I Became an NPC That Rankers Are Obsessed Over

“—!”

The tanker dummy threw a punch at its former comrade.

Due to its massive fist, made of intertwining flesh, the swordsman looked as small as a child.

However, he was also a formidable ranker, ranked 58th.

Barely dodging the punch, he climbed up the dummy’s arm to its shoulder with ease.

Soon, he raised his sword toward the dummy’s neck.

Seeing this, Seok-hyun gestured as if controlling the tanker.

The dummy then grabbed the swordsman’s leg and slammed him to the ground.

Crashed to the ground, he clutched his shoulder and barely managed to stand.

In contrast, the dummy showed no signs of pain.

For it no longer possessed the sensation of touch.

The tanker doll crouched low on the dented ground.

Then it leapt toward the ranker with powerful momentum.

Its heavy shoulder was about to collide with the swordsman.

But he started running toward the dummy instead.

Seok-hyun frowned at this unexpected action.

He wondered if the ranker had lost his mind, overwhelmed by the shock of seeing his dead comrades.

Just before he collided with the dummy,

the swordsman gracefully leaped into the air.

Rotating midair, he slashed down at the dummy’s neck.

It was reminiscent of Ji-soo noona’s swordsmanship.

The tanker’s neck, with nerves protruding, split open.

Soon, black oil gushed out.

The unpleasant liquid sprayed everywhere, splattering across the surroundings.

As the ground turned completely black, the tanker dummy ceased its movements.

“…”

The swordsman, as if fulfilling his role, looked toward his spear-wielding comrade.

She, holding a massive barbed spear, was in a standoff with the boxer.

The two had once been close enough to hunt third-grade monsters together.

They were the kind of pair who would blush just by looking at each other.

But that innocent relationship had ended completely due to the war with Ilshim.

The boxer had sacrificed himself to save the spearman in a moment of crisis.

The price of that sacrifice was devastating.

His face, half-blown off, was stitched back together with flesh.

But the boxer did not truly come back to life.

He had died instantly when the back of his head exploded, and now he was merely a doll of the Executor.

The boxer charged madly to close the distance with the spearman.

Even with a dead body, instincts remained.

Facing that familiar stance, the spearman also raised her spear immediately.

She skillfully retreated, maintaining her distance from him.

Then, as he threw a punch, she struck at the foot he planted.

But that was a strategy that worked only on living opponents.

The boxer twisted his leg grotesquely yet still threw his punch.

He relentlessly struck the spearman’s helmet.

The dented helmet caused her to stagger.

But she quickly regained her composure and aimed at his side.

When the legs faltered, movements inevitably slowed.

As the boxer threw his next punch, he failed to block the decisive blow.

“…”

It was undoubtedly a perfect strike.

His body was pierced, and black blood dripped from the spear.

But he was no ordinary doll of flesh.

As if understanding the habits of the woman he tried to protect, he grabbed the spear embedded in his body.

And very slowly, he approached her despite being impaled.

The ranker’s expression as she watched was miserable.

It was as if she were seeing her first monster five years ago—fearful and full of despair.

“—!”

The woman screamed.

But her scream was closer to a wail.

She resented the Executor for using such a horrifying technique.

Fueled by that emotion, the ranker yanked the spear out with explosive strength.

Then she struck the boxer’s head with the heavy spear blade.

The carefully stitched head split completely in half.

The boxer doll soon spurted black oil like the tanker dummy.

Covered in that oil, the spearman shouted.

“Executor, you f***ing b****, where are you?”

Her voice was as torn as her lover’s split neck.

“Come out, you cowardly bastard!”

The ranker’s shout echoed through the inn.

The assemblyman observing the scene cleared his throat awkwardly.

The swordsman also resented the Executor.

He placed his trembling hand on the dummy he had killed.

He desperately searched for traces of his comrade in the dummy.

But the doll was merely wearing Kang Dae-hyuk’s skin.

Its crushed appearance tore at the swordsman’s heart.

“…”

I held my breath behind the bar counter.

So, had the Executor lost…?

After all, the dummies were all subdued, leaving only Seok-hyun.

And even he had been cut down by Anna in the past, so it was uncertain if he could win.

Uneasy, I lowered my head.

And I looked down at Jae-hee, who was clinging to me.

“…?”

I wondered why she was so unusually quiet.

The idol girl was passed out cold, as if someone had struck her.

And soon I realized who had knocked her out.

It was none other than the Executor.

Red eyes and exquisite features.

This time, it was truly her.

“Exec…”

I called her name with a hint of relief.

But she clamped her hand over my lips, telling me to be quiet.

“Stay silent. They don’t know I’m here.”

At her serious tone, I nodded repeatedly.

Then the red-eyed killer leaned close to me.

And she embraced me softly.

“Uh…?”

Just being hugged now sent chills down my spine.

After Jae-hee earlier and repeated impure contact, my body had become overly sensitive.

I could feel the cold breath of the Executor on my neck.

Shivering from the chill, I trembled.

“Stay still like this.”

I wanted to ask why.

But I kept my mouth shut and gently placed my hands on her back.

Soon, flesh rose around us like an igloo.

The three of us gradually disappeared into the darkness.

The swordsman touched the tanker dummy’s face.

The once-silent doll twitched and grabbed the swordsman’s arm.

The ranker panicked as the flesh stuck to his arm like clay.

The more he tried to pull free, the more the dummy clung to him.

The spearman was no exception.

She held the dead boxer in her arms.

As if forgiving the ranker, the boxer dummy also embraced her.

But he began to strangle her to the point of suffocation.

Soon, the two dolls’ bodies began to swell.

Even their vaguely human appearances became completely distorted.

The rankers knew what that meant.

Even the assemblyman, ignorant of combat, understood.

The middle-aged man began to retreat hastily.

Then, remembering the gold watch he left behind, he returned to grab it.

The spearman gazed at her bound lover.

As his face melted away, his lips quivered.

His lips spoke.

“I’m sorry, Su-rin.”

That was all.

After those six words, a strong light burst from his mouth.

Soon, the two dolls exploded along with the comrades who abandoned them.

Their skin completely burst and splattered onto the walls of the inn.

The flesh barrier also shook violently.

The aftermath of the explosion sent debris flying like bullets in all directions.

The barrier blocked most of the debris.

But it wasn’t enough.

The wall of flesh began to twist grotesquely and was soon pierced by the shards.

A sharp fragment narrowly missed my ear.

The chilling sensation made me let out a brief gasp.

The Executor’s expression wasn’t good either.

She was pouring all her focus into maintaining the barrier.

Her chest began to tremble.

I could hear the grinding of her teeth.

I wanted to help her.

Somehow.

It would definitely be dangerous if she found out I wasn’t as powerless as I seemed.

But I couldn’t stand idly by while she exerted so much effort for us.

I focused my mind.

I recalled the past, when I wanted to help my comrades.

Remember that feeling.

I stretched out my hands.

The only ability I had—Angelic Hand.

What was its primal force again?

It was ‘heal.’

Healing fundamentally regenerates damaged cells.

And the Executor’s barrier was clearly made of cellular flesh.

I opened my eyes wide and breathed life into the flesh.

Even as the debris tore and burst, I kept regenerating, again and again.

Until the Executor no longer trembled.

“…”

How much time had passed?

The world outside the barrier had grown quiet.

The Executor, assuming it was safe, withdrew the flesh.

Soon, the inn, now shrouded in acrid smoke, was revealed.

As the smoke cleared, my mouth involuntarily fell open.

The roof had been blown away, exposing the night sky.

The hall was completely destroyed, left as empty as a field.

“Damn it.”

The thought I’d only kept in my mind slipped out.

The Executor let out a deep sigh at the dreadful scene.

“The money I was supposed to collect is all gone now.”

She staggered to her feet.

Then she checked on the rankers from the association and the assemblyman’s condition.

“As I expected…”

She nodded as if she had anticipated it.

I peeked out and looked toward where the dummies had been.

The traces of their burst flesh remained, but the rankers were nowhere to be seen.

“They escaped. He cut off his arm, and she endured the explosion by sheer force.”

The Executor spoke nonchalantly and pulled out a cigarette.

She lit it using the remaining embers from the explosion.

“You’re really something else.”

I looked up at her in amazement.

I had never witnessed such a tremendous battle in my life.

“What, surprised?”

Even though their ranks were around 50th, the Executor was only ranked 85th.

How could she be so overwhelming?

“I used to be ranked 7th. Well, unofficially.”

She smirked as if amused by my reaction.

“7th, really…?”

So she was once one of the seven strongest in Korea.

I couldn’t even begin to imagine it.

“I made a dummy out of the body of a former 5th-rank. Thanks to that, I had some fun fighting the association.”

The Executor exhaled a puff of smoke.

She stared blankly into the past, seemingly nostalgic for her glory days, before coughing lightly.

Now relaxed, she leaned gently on my shoulder.

I was startled by the gesture.

The red-eyed woman’s face turned slightly red.

She gazed up at me with a sultry look.

I never imagined her fierce red eyes could feel seductive.

I shut my eyes tightly, trying to dispel the strange atmosphere.

The Executor whispered to me.

“You did well earlier.”

“What, what did I do…”

The Executor stared at my face with a half-lidded gaze.

“That heal, of course.”

I thought she wouldn’t notice in the darkness of the barrier…

But of course, she knew.

“You had a hidden ability, didn’t you?”

“Well, just a light healing skill…”

I murmured in resignation.

“Only healing, really?”

Her sharp reptilian eyes seemed to see through me.

I swallowed nervously and avoided her gaze.

Then, I mumbled softly.

“Yeah, really.”

Another lie.

I couldn’t tell her that I had glimpsed her painful memories.

“I’ll believe you…”

The Executor poked my cheek with her finger, as if finding my downcast expression cute.

Perhaps disliking the subdued mood, she asked with a sly smile.

“So, did you enjoy it earlier?”

“What are you talking about now?”

“At the bar counter, cuddling with that idol girl, all cozy.”

I flared up at her comment.

There had been reasons, but I didn’t know how to explain it from the start.

“I’m the victim here! I didn’t enjoy it at all!”

As I turned my head away in frustration, the Executor brushed her fingers along my neck.

The touch was sensually teasing.

“For someone who didn’t enjoy it, your expression was pretty suggestive.”

“If you’d been caught by that scent, you’d know! It’s really beyond—”

The Executor chuckled softly, as if intoxicated.

I hadn’t known she could make such an expression.

“Well, I admit it. It did warm me up for the first time in a while.”

“What did you just say?”

The Executor glanced at Jae-hee, who was still unconscious.

After confirming she was still asleep, the Executor pushed me against the wall.

I was flustered by her sudden change in demeanor.

It felt like being coiled by a red snake, cold and suffocating.

The Executor’s breath drew closer.

But then she abruptly stopped.

“You’re way too defenseless.”

She pinched the strap of my bra.

Gently, she slid the fallen strap back onto my shoulder.

Then, as if nothing had happened, the Executor stood up.

She casually dusted off her knees.

But I knew.

Her breath, which had always been cold, was unusually warm just moments ago.

Jae-hee’s abilities were truly astonishing.