The Crazy Villain Regains His Sanity - Chapter 14

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 14

O Jong-yeop realized there was nowhere left to run, so he simply bolted. Hunger makes the best sauce, they say, and that first impression had done its work. In the end, the fist trumped the law, and fear trumped the fist.

“From now on, call me casually, friend!”

Then he appeared suddenly and flashed an easy grin. His hard-to-hate charm was undiminished.
O Jong-yeop, despite it being his first day of work, showed a deft hand at settling into the National Guard Bureau. The man I’d seen in my past life as a Villain had rarely been sharp-edged either—he was smooth and rounded instead.
It was simply the harsh environment that had honed him. If I thought about it that way, couldn’t the same logic apply to me? Now that I’d regained my senses, couldn’t I hold back and think things through before acting? Didn’t that give me more agency?
Maybe that’s the difference between being mad and being sane.
After exchanging greetings, O Jong-yeop kept subtly positioning himself beside me, so I gave up trying to shake him off and gave him a tour of the National Guard Bureau. Watching him smack his lips over the quality of the in-house cafeteria made him look like how I must have appeared in my old life, marveling at the warmth of a proper meal from society.
Could he have regressed too?

……

Left alone without warning, Jung Da-hyun hung back and watched from a distance, then ate by herself.
When lunch ended, the three of us were called into the director’s office.

“You two are friends, I hear?”
“Yes, that’s right. I owe Jun-ho a debt.”
“Choi Jun-ho is our National Guard Bureau’s ace. He’s got exceptional skill. You’ll learn a lot working beside him. Just don’t pick up any of his strange habits.”
“Yes, sir!”
“I hear you’ve adapted well for your first day. I’m expecting good things, so let’s do our best going forward.”
“Yes, Director! I’ll work hard. Actually, I have one question.”
“What is it?”
“I’m Grade 7 and Jun-ho is Grade 9, so is it right for me to keep treating him casually?”

This guy still hadn’t given up. He shot me a look with the corners of his mouth lifted smugly, but the answer he wanted didn’t come from Jung Ju-ho.

“What? Do you want formal speech from him? Try if you like.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“If you’re dissatisfied, go get some education through skill. We operate on merit here.”

Jung Ju-ho’s mouth curved upward.

“But will you survive it? It’d be funny if a rumor started on your first day about a civil servant Hunter who vanished.”
……

O Jong-yeop’s eyes trembled as he looked at me.
I added a remark, figuring he’d feel slighted if I stayed quiet.

“Should I give him some education since he keeps griping?”
“…For the first time in my life, I have found hope. I wish to live long and happily. Please save me, Director. I will dedicate myself entirely to loyalty.”
“Loyalty is owed to the state. As for me, I too am content with my current life. So let’s both avoid our bomb, shall we? Let the small things slide. Understood?”
“Yes, Director! I will follow you with complete trust!”
“Good, good.”

I honestly had no idea why those two were hitting it off so well. Did they share some understanding I was unaware of?
After settling our business and leaving the director’s office, O Jong-yeop started toward me, but stopped short when he saw Jung Da-hyun.

“Administrator! You are the savior of my life. I will serve you with utmost respect from now on.”
“Pleased to meet you, Jong-yeop.”
“I have long heard of your reputation, Administrator. Your gentle nature shines as brightly as your beauty. You even saved my life—perhaps one day we could share a meal at a fine restaurant together……”
“That’s all right.”
……

O Jong-yeop staggered at the flat rejection. Brushed off—tsk, tsk.
Jung Da-hyun, who had trampled a man’s sincere feelings without a second thought, turned to me and spoke.

“Choi Jun-ho, there’s something I need to review regarding the External Cooperation Management Bureau matter. Could you prepare the documents for me?”
“I’ll have them ready.”
“Let’s meet in the conference room in ten minutes.”
“Yes.”

I clicked my tongue, watching O Jong-yeop deflate beside me.

“Are you a hopeless case with women? That’s not how you approach them.”
……

O Jong-yeop crumbled once again.

* * *

O Jong-yeop’s younger brother, O Jong-su, had turned twenty this year, but his appearance was so slight he looked like a middle schooler. When he’d mentioned waking up at dawn and suffering alone in silence so his brother wouldn’t worry, O Jong-yeop’s voice had grown thick with emotion.
But since being admitted to Shinseong Hospital, his condition had improved noticeably, and O Jong-yeop’s expression brightened as he spoke of it.

“Jong-su, say hello.”
“Hello, hyung. I’ve heard a lot about you from my brother. Thank you so much for arranging my treatment. I promise I’ll repay this debt.”
“You’re repaying what you owe your uncle, so there’s no need.”
“Uncle? But my brother called you mother.”
“Yes, mother.”

At my agreement, O Jong-su’s expression grew puzzled, but he didn’t press further.

“How’s your body?”
“It doesn’t hurt anymore.”
“Shinseong Hospital has plenty of new medicines and skilled doctors, so you’ll recover.”
“Yes, I’m looking forward to it. I’ve only been a burden to my brother all this time. I want to get better soon so I’m not a weight on him anymore.”
“A burden? That’s what family does. It’s only natural.”
“They say a long illness produces no filial children. I’m alive because of my brother. And also thanks to Choi Jun-ho hyung. Thank you again.”
“Don’t mention it.”
“Jong-su, well done. That guy’s got a narrow heart—if you hadn’t mentioned it, he’d have kept it all bottled up.”

As O Jong-yeop spoke, a deep smile played at the corners of his mouth.
In my previous life, even after O Jong-yeop entered the Big Ten, O Jong-su ultimately lost his life. Blaming his own indecision, O Jong-yeop had turned his rage on the world and became a Villain. This time, O Jong-su would recover in good health, and there would be no reason for O Jong-yeop to stray from the path.
Using a man who had been a Villain to catch Villains—a remarkably ingenious method.

“Hey, what are you talking about.”
“Come on, don’t be shy. When Jun-ho hyung helped, you cried and said you’d repay his kindness for the rest of your life.”
“Stop it.”
“My brother acts tough to protect me, so he’s not great at expressing his feelings. Even if he speaks harshly, that’s not what’s in his heart—please think of him kindly.”

Well, the O Jong-yeop I knew was, at best, rough around the edges, or at worst, grim-looking. But his confidence and easy way of carrying himself more than made up for it.
Though in reality, he was still a hopeless case with women.

“Yeah, isn’t he? Actually, I find him kind of gross too.”
“Wow, you really know how to go after someone just sitting there. Stop it. If I get hit any more, I might actually die.”
“Should I stop?”
“You can keep going. He’s got a good chin.”

“I don’t know, I’m going to the restroom.”

The moment O Jong-yeop slipped out of the hospital room like a fugitive, O Jong-su fixed me with an unwavering gaze.

“If I get better, I want to become like you.”
“Me?”
“Yes, Jun-ho. Our older brother told me about you. He said you’re a Hunter so strong it’s almost impossible to imagine. And that you protect the world from Villains and Monsters. I want to get healthy and become an Awakened One too. And I’m going to be a Hunter like you, protecting the world from Villains and Monsters.”
“Mm.”
“Is it possible?”
“Believe it or not, I’m quite an excellent Hunter. I’ve apprehended several hundred Villains with my own hands.”
“Wow!”

And every single one of those Villains ended up disabled.

“You can do it too. Just get better soon.”
“Yes, hyung!”
“That’s right. Become like me.”

Being admired by someone—it’s not an unpleasant feeling.
When O Jong-yeop returned a moment later, we decided to head back.

“I’ll visit often.”
“Yes, hyung! Safe travels!”

I left the room to O Jong-su’s farewell, his hands clasped in a respectful bow at his navel.

“Your brother’s a lot nicer than you.”
“Hey, I’m nice too.”

His preposterous claim drew a scoff from me.

“Yeah, Big Ten scout candidate.”
“Whoa, whoa! Don’t say that anywhere else! Seriously, you can’t tell people. Cut me some slack! The National Guard Bureau would be so upset if they found out!”
“I won’t tell.”
“Really? Are you sure?”

The guy’s face had gone pale as he trailed along behind me.

* * *

“This is delicious!”

Jung Da-hyun’s eyes widened as she tasted the Doenjang Jeongol. For a cook, there’s no greater satisfaction than that kind of reaction.
Yun Hee, who’d been inhaling beef from the side, also took a spoonful of broth at Da-hyun’s response, her eyes going wide too.
My survival cooking, making its world debut, was finally getting recognized.

“How did you make this?”
“The secret ingredient is Aul Boar.”

The Aul Boar, a Grade 4 Hazard Monster, was the finest ingredient, boasting deep, complex flavor.
The catch was that despite being difficult to hunt relative to its Grade, it wasn’t a particularly popular quarry, which made the meat itself exceptionally rare as a culinary ingredient.
Truth be told, to properly extract the full flavor you’re supposed to throw in the entire head, but everyone who’d eaten it before had been absolutely horrified.
Since the Aul Boar’s eyeballs react to Force, they move every time you eat, and you end up making eye contact with them.

“Aul Boar? That’s a Monster.”

While Yun Hee recoiled in shock, Jung Da-hyun nodded in understanding, as if to say, “I figured as much.”

“Monster meat and byproducts, once purged of their toxins, are excellent culinary ingredients and nutritional sources.”
“I had no idea Aul Boar could taste like this.”
“Thank goodness.”

As the meal progressed pleasantly, Jung Da-hyun congratulated Yun Hee on her acceptance into the Shinseong Guild and offered her advice on how to adjust to the new environment.
For me too, there was much that was novel. The Jung Da-hyun I’d known until now had been a Grade 5 administrator, but now she appeared as someone shaped by the Shinseong Guild.
Yun Hee expressed her gratitude for advice that had struck her to the bone and sought more guidance.

“What’s the most important thing to watch out for in a raid?”
“Villains.”
“Really? Not carelessness or surprise attacks, things like that?”

Jung Da-hyun shook her head.

“Hunting monsters is a life-or-death struggle, sure, but when several people respond in an organized way, you can minimize danger and maximize effectiveness. The Shinseong Guild is world-class in that kind of coordination. But villains—they target the worst moment I never saw coming and strike. That’s what makes them different.”

It was commonplace for raid teams hunting monsters to be attacked by villains and go missing.
Small guilds especially had to risk their lives just protecting byproducts after a hunt, and even prestigious large-guild raid teams would be attacked by villains, stripped of their equipment, and either killed or captured for ransom—it happened all the time.

“So I’ll need to know how to deal with villains too.”
“Monsters and villains play by different rules. It’s good to learn them.”

I spoke up, having listened quietly until then.

“I think I could help with that.”

Two pairs of eyes turned toward me.

“Oh, Choi Jun-ho…”
“You, brother?”
“It’s my specialty, isn’t it?”

Villains—there’s no need to overthink it. In a raid, ninety-nine point nine percent of the time, anyone who looks suspicious is a villain. So the moment you spot an unfamiliar face, strike first, seize the initiative, and you’ve got a ninety-nine point nine percent chance of prevention. Especially if you break their legs first and cripple their mobility—then even if complications arise, you can retreat safely.
And the most reliable answer is always to kill them.
Yun Hee’s expression brightened with interest.

“Now that I think about it, you’re right? You’ve arrested over two hundred villains, so I’ve had an expert right next to me this whole time. I could just learn from you…”
“Wait a minute!”

Jung Da-hyun cut in with an urgent expression. She’d eaten quite a bit of the doenjang jeongol.

“Why do you say that, sister?”
“Of course Choi Jun-ho is an expert, but there’s a difference between men and women, and besides, you’ve only just joined the guild. You need to focus on adapting first.”
“I suppose so?”
“So let’s focus on your adjustment for now, and if you need help, I’ll provide it.”
“Really? You yourself?”
“Yes, me.”
“Jung Da-hyun, I appreciate the offer, but I’d hate to be a burden.”
“It’s fine. I’m the one who should do this. I have to be the one to do this.”

Her resolve was so firm that I found it difficult to say anything more.

“Thank you so much, sister!”
“Yes, trust me. I’ll nurture you well, Yun Hee.”

And as she said this, Jung Da-hyun glanced at me sidelong.

* * *

After the meal, Choi Jun-ho stepped outside for a moment. Once the two of us were alone, Jung Da-hyun spoke to Yun Hee carefully.

“I wasn’t overstepping, was I?”
“Really? No, no, I’m completely fine with it.”
“That’s a relief.”
“But was there a reason you stopped him?”

Jung Da-hyun flinched. She’d thought she’d inserted herself naturally enough.

“You noticed?”
“Yes, you were blocking him pretty obviously.”
“It’s just…….”

Jung Da-hyun trailed off, glanced toward the door Choi Jun-ho had exited, and spoke carefully.

“His hands are a bit rough.”
“Oh! Really? A lot? There are already tons of articles about it.”
“Huh?”

Had she just poked a hornet’s nest?
Jung Da-hyun wondered if she’d mentioned an uncomfortable truth.

“Tell me.”
“His methods are… rougher than Yun Hee thinks.”
“Still, I’m glad.”
“About what?”
“Because you’re there beside him. I know he has no middle ground. But I can feel safe knowing you’re watching over him. Please keep an eye on him for me.”
“…….”

Maybe it was because the words came from Choi Jun-ho’s sister. The meaning made her heart flutter.
She’d never known that trust from someone could be so sweet.
She’d switched to being a civil servant Hunter for this very reason. Somewhere along the way, she’d forgotten her original purpose and become buried in the work.

“I trust you.”
“Yes! So how should I handle Villains?”

Jung Da-hyun smiled at Yun Hee’s spirited response.

“The Shinseong Guild has a Force-emission Type Dagger. It’s called the Shot Series.”
“Oh! I know about that.”
“Get one and whenever you see a Villain, cut off their legs first.”
“Pardon?”

Surely she understood why targeting the legs was important?
Puzzled, Jung Da-hyun explained it more clearly.

“Severed legs mean lost mobility. That’s the most critical point.”
“Ah, I see.”
“And during a raid, ninety-nine percent of anyone who approaches you will be a Villain. If they come near without saying anything, assume they’re a Villain and cut them down first. If the legs are difficult, arms work too. It throws off their balance and makes it harder for them to use their weapon.”
“But what if they’re not a Villain?”
“Then it’s their fault for approaching without speaking, but you should apologize anyway, right? You can use Emergency Transport—that way the severed limb can be reattached. Oh, but the neck can be reattached while they’re still alive, so keep that in mind.”

Choi Jun-ho would probably tell you to ambush them, kill them, or sever their neck.
Compared to that, how merciful this countermeasure was.

“Sister, I just remembered a saying—close to ink becomes black.”
“Suddenly close to ink becomes black? Why?”
“I don’t think you should tell him his methods are cruel. From what I can see, you’ve been the one rubbing off on him.”
“Me? I have?”

Jung Da-hyun was struck hard by those words.

* * *

After Jung Da-hyun left, Yun Hee’s gaze turned sharp and judgmental.

“What did you do to her? It’s all your fault. You need to take responsibility.”
“For what?”
“Everything! Da-hyun is such a principled person, and you went and assigned her a sub-leader like that, and now look at her. Ugh.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“What good would knowing do anyway?”
“At least I could try.”

Yun Hee’s expression twisted at my response. I felt genuinely wronged—what exactly had I done wrong? Was she upset that I’d brought Jung Da-hyun over and persuaded her to eat Doenjang Jeongol?
Or was it because I didn’t include the Aul Boar head? Maybe I’d underestimated what would appeal to their palates.

“Next time I’ll source a Twin Aul Boar head—”
“Stop. The more you worry about it, the worse it gets. Anyway, since you caused Da-hyun to end up like that, you’re responsible. Oh, but I really like Se-hee too.”

So it wasn’t about the Aul Boar head after all.

“I’m already taking responsibility. Don’t worry. But why did Lee Se-hee get dragged into this?”
“Ah, you wouldn’t understand things like that.”
“When exactly did you two get so close?”
“During the final interview, we just hit it off? And you actually did know her, right? She was being so careful when she mentioned your name—did you do something disrespectful to her?”

More accurately, I almost did. She’d tried to pull something on me too, so we were even.

“No, I didn’t.”
“That’s a relief then. At first I thought she was some untouchable chaebol heiress, but she’s surprisingly down-to-earth and open-minded. She’s a bit calculating, but that’s actually a strength. And she’s beautiful too! Seriously, with Da-hyun around and Se-hee around, it’s like such a feast for the eyes!”
“…”
“What?”

Instead of answering, I reached over and ran my hand through Yun Hee’s hair. It was clean. My suspicion that Lee Se-hee might have used a Gift on her vanished.

“Hey, don’t touch my hair!”
“You can be friendly with Lee Se-hee, but be careful. She’s got a Psychic-type Gift.”

I said it to plant a seed of caution in her mind.

“Oh, but she said she can get along with people? She’s been holding back since she met someone recently. Said she can gain people’s affection just through her own charm. Normally when someone says stuff like that it’d be obnoxious, but when Se-hee says it, it sounds natural. How can she be so confident about her own appeal and still pull it off? Anyway, that someone she met—don’t tell me it’s you?”
“Just be careful.”
“No, I don’t like girls! I like guys!”
“Yeah. I believe you.”
“Ugh! Why do I have to explain this to you?”
“I said I believe you.”

I took a bit of tongue-lashing, but the warning was planted. I’d also confirmed that Yun Hee’s taste was normal, so that matter was settled too.

“If you ever do start dating someone, introduce him to me.”
“Why, because you want to make sure he’s decent?”
“That’s right.”

It’s not that I doubted Yun Hee’s judgment, but there were the occasional Villains who were slick when it came to seducing women. Or else there were the womanizers trying to seduce a successful female Hunter to avoid working. The world was full of people worth killing, but I’d never actually killed a womanizer.
Still, if it involved my little sister, things would be different.
If some creep showed up, I’d try talking sense into him first, and if that didn’t take, I’d just handle it quietly.
Besides, being her older brother, I wanted Yun Hee to meet someone decent.
What standards did I need to set? First, he’d need to be able to protect his woman. If he could block my attacks three times over, that’d probably be acceptable.

At times like this, I regretted the bluntness of brainwashing. If I could handle it with more finesse, I could extract information without reducing him to an empty shell.
It was much like getting drunk before asking the in-laws for permission. The point was to loosen the tongue, wasn’t it?

“Character matters more than skill, understand? Character. Bring me someone with his head on straight.”

I knew all too well that no amount of talent meant anything if the mind shattered.

“So… could you ask around? See if there are any decent men nearby?”
“No prospects then? I guess his personality is pretty rough, come to think of it.”
“You’re getting under my skin with this.”

Yun Hee’s expression twisted.

* * *

A few days later.
The National Guard Bureau was as peaceful as ever.
Until Jung Ju-ho, who’d come in earlier than usual, called in all personnel.

“We’ve obtained information on Mal-so-ja. Starting now, we begin the operation to apprehend Mal-so-ja.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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