---

Jeong Gyeoul had captured Fox Mask, the 12 Apostles, and Lee Cheol-jin before even half a day had passed.

Now, all that was left was to catch the Cult Leader and Chronos.

Heroes scattered across other regions had mostly cleared out the villains in their areas.

They were now hunting down the few villains still in hiding.

It felt like a war against villains, reminiscent of the war on crime during the Roh Tae-woo administration in 1990.

Ironically, the prison break had significantly increased the villain capture rate.

Thanks to the Association’s Magic Power Detector being activated and S-Class heroes spreading across the country, Korea was becoming clean enough to be called a crime-free nation for the time being.

“So, where are the Cult Leader and Chronos?”

“…They’re not showing up on the detector yet.”

“Hmm.”

Jeong Gyeoul hoped the two would stick together.

Seoul, which she had personally chosen thinking it would be a breeze, was now the most troublesome area.

She had no energy left to keep running around.

It was probably because she hadn’t been eating even half of what she usually did.

A self-diagnosed case of depression-induced fatigue.

Of course, to others, she just looked like a lazy office worker who wanted to get things over with quickly.

While idly wandering around the control room, news of a villain sighting finally came in.

It was strange how low-ranking villains were still hiding, but then again, even cockroaches put up a desperate fight to survive.

Villains were probably no different.

“Gangneung Anmok Beach. C-Class villains Kidnap and Gunman. We’ll deploy two B-Class heroes.”

“Wait, hold on! Gangneung is in Gangwon Province, right? That’s Jang Gil-yong’s area?”

“…Yes, that’s correct.”

By now, Jeong Gyeoul was holding popcorn and cola, having stumbled upon the perfect timing.

Just as she grabbed the popcorn, news of villains appearing in Jang Gil-yong’s Gangwon Province came in.

Gangwon Province had been quiet, so Jang Gil-yong had been coasting along.

Jeong Gyeoul leaned into the operator’s headset mic.

-“This is the Association, this is the Association. Jang Gil-yong, come in. Over.”

-“…? Did the operator change? Why does the tone sound…?”

-“Just shut up and head to Gangneung Anmok Beach.”

-“…What’s going on?”

-“Communication out.”

-“…What’s the deal?”

-“Out means out, don’t you know what out means?”

Whether they didn’t expect Jeong Gyeoul to give orders from the control room or just didn’t recognize her voice, the operator seemed confused by the strange communication.

Either way, she shouted “Out!” and cut the comms.

Jeong Gyeoul smirked, picked up her popcorn, and started munching.

She looked like she was enjoying herself immensely.

All thanks to Jang Gil-yong.

“…If that’s not a villain, then what is?”

“…Good question.”

Jeong Gyeoul, thinking about the trouble Jang Gil-yong would face, didn’t hear the conversation between Jeong Ho-min and the staff.

***

Anton LaVey, the Cult Leader of the Satan Church.

With Chronos’ help, he had escaped the Association’s underground prison, and the first thing he did was return to the Satan Church’s lab.

Jeong Gyeoul had proven that travel to the Demon Realm was possible.

For Anton LaVey, who still worshipped Satan, reaching the Demon Realm was more important than escaping.

“…I had high hopes for you, leading a church once rival to the Clock Tower. But you’re just a foolish zealot who can’t let go of your obsession.”

“Shut up, Satan is waiting for me.”

Chronos clicked his tongue, shook his head, and left.

Whether he left or not, the Cult Leader gritted his teeth, thinking of Jeong Gyeoul, who had left him stranded in the mortal realm.

“With Satan’s power, I will have my revenge.”

He pulled out the Dimensional Stone hidden in the lab, drew a magic circle for dimensional travel, and connected it to the Demon Realm.

Just as he was about to activate it—

*Boom—*

The ceiling shattered, and sunlight poured into the underground.

Jeong Gyeoul walked through the rising dust, brushing off her butt in annoyance.

“Ugh, seriously. That damn Dimensional Stone.”

“…Jeong Gyeoul!”

Anton LaVey’s veins bulged, his face turning red with anger.

He looked even more terrifying than Satan.

“Ew, gross. You look scarier than Satan.”

Jeong Gyeoul grimaced, as if she’d seen something she shouldn’t have.

The Cult Leader, who had created the Satan Church to worship Satan, now looked more terrifying than Satan himself.

“But… where are you going?”

“To the Demon Realm, where you left me.”

The Cult Leader confidently declared that meeting Satan would solve everything.

Even if Jeong Gyeoul interfered, he believed he could activate the magic circle without issue.

“…Oh, well. Good luck then.”

“…?”

Jeong Gyeoul’s attitude was strange.

Instead of stopping or interfering, she just sat back and watched.

“…Aren’t you going to stop me?”

The Cult Leader even stuttered in confusion.

“You’ll understand once you get to the Demon Realm.”

“What is it? Tell me now!”

Jeong Gyeoul, who had desperately tried to stop him before, now seemed to be letting him go.

Convinced there was some trick, he demanded an answer.

“Ah, geez… This is going to be a shock, given how strong your faith is. It’s not something I should tell you.”

“Tell me now!”

As Jeong Gyeoul dragged it out, the Cult Leader shouted in frustration.

The usually calm Cult Leader was nowhere to be seen.

Anton LaVey was just a hot-headed Satan otaku.

Even though Satan no longer existed.

“If you insist… Satan is dead.”

“…That’s impossible! The strongest, greatest, most fearsome demon. Death couldn’t possibly claim him!”

He sounded like a child being told Santa didn’t exist.

Jeong Gyeoul shook her head, almost pitying him.

“I knew you’d react like this. That’s why you should go see for yourself.”

“Shut up! You’ve done something, haven’t you? That’s why you’re letting me go so easily. I won’t fall for it.”

Even if she let him go to the Demon Realm, the Cult Leader, now paranoid, hesitated to activate the magic circle.

“Fox Mask, the 12 Apostles, Lee Cheol-jin. I took them all down with a flick of my wrist. If I wanted to kill you, I could’ve done it while you were still floating in the sky. So just go to the Demon Realm in peace.”

“….”

Unlike other named villains, the Cult Leader could somewhat sense the energy from the peach Jeong Gyeoul had eaten.

So her words didn’t sound like an exaggeration.

He started to think her words might be true.

‘No! This is all part of that cunning woman’s scheme!’

Thinking he couldn’t be subdued so easily, he decided to activate the magic circle.

“Ooooh! He’s really going!”

“Just wait, I’ll return with Satan’s power and destroy you.”

“Say hi to the Demon Kings for me.”

As the light flashed and enveloped the underground—

“Oh, right. There’s someone named Mammon. Be careful around him.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I drew a sketch of him and told everyone he’s Satan’s lackey. If you get caught, you won’t be coming back easily.”

“…You think I’ll fall for that! As soon as I arrive, I’ll find Mammon first, hahaha!”

Even though Jeong Gyeoul kindly warned him about Mammon, the Cult Leader still thought it was part of her scheme.

“Wow… He really was a devout follower. Well, enjoy your suffering.”

It was clear he’d be captured and tortured as soon as he arrived, but since he chose that path, she decided to respect his decision.

She kept smiling, but as the dimensional travel neared completion and Jeong Gyeoul still hadn’t moved, her smile began to crack.

She seemed uneasy.

But the magic circle was already activated.

It was too late to back out.

As the light enveloped the Cult Leader, Jeong Gyeoul started to smirk.

“Damn, go and suffer for a bit.”

She might be able to kill, but she didn’t have the stomach for torture.

Either a quick death or a slap-on-the-wrist punishment from the Association.

Not the ending Jeong Gyeoul wanted.

But if the Cult Leader went to the Demon Realm…

‘Mammon won’t just sit still.’

He’d probably suffer the worst pain of his life.

She just hoped Mammon had a lot of pent-up anger.

-“The Cult Leader’s done.”

-“…Should we send a corpse retrieval team?”

-“No, I sent him to the Demon Realm.”

-“…The Demon Realm?”

The operator’s brain short-circuited, but Jeong Gyeoul was just happy.

She sent the Cult Leader away, annoyed Mammon, and got rid of the Dimensional Stone.

A one-punch, three-bird situation.

Humming a tune, she headed back to the Association.

 

---