I’m Not That Villain

79 – Black Mamba (7)

Black Mamba of Hundred Eyes.

While terms like “cold” or “cool” are often employed to manage her image…

Anyone affiliated with Hundred Eyes knew it.

Black Mamba’s personality was, without exaggeration, second to none in its utter depravity.

Her foul mouth aside, she was terribly capricious. Anything that displeased her was shattered on the spot.

Had she not possessed formidable powers, she would have long perished; an absolute tyrant holding sway. That was Black Mamba.

How many had met their end at her hands? Because of this, Hundred Eyes’ members fundamentally feared her rather than swore loyalty.

Perhaps “watched their backs” would be a more accurate description.

No one pledges allegiance to a ticking time bomb, after all.

…And yet.

This scene unfolding before them was something none of the Hundred Eyes executives present could have foreseen.

Munch, munch.

A man was eating. Consuming the scavenged rations with abandon, a strange man.

The executives exchanged glances. Murmurs rippled, opinions traded, but none among them had ever encountered anyone quite like him.

“…Just who, exactly…”

“And how in the world did he breach the perimeter…”

The Hundred Eyes members had witnessed it too.

The dense ranks of armed guards and enforcers blanketing the outside of headquarters.

The reason they hadn’t gone out despite the commotion was singular. They couldn’t be certain their Boss was headed here…

And if the person rushing towards them wasn’t the Boss, there was even less reason to venture outside.

But the Boss, thought dead, had returned, whole and hale. Perhaps a Boss *is* a Boss, after all. Those who hadn’t fled now felt a creeping unease, but Black Mamba, strangely, didn’t rebuke them.

No curses, no kicks. No furious slaps to the face, declaring her irritation.

The man.

Beside that unfamiliar man…

“…Eating well, I see.”

She watched him, a lingering gaze, as if admiring a cherished pet.

“Have this, too.”

“Mm.”

“Chew properly. You’ll choke.”

“Mm.”

She quietly fussed, providing for the man who was happily devouring his meal like a pig. The woman who never lifted a finger for even a glass of water was now prying open a bottled water cap herself.

And what was that saccharine tone, so utterly unfamiliar, all about?

The Hundred Eyes executives trembled. Could this be some hidden camera trick? There was no way the infamous Black Mamba would wear such a girlish expression…

Was this a highly elaborate, passive-aggressive jab for not being greeted?

Or was this man *that* crucial, warranting such treatment?

“Hey.”

One executive flinched at the sudden shift in tone. He rushed immediately to her side.

“Yes, Boss?”

“Compile the personal information of all my former bodyguards and bring it to my room. If they’re still alive after this war, I’ll deal with them personally.”

“Did…did the bodyguards actually flee, Boss?”

“Indeed. Their tails disappeared with an almost ludicrous speed, they did. Darko. Weren’t these the lads you recommended?”

Darko, a top lieutenant of the Hundred Eyes, closed his eyes.

Ah. So, this is the day I meet my maker.

“…My apologies, Boss.”

Would it start with a light slap to the cheek? Or perhaps one of my arms would be torn off.

Black Mamba was not a forgiving man when it came to mistakes.

Yet, strangely, he felt no pain. Darko cautiously opened his eyes.

His boss was most certainly scowling. But that did not mean his hand was reaching out.

“What’s this? Eyes still shut? We have mountains of work to do, are you just going to laze about?”

“…S-saving me…?”

“Hey. Anyone listening would think I went around butchering my subordinates without a second thought?”

But you do.

You really do.

Darko swallowed the unspoken words. He was intensely aware of the hand patting his shoulder.

“Enough nonsense, let’s get down to business. Are all our people here?”

“Eighty percent have gathered.”

“Good. Let’s do this. War.”

Black Mamba rose to his feet.

Then, he glanced sideways, before settling back down.

“…After I finish my snack, of course.”

The Black Mamba herself, of all people…

That woman with the infamous, vile temper…

Waits for someone to finish eating? A man, no less?

Darko rolled his eyes. Just what kind of man *was* this?

Curiosity gnawed at him, but he held back.

Wasting words on curiosity was a surefire way to have his skull cracked open.

. . .

“Eat your fill, and leave when it’s safe. Until then, stay here.”

Black Mamba, Baek Soyeon, flanked by a phalanx of men in black suits, moved towards the highest floor. She, too, had changed into a pristine black suit, as if it were a battle uniform, and hastily wiped the grime from her face.

Was it because she was pretty? Or maybe because she had a great body?

No.

It was both, wasn’t it? Either way, that suit fit her like a glove.

“A natural beauty. Truly.”

“Wh-What are you saying… idiot…”

I glanced around the room she and I had arrived at. An absurdly vast space, occupying an entire floor.

No. Our entire first basement level was smaller than this. Who uses an entire floor as a single room? Different scale entirely.

She wiped her hands with a damp towel one of her crew offered. Turning back to me, she inclined her head.

“Behave yourself. Got it?”

“Just go already. Don’t worry about me.”

The expressions of the men behind her soured. Not quite hatred, not quite envy, but…

She seems genuinely surprised. Did I mess something up?

Anyway, she vanished into the crowd, taking many people with her. Probably off to strategize, figuring out how to deal with this whole mess using the folks here.

Well, my part is done, regardless. I’ve done all I can.

Plus, I’ve filled my stomach enough for now…

Time to get going.

Sorry, but I told her from the start, I don’t plan on staying here long. I don’t want to get any more involved than I already am.

That being said…

“Hmm.”

Still no signal. I tapped the unresponsive phone.

Without external communication, I can’t contact Lily or any of my other acquaintances either. But they’re all outside, so they shouldn’t be in any real danger.

“Should we head back?”

“Yes! Master! Let’s get out of here! Before that psycho grabs your pant leg!”

Scarlett’s unusually hostile reaction was a little off-putting, but there was nothing more for me to do here, so I opened the window.

The night wind howled fiercely. This floor alone was the 62nd.

And there were dozens more floors above. It wasn’t called a skyscraper for nothing.

The important thing isn’t the building’s overall size. It’s how high this floor is.

I gauged the distance between buildings, like before. Would it be best to use a rope to escape, the way I came?

Hmm…

Ambiguous. Very ambiguous. Considering how much tighter security must be now… that might be a bit of a gamble…

Maybe I should add a stealth function to my clothes later? But I haven’t worked with that technology yet, so…

First.

First, let’s calculate precisely what I can do right now.

My ability. What can I do with ‘Void of Sea’?

I extended my hand. In the sound of the blowing wind, I clenched it tight.

A slight sparking. Along with it, a flowing out of energy.

I can only discharge, simply, but specialized equipment catches it in various forms.

And viewing it from the broadest perspective…

It can be divided into three.

‘Severance.’

A burst of energy, explosively, cleaving down as if wielding a giant blade.

One could view it as an over-emission of energy. A finishing move of sorts. I used it once before, and experimented a few times since…

At a half-hearted output, it was impossible to imitate, so only by giving it my true full strength could I see a proper effect. The onrushing hunger is just a bonus.

And what I’m using most frequently these days…

‘Threads.’

Solidifying energy through the Orbs, creating a single energy crystal.

This is close to a method of manufacturing weapons on the spot. Mixing it with various specific materials stored inside the Orb beforehand, constructing matter.

I’ve used this very effectively to get here. But this is not infinite. Separate from my energy, it uses special materials stored within the Orb, so once it’s depleted, I won’t be able to use it later.

And lastly…

‘Veil.’

Weaving the emitted energy into a curtain-like form, using it as a shield to cover my body.

But this… it wasn’t exactly fuel-efficient. A mere curtain of it could stop bullets, sure, but generating that curtain in the first place came with a hunger that was just plain filthy.

From the start, my ability hadn’t felt specialized for defense. The raw energy itself had explosive potential, but solidifying it into a defensive form… that was brutally inefficient.

Anyway, these three things were all I could do for now. If I were to develop it in another direction, perhaps I could. But…

No time for that right now, and no reason to, either.

“Scarlett. How much material are we left with?”

“Approximately 82% of the total has been consumed. We can temporarily stockpile by decomposing nearby metal, but… the process is exceedingly slow.”

That strand.

That goddamn long strand of crystallized energy. I’d used up a filthy amount making that. Ah, yes. Of course.

So, nix the idea of using it as a rope to cross between buildings. Best to walk on two feet, it seems…

“…No matter how I think about it, I can’t leave right now, can I?”

“……”

Scarlett had brought it up, but she fell silent, as if she had been thinking the same thing herself.

In the end, it seemed there was only one way to get out of here safely.

The moment all-out war breaks out, quickly find somewhere to hide and escape…

“What are you doing, opening the window?”

I flinched almost imperceptibly. Turning my head.

Baek Soyeon was leaning against the doorframe, watching me.

“Planning to jump out of there?”

“Well… I was entertaining the notion?”

Baek Soyeon walked over. She closed the open window.

*Click.*

The lock clicked again, ensuring it was firmly secured.

“Why risk doing something dangerous? Stay here until things outside calm down. This place is practically a fortress blessed by the heavens. It’s a state-of-the-art sanctuary where nothing’s lacking. There’s one reason those b*stards out there can’t slither in here. Bloody sturdy, bloody complex structures are piled up inside. I suffered like crazy trying to breach it before. It’s a truly formidable place.”

“But we got in easily, didn’t we?”

“Because we ripped out a section of the security system forming the wall, space and all. It’s a method I’ve favored before. Well, breaching the outer wall is the only part that matters, really.”

*Aish.*

Feels like a cheat-level ability.

“Anyway, stay here. This war…it’ll be over in a week, tops.”

“Huh? How?”

“We’re going to wage a full-scale war. Simultaneously, in multiple locations, with a determined plan. This is Jung-gu, Seoul. Our home ground, our backyard. We have a mountain of people who know the internal structure like the back of their hand, know where and how to use everything effectively. They’re outsiders. In urban warfare, they can’t beat us.”

Baek Soyeon spun around.

She poked my chest repeatedly with her finger.

“So. You. Stay here. Until it’s all over. Don’t go doing anything recklessly dangerous. Got it?”

“…No, I only promised to bring you here…I figured I’d slip away around now…”

“You’re going to save me as you please and then leave as you please?”

Baek Soyeon’s lips curled into a smile.

“Sorry to say, this is the belly of the snake. You’re practically inside my mouth.”

The finger that had been poking my chest traced a circle.

Almost like the shape of a heart.

“You’ve done as you pleased to your heart’s content, now it’s my turn. Stay here until it’s safe. Besides…”

“And what else?”

“…If you dare spout some drivel about cutting off contact as you please, I’ll punch you in the gut.”

Baek Soyeon snarled.

“I always pay back what I owe! Got it?!”

“…Then I’d rather you just paid me the money…”

“You should have said so sooner if that’s what you wanted. It’s too late now.”

“No, then what are you going to give me?”

“……..”

Baek Soyeon opened her mouth.

And bit my arm.

“I’ll decide after I see it.”

Where she bit was slightly painful.

What is this.

Feels like she missed.