The Crazy Villain Regains His Sanity - Chapter 75

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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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Chapter 75

Me—Where are you?
Me—I’m coming to find you right now!
Me—You read it but didn’t reply. ㅡㅡ
Me—If you don’t answer, I’m counting your Gift as unlocked.
Me—By the way, how’s Complete Poison Immunity treating you?
Me—You’re ignoring me.
Me—[Delivery Arrival Estimated]
Me—[Gift Card]

I’d deployed even my last trump cards—the delivery notification and gift card—but Berserker still hadn’t shown up.
I set down my smartphone and clicked my tongue at the silence.

“…This bastard really does seem to have unlocked Complete Poison Immunity.”

Given Berserker’s personality, I was one hundred percent certain.
The madman had been confident he could catch me, then suddenly came to his senses.
Complete Poison Immunity—a legendary Gift that grants immunity to any status ailment.
For an awakener confident in their raw combat strength, Complete Poison Immunity was a shield against any poison, mental confusion, or debuff imaginable.
I wanted it desperately. But to get it, I needed to find this bastard Berserker first.

“By the look of it, this asshole’s definitely gone to ground.”

Where was I supposed to hunt him down?
Since he was a Villain constantly on the move around the outskirts, pinning down his residence was next to impossible. He was probably banking on that, using the silent treatment strategy to buy himself time. Did he really think time was on his side?
That if he grew stronger in the meantime, he could beat me?
…No, he wasn’t that stupid.
But even if I found him, there was the next problem: to get Complete Poison Immunity, I needed blood from his heart. Did I have to kill him? Or was there another way to get the blood?
I’d have to think about that. It felt wasteful to just kill him outright.
The most urgent thing was figuring out where Berserker was located.
That problem was solved easily enough during a conversation with Lee Se-hee.

“There’s naturally a way to find out.”
“Really?”
“Yes, because Berserker’s smartphone is registered in your name, Jun-ho.”
“Right, it is.”

Now that I thought about it, I was the one paying the bill too.
Here he was using it for free and ignoring my messages? Maybe I should slash his plan down to the bare minimum.
What Lee Se-hee mentioned was a location tracking app.
Since the smartphone was in my name, tracking it wouldn’t be difficult.
This Berserker would be in my hands soon enough.
Lee Se-hee really was something. Whenever there was a problem, she solved it cleanly.
She smiled at my gaze and crossed her legs the other way, flaunting the curve of her leg.

“The bento box company matter—you’ve stepped back from it, but it’s being handled on a much larger scale than expected.”

The bento box company, the civic organizations that had pushed for its selection, and the relevant Seoul City Hall departments were all undergoing raids, she explained.
In particular, the deputy mayor had been removed from office, and the Seoul mayor was stepping forward personally to explain—the case was turning out to be quite large in scope. Lee Se-hee said this was a result of the President’s own will being reflected.

“The President’s more aggressive than I thought.”
“He’s taking this opportunity to establish firm discipline.”
“Within his own party?”
“Yes. Even within the same party, not everyone thinks or feels the same way. Especially since presidential power has a time limit, and new powers are emerging elsewhere, there’s always a struggle for dominance.”

Over there they’re scheming to drive a knife into their father’s back to seize power, while the father still thinks it’s too soon and keeps slapping his son’s cheek down.
It was curious how, despite being in cahoots, they fought fiercely over power among themselves.
Whatever their purpose, it’s not my concern.

“Still, this surprises me.”
“What does?”
“I didn’t expect you to make a decision to sit back and watch.”
“They said they’d handle it actively, so I’m watching. If they don’t do it properly, I can move then.”

There’s also an element of deterrence at play.
Though most of the time things don’t change anyway, and then I can step in.
It’s more efficient to let self-correction happen rather than have me hunt them all down one by one and handle everything myself.
I felt as though I’d been equipped with a more refined, measured touch—I no longer kill indiscriminately.

“If the Busan mayor goes that way, the opposition will be thrown into chaos and the ruling party will be dominated by the pro-presidential faction. That’s not a bad development for you.”
“Works for me.”
“Yes, they’ve learned that touching you costs them dearly. They’ll prefer to stay on good terms with you rather than fall out with you.”
“Honestly, I don’t want to get tangled up in politics.”

Even if the opposition candidate wins the next presidential election, I plan to get along fine without any special interference.
What matters more is the person, not which party they belong to.
Lee Se-hee agreed and said it wasn’t an easy thing to manage.

“Party ideology matters too. On a larger scale, people tend to follow that ideology.”
“If you don’t want to die, you’ll change your ideology soon enough.”
“…Well, that’s true, isn’t it.”

Few people will stick to their beliefs in the face of death.
That’s why I look after Jung Da-hyeon.
Lee Se-hee pouted her lips.

“Don’t just take care of Da-hyeon. Look after me too.”
“What do you want?”
“Let me think about it.”

Pleased that she’d heard what she wanted to hear, Lee Se-hee grinned and soon brought up an upcoming event.

“By the way, I heard you’re going to Tokyo soon?”
“Yeah. Why?”

I wondered if there was some other pressing matter, but Lee Se-hee fell silent, gathered her thoughts, and spoke carefully.

“I don’t mind you going, but there are some things I’m worried about.”
“What’s bothering you?”
“I’m not sure what the government intended, but awakeners affiliated with the World Awakener Union mostly look at you with suspicious eyes.”

What’s there to be suspicious about?
Lee Se-hee held up three long, pale fingers toward my puzzled expression.

“First, pro-China awakeners view you negatively since you eliminated Zhang Zidong. Second, there are people who believe Nuri Hunting information wasn’t properly provided. And third, there are those who don’t believe in your abilities.”
“My abilities? Why?”
“The results you’ve achieved are so unbelievable that they’re hard to accept.”
“They’re squawking over killing one monster.”
“That monster has caused enormous damage to the world right now.”

Not long ago, eight Hazard-level monsters similar to Nuri appeared in various places around the world.
I heard the damage was severe, and the Nuri Hunting briefing helped but also became a catalyst for growing doubts about my abilities.
This differed from existing Hazard Level Eight, so a new tier called Level Eight Plus was created.
They’re making a fuss over me killing one monster.

“The problem is they’re weak.”
“That’s the fundamental issue, yes. But those people might try to test your skills.”
“Why would they?”
“It’s human nature to taste something before knowing if it’s garbage or treasure.”

Her language is getting sharper. Not because of me, surely?
Either way, their doubting my abilities doesn’t bother me one bit.
They haven’t seen it with their own eyes, so they can’t believe it. But if they test me without believing, they’ll pay the price.
Nothing in this world is free.

“I don’t mind. I’ll just kill them all.”
“All of them……?”
“If they try to test me. You think they’d doubt without being prepared?”
“I don’t think they will be.”
“Then they should die.”
“…You haven’t changed, have you, Jun-ho? It’s going to be quite the storm.”

Is she really treating me like some kind of disaster waiting to happen?
It’s probably because Lee Se-hee hasn’t actually seen what I’m capable of causing real trouble.
Even so, I’ve come to my senses and haven’t caused any incidents since then.
I decided to think about dealing with anyone who comes at me after I get to Tokyo, and steered the conversation back to the original topic.

“Tell me how to track Berserker’s location.”
“Sure. Can I have your smartphone?”

Lee Se-hee manipulated my phone so I could locate Berserker.
The bastard was currently in Haenam Land’s End Village.
Is he running from me and hiding all the way out there? Does he really think that’s somewhere I can’t reach?
I was just thinking I should go catch him soon.
That’s when Lee Se-hee mentioned something I’d forgotten about.

“Oh, and there’s a hearing for Director Jung Ju-ho.”
“Why does that matter?”
“Your name will probably come up during the hearing. Director Jung Ju-ho is your superior.”

My name? What could be held against me?
Jung Ju-ho will handle it on his own.
Lee Se-hee was just relaying a possibility.
Now it was time to go catch Berserker.

* * *

Berserker believed his life fundamentally began in endless freedom.
He drove his beloved camper van across the country as he pleased, and when he grew tired of it, sometimes moved about with nothing but the clothes on his back.
When a villain appeared, he’d crush them without hesitation. When he saw what hunting teams were up to, he’d kill any who weren’t worth associating with.
Someone had to clean up the trash, after all.
When money ran low, he’d hunt monsters and sell them on the black market to scrape by.
He didn’t haggle, so Berserker was a welcome customer.
So though he lived as a villain, his life was hardly impoverished.
Family crossed his mind sometimes, but even that held little weight.
As long as this life continued and he could glimpse the moment of stars, all would be well. He cherished this present moment, untethered and free.
Yet.

“Hmm.”

He’d thought he glimpsed the moment of stars when he gained Complete Poison Immunity, but that was merely an illusion.
It was only the euphoria that came with receiving the Gift—hardly the moment of stars at all.
That’s why the message he’d sent Choi Jun-ho still stung.
Complete Poison Immunity was simply a means to unleash his full power, not something that made him stronger.
Especially not against someone like Choi Jun-ho.
Berserker placed a hand over his heart. There was no visible wound, but it had been throbbing since earlier. Complete recovery had left not even a scar, healing him cleanly, yet his futile struggle before that creature had stretched into aftereffects that would linger for quite some time.

“That creature covets my Gift.”

He still could not forget the gleam in those eyes when they recognized Complete Poison Immunity—the gaze of a predator studying its prey.
The look of something that devours.
He knew that creature could seize another’s Gift. If it acquired Complete Poison Immunity, the Head Breaker would achieve absolute power—invulnerable to any status ailment, unstoppable in its dominion. It would be a monster sprouting wings and mounting laser cannons at once.
A monster with both wings and laser cannons.
Given that creature’s nature, it would kill him without mercy and strip him of his Gift.
He did not fear death, but the prospect of dying like an insect under a boot without ever striking back—that terrified him.
This was why Berserker had resolved to ignore the call.

“Buy time. Train until I feel confident enough, then face it.”

At least ensure his end would not be sordid.
He wanted to crack that composed face, wanted to leave at least one deep scar.
Then, whenever it saw that scar, it would think of him.
If he could not win, he would at least leave a mark that could not be erased.
Suddenly, the absurdity of his own situation struck him.

“Heh, reduced to scheming about scars.”

Not so long ago, he’d been plotting how to kill his opponent outright.
This peculiar creature had gotten under his skin.
Yet he did not dislike it. That towering wall, so impossibly vast, had become a goal that would not let him rest, that drove him to sharpen himself further.
Upon arriving in Haenam Land’s End Village, Berserker hunted down the villains lurking nearby, claimed their den as his own, and remained there for several days.

……

Training beneath the endless expanse of ocean was not a bad existence.
Choi Jun-ho would not know he was here.
This new strategy—drifting across the country, staying inconspicuous—would keep him hidden. That creature would be busy enough with its own chaos to forget about him for a while, he hoped.
But why did he feel so uneasy?
He tried to shake off the lingering unease, but it clung to him.
Haenam was good shelter—far from Seoul, with few safe zones, making witnesses unlikely.
Yet his instincts screamed warnings with an intensity he could not ignore. Beyond scientific explanation, but in such cases, waiting things out rarely led anywhere good.

“Perhaps the terrain is ill-omened. I should move on.”

Rather than dismiss his mounting sense of dread, he climbed into the camper van that very night and left Haenam behind.
Yeosu became his new destination. He planned to hunker down there, immobile, as much as possible.
The vehicle surged forward down empty roads.
Under normal circumstances, such openness would have felt liberating, but his anxiety only deepened.

“What’s wrong?”

What exactly was happening? He released his grip on the wheel, and sweat glistened in his palm.
His hands began to tremble.
Driving in a half-conscious state, the vehicle finally crossed into Yeosu.
Berserker killed a few strays lurking in the area, parked on open ground, and stepped out to fix his gaze on the ocean.

A deep breath.

The unchanging ocean had always steadied his mind. This time, however, it was different.
Instead, his senses screamed louder with each passing moment.
Leave this place. Flee. Run.

“What, should I flee to another world entirely?”

He had come from Haenam to Yeosu, yet the dread only intensified instead of lifting. What was he supposed to do?
But the warning his senses sent only grew stronger, reaching a crescendo.

Thump-thump.

Fear began to eclipse excitement, creeping through his entire body.
Every nerve stood on edge, his mouth bone-dry. Cold sweat drenched the nape of his neck, trickling down his spine.
He’d felt this way only three times in his life.
The first hunt. The day he married. And then.
When he met Head Breaker Choi Jun-ho.
Since gaining Complete Poison Immunity, his senses had been acting strange. If they continued to expand like this, perhaps approaching something like foresight, it wouldn’t matter—but he couldn’t rule out the possibility of an adverse reaction.
That had to be it.
The bastard was far away in Seoul. The bastard had no idea where he was. Yet his body was sending this kind of signal—which meant his system was struggling to adapt, thrown into disarray.
He’d turned away, attributing it to his senses misfiring.
That’s when a voice he should never have heard pierced through.

“Does Complete Poison Immunity have other intuition benefits too? Your instincts seem pretty sharp. Truly a legendary Gift.”
“…!”

The moment Berserker saw the figure sitting atop the camper van, the shock stole his breath.
The ghost smiling at him so cheerfully—wore Choi Jun-ho’s face.
How the hell did he find this place?

“Came for the Gift.”

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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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