“Don’t say absurd things. An E-class worthless person builds something…”

“If you really wanted to, you could have. Someone like you.”

Ginger Bread.

He might portray himself as weak, but he had done things beyond the scope of his abilities.

Maybe not on the level of Pandemonia, but he could have created a more stable organization than the average villain group.

“But you weren’t satisfied with just that.”

Because that alone wouldn’t protect the Boss.

No, more than that, he couldn’t trust an organization built that way absolutely.

So he clung to the old organization.

To protect a weakened Boss, he needed people who could dedicate themselves blindly to her.

“You must have felt relief when you met me or Anatomy. Because we still have respect and reverence for the Boss.”

Bathory and Maestro.

They too, despite different reasons, trusted and followed her enough to participate in the final battle.

So they, like them, would never betray her. Surely.

“But Mr. Bread, gratitude should end with gratitude.”

Ironically, they were human.

They had their own lives, reasons to live, and purposes and plans derived from them.

For them, loyalty stemmed from the belief that their ideals would be realized.

“Relying on someone who has already lost their power… that’s something someone who once had loyalty shouldn’t do.”

Praying to a powerless god.

Squeezing the last drops of blood from the corpse of a deity while seeking hope is not even faith—it’s folly.

“…Yet you still lean on the Boss?”

“It’s not leaning…”

“No, let me rephrase the question.”

She knew.

This man wasn’t trying to exploit his idol.

“Are you trying to uphold someone who now only carries responsibility and symbolism? Are you going to devote everything to a future that will never repay you, intoxicated by the glory she once showed?”

On the contrary, this man had united his purpose with her very existence.

The light she showed was that intense.

“Is that so wrong?”

He shouted without hesitation, raising his voice toward her.

“Can’t someone without power be genuinely loyal?”

It didn’t matter if he wasn’t a close aide.

It didn’t matter if he was a lowly grunt.

Though she had weakened, she still had the power to lead people.

He was sure because he had been drawn to that light.

If the world needed a leader, it had to be someone special, like her, not ordinary humans.

“…It’s ironic. Your life is full of bluffs, yet your loyalty alone is genuine.”

His loyalty was incredibly transparent and unwavering.

She felt a mix of admiration and averted her gaze.

She had already made up her mind.

To forsake her past for the unfulfilled mission.

‘Yes, I can’t go back now.’

Turning away from his gaze, she looked out at the sea beyond the cruising ship.

In this vast ocean, there would be nothing but this gigantic ship. At least on the surface.

But what about below the sea?

Others might not know, but she could see it faintly.

A huge shadow appearing beneath the steadily darkening sea…

Seeing it etched in her retina, she thought.

‘Ah, it’s time.’

Realizing her short vacation was over.

“Mr. Bread.”

So this would be the last time she faced him.

“Though I served the Boss for a shorter time than other executives, I’ve watched over her longer than you.”

It wasn’t always a pleasant encounter.

She felt pathetic and realized her shortcomings…

But she didn’t think their meeting was meaningless.

Through their conversation, she could at least clear some of the regrets in her life.

“So I can say with certainty. She will never, ever betray you.”

Yes, her advice came from such gratitude.

“So, please… don’t betray her like I did.”

A god never betrays humans.

Choosing to forsake that faith comes from the despair of unfulfilled expectations.

“Betray? What are you talking about?”

“I can’t guarantee it.”

She knew she was human.

That’s why she started this.

Forsaking reliance on a divine corpse to reach out for a revolution only humans could achieve.

“The organization I created is, unfortunately, beyond my control.”

With that resolve whispered, a loud explosion resounded.

-Kwa-ga-ga!

The deck they stood on shook violently.

“…What is this?”

He grabbed the railing in surprise.

In contrast, Seolhwa had predicted all of this.

“When you confronted Spiritas, you said this wasn’t Ouroboros’ way.”

She calmly placed her foot on the railing, her actions driven by certainty.

“But Mr. Bread, the Pandemonia I organized doesn’t follow Ouroboros’ ideals. The leisure we had back then was only possible because we relied on a transcendent being.”

‘Cowards can’t show love. Love is the privilege of the brave.’

A certain pacifist once said.

Mercy, love…

Those are concepts born from the leisure of the strong.

But to change the world, humans are insignificant beings.

“So if you still want to remain as Ouroboros, please forget about me starting now.”

She steeled herself.

She had to commit an act he would never welcome, ready to be hated.

To clear her past and prepare for another burden.

“Seolhwa… wait.”

“Goodbye, Mr. Bread. I hope you don’t get caught up in the monster I can’t control…”

“Stop there. Our conversation isn’t over!”

-Kwa-ga-ga!

A massive pillar of fire erupted from the opposite side of the ship.

With the ship gradually tilting, she prepared to jump into the sea.

A leap of several dozen meters could be made without significant injury with superhuman strength.

Although the sea awaited below, she already knew what was there.

“Gigantes. It’s down there, isn’t it?”

A massive shadow covering the area.

Its size rivaled the Titanic, but more noteworthy was its location.

Hundreds of meters deep.

The creature was rooted there, supporting itself with its ‘head.’

-Boss. Have you finished your vacation?

A voice echoed from beneath the sea.

Seolhwa smiled bitterly and replied.

“…It wasn’t very enjoyable.”

She thought completing her mission would be enough, but the farewell turned out to be bitter.

A man she couldn’t remember.

Left only with lingering echoes that pained her heart.

-A shame. I hoped you’d rest well for the future.

“I can’t do that. I can’t just sit idle while leading them.”

-Kugu-gung, bang!

Explosions continued throughout the ship, smoke rising and alarms blaring.

Seolhwa quietly stepped toward the sea.

-Crack.

The seawater froze where she stepped.

The ice spread rapidly, forming a massive solid mass.

Its size soon surpassed the giant ship.

“Then, let’s begin. A proclamation of chaos to this land.”

As she stepped off the growing ice mass, a giant hand rose from the sea, gripping it.

Then it swung with full force.

-Kwa-gang!

The iceberg collided with the cruise ship.

The disaster had begun.

***

-Kwa-ga-ga, kwa-ang!

The explosions intensified, and the ship shook more violently.

A giant ship like this had collided directly with an iceberg.

The cracks might seem minor, but the seawater flooding in would eventually sink the ship if not repaired.

-Attention passengers! Please evacuate immediately… Aaaaah!

But if the enemy intended to sink the ship, they wouldn’t let them stop it.

A significant number of them must have infiltrated the ship already.

There would be no compromise.

Their goal wasn’t loot or negotiation but a declaration of war.

If the aim was to buy time until the ship sank, they would destroy and kill everything in sight.

“…Seolhwa.”

Yes, this was Pandemonia’s way, not Ouroboros’.

Unable to rely on a powerful backer like a transcendent, nor society itself, their fight had no leisure.

So they proved their danger through destruction, achieving their goals that way.

Their actions lacked the ‘aesthetics’ that Ouroboros valued.

“Seolhwa…”

Yes, Lee Yunseol.

This is the path I chose after losing the war and failing to achieve my goal.

“There is prey over there!”

“Kill them right away!”

At that moment, assailants charged onto the deck where I stood.

Their blood-stained weapons showed no hesitation. They had already resolved to follow this path.

-Slash!

So I abandoned mercy toward them.

Punching the face of the one who stabbed me, I grabbed his weapon and struck his vital point.

Those who didn’t expect such resistance faced a bloody massacre from my blade.

-Slice, slash!

The unhesitant slashes hit their vital points, taking their lives instantly.

Though I received a counterattack that crushed my waist and made me bleed, the pain seemed insignificant now.

“Where is Seolhwa?”

“Ugh, ah…”

“…No, never mind.”

Could they answer even if I asked the dying men?

-Rustle.

Grabbing the hatchet from a corpse, I used the paper bag I got when buying the hangover remedy to hastily cover my face.

Then I moved forward.

‘I must see her again.’

With that single thought in mind.

Crossing the devastation she had wrought.

End of Chapter