Winterer’s attack happened a week early.

 

Additionally, the Japanese Prime Minister was taken hostage.

 

I was so dumbfounded that my jaw dropped…

 

– Hesitation.

 

‘…Is it because of me?’

 

Suddenly, a thought came to me.

 

Yesterday, I beat up those villains with great enthusiasm. Five of them.

 

Right after, a gate opened, and it got brushed off…

 

But from Winterer’s perspective?

 

Her fellow terrorists had been captured by the enemy.

 

And on the opposing side was the Hypnotic Breeding Guy.

 

There was no way she would trust her comrades in this situation.

 

On the contrary, she would think this:

 

“Oh, those guys will spill all my plans! Hypnotized, with hearts in their eyes! Like in those dirty comics!”

 

In other words, the reason she moved up her attack was because of me.

 

It was a butterfly effect caused by my katana.

 

‘The reason Brother Suguru came is… because of Master!!’

 

And why did someone as high-ranking as the Japanese Prime Minister just arrive?

 

Yesterday, Master used quite a bit of power to break the barrier.

 

After seeing that, he must have wondered, ‘Why is Ninomiya there?’

 

As for why he came personally…

 

Well, Brother Suguru is the person who knows Master’s importance better than anyone.

 

He must have been worried Master might have run away, so he came to check personally.

 

Master and I both had serious expressions.

 

“Disciple. If that man dies….”

 

“It must be resolved peacefully to prevent a diplomatic war between Japan and Korea. If it doesn’t go well, it could lead to a local war, and in the worst case, World War III.”

 

The Japanese Prime Minister getting involved in a villain terror attack in Korea?

 

It might be different if it were another country, but Korea, the strongest country of Awakened?

 

And the attack happened on the very day the Prime Minister made a secret visit?

 

This coincidence was too deliberate.

 

More people would believe that Korea assassinated the Prime Minister under the guise of coincidence rather than thinking it was a tragic accident.

 

Since our countries have a strained relationship, the motive was sufficient.

 

I knew it wasn’t a coincidence, but to others, it would only appear that way.

 

The repercussions could easily set the world ablaze.

 

‘Besides… if Brother Suguru doesn’t help, marrying Master would be much more difficult.’

 

It was a person we had to save for personal reasons as well.

 

Despite numerous oppositions,

 

He strongly supported my marriage to Master, insisting that ‘everyone has the right to love.’

 

I couldn’t let my benefactor die.

 

“We have to save him at all costs.”

 

“Indeed.”

 

Thus, Master and I were united.

 

We were in ‘must save him’ mode.

 

…Winterer’s terror was my fault, and the Prime Minister was captured because of Master.

 

It felt like we were giving both the disease and the cure. In any case.

 

I quickly signaled to the Chairman.

 

“I’ll say it again. There will be no negotiations with villains. If they release the hostage and surrender quietly, we might consider listening to them….”

 

[Skill ‘Complete Hypnosis’ activated. It failed.]

 

“……?”

 

A hypnosis attempt that was sure to fail, meant only to get attention.

 

The Chairman’s eyes snapped toward me.

 

As if to say, ‘What are you doing when we’re so busy?’ He looked irritable.

 

I held up a post-it note.

 

[Don’t panic. Hostage, the Japanese Prime Minister himself. Contact with Winterer essential. End the call.]

 

“……Hmm. No, we’ll be there within 10 minutes, so don’t try anything funny and wait.”

 

Upon seeing that, the Chairman immediately ended the call.

 

Right after, a wave of shock erupted in the Chairman’s office.

 

“……Why on earth is the Japanese Prime Minister taken hostage!!”

 

“The Prime Minister!? Isn’t he similar to the President!!?”

 

“There was no such news….”

 

“Master confirmed it. It’s definitely the Prime Minister himself.”

 

Without hesitation, I quickly briefed them.

 

Winterer might not know, but the hostage Winterer captured was the Japanese Prime Minister.

 

If he were left to die, it wouldn’t end with just a terror attack.

 

The Chairman clutched his head.

 

“…As if dealing with bombs wasn’t enough, now we have to save a hostage too.”

 

“Seol Ha-yeon. What do you mean by bombs?”

 

“Winterer said that she had planted ice bombs all over the country. She said that if she dies, they will explode, so don’t try anything funny.”

 

The Chairman’s distress was due to Winterer’s vicious terror tactics.

 

Her method of terror was like this:

 

First, she planted bombs all over the place, regardless of whether it was a busy downtown area or a residential neighborhood.

 

Second, she threatened to detonate them all if Seol Ha-yeon didn’t show up.

 

“And if I go there, it’s obvious she’ll try to kill me….”

 

Third, when Seol Ha-yeon showed up at the scene, she would draw him into a conversation.

 

Then, along with the hidden villains nearby, she would attack all at once.

 

Because of this three-pronged attack, the Chairman often ended up in mutual destruction with Winterer in the game.

 

That would turn the country into a paradise for villains, and the difficulty level would skyrocket.

 

Even if the player fought alongside and managed to keep Seol Ha-yeon alive and win?

 

The bombs would still go off.

 

There would be nearly ten thousand casualties, and the Chairman would lose his influence completely.

 

She was a boss you could only fall victim to if you didn’t know her tactics.

 

‘So, on Saturday, I spent the whole day defusing bombs….’

 

Conversely, if you knew her tactics, it was nothing.

 

Maybe it was designed for multiple playthroughs, but the bomb locations were always fixed.

 

The game even kindly provided the addresses.

 

Just like I did on my first playthrough, the player just needed to go ahead and disperse the magic.

 

As for Winterer herself, there was no need for us to go; the Awakened would swarm and capture her.

 

‘Tsk. Bombs and hostages….’

 

The problem was, in this second playthrough, the situation was much nastier.

 

Bombs? Can’t defuse them. They’ll go off if Winterer blinks, and they’ll go off if Master kills her quickly.

 

Hostage? The Japanese Prime Minister. If he dies, it’s game over.

 

There was a reason why the veteran Chairman was so distressed.

 

Even I, the Hypnotic Breeding Guy of the second playthrough, was at a loss, my head cluttered…

 

– Squeeze.

 

“Dad, Grandma. What’s wrong?”

 

“…Haru?”

 

“You don’t look good. Smile like Haru. Bashishi.”

 

In the midst of the seriousness, Haru interrupted.

 

She smiled brightly, trying to cheer us up.

 

At first glance, it seemed like an inappropriate and ridiculous action for the situation, but,

 

“Haru. Now is not the time for….”

 

“———Our Haru is the best!!!!”

 

Thanks to that, an idea sparked.

 

The only answer that could solve this dire situation.

 

I quickly scanned around.

 

“Y-Yu-jin…?”

 

“…….”

 

‘Alice’s skills were already quite good when I saw her yesterday. Seeing her fight Master, Shia must be at a similar level.’

 

An unexpected terror attack.

 

To overcome this, we needed all six of us present.

 

Shia, who crossed shadows. Alice, who wielded flames.

 

The strongest sword, Master. The veteran, the Chairman.

 

The Hypnotic Breeding Guy, me.

 

Lastly…

 

‘If Haru is here, we can make it work.’

 

Once Winterer’s subordinate.

 

A puppet that was too easily captured during the last terror attack, given her abilities.

 

My foster daughter. Seo Haru.

 

I saw a chance for victory.

 

“I have a plan. If it works well, we can defuse all the bombs and save the Prime Minister.”

 

“……!!!!?”

 

My declaration caused a stir around me.

 

Shia, Alice, even Master opened their eyes wide.

 

On the other hand, the Chairman smiled, his eyes shining.

 

Honey dripped from his eyes as he looked at me.

 

“H-Haha! Yu-jin, you again?”

 

“Yes. The basis of the plan is….”

 

“There’s no time, so skip the explanation. Just tell me what to do.”

 

A refreshing acceptance was a bonus.

 

It was a bit burdensome, considering the excessive trust shown to a freshman who entered last week, but…

 

Well, since I will repay the trust, it doesn’t matter.

 

“Okay. First, please look at my phone.”

 

“A map navigation app? What’s this?”

 

“These places bookmarked here are where Winterer has planted bombs.”

 

“What?! How did you know that?”

 

“My ability is EX-level. Not enough time to explain.”

 

“…Tell me later.”

 

I showed her the locations I had marked on my phone for tomorrow.

 

Contrary to Winterer’s bluff, there were only twenty locations marked within Seoul.

 

“She said nationwide, but they’re all in Seoul.”

 

“Villains can’t roam freely nationwide. Anyway, Chairman, please hold out while we defuse them.”

 

“What should I do?”

 

“Talk to Winterer and buy time. Stall until just before she tries to kill the hostage. Signal if it gets too tough.”

 

In my plan, the Chairman played the bait.

 

She frowned.

 

“With my instincts, I can buy about 20 minutes. Even if we deploy all the association’s manpower, it’s impossible to defuse them all within 20 minutes.”

 

“It’s okay. We have Alice and Shia!”

 

“…Oh. Indeed.”

 

Her frown eased at my words.

 

We turned our gaze to Alice and Shia.

 

They looked puzzled.

 

“Her and me? What can we do?”

 

“Yu Shia Cadet. I won’t ask for details, but it’s shadow-related ability, right? The sun is setting soon. Can you use that to move quickly?”

 

“…Ah!! Y-Yes, I can!!”

 

“Yu-jin, why me?”

 

“Alice, you use fire magic. Burning the magic circles will be the quickest way to defuse them.”

 

“…Yu-jin, you’re amazing!!”

 

Their expressions quickly brightened.

 

Even before the regression, they were A-level, now S-level with unique talents.

 

Burning the ice bombs before they exploded. Rapidly transporting Alice using shadows.

 

They seemed confident enough.

 

“The lives of thousands depend on this. Shia, Alice, can I count on you?”

 

“I don’t like hanging out with this fire fox, but… well, can’t be helped. Leave it to me.”

 

“We’re comrades in arms! Leave it to us!”

 

They readily accepted the bomb defusal role.

 

As I found my wives increasingly endearing, I turned my gaze elsewhere.

 

To the two jokers in this plan.

 

“Master, Haru, and I will…”

 

– Whisper whisper.

 

“Understood.”

 

“Yes. Haru, let’s play secret agents with Daddy. So exciting.”

 

The counter-terrorism plan. Ready to go.

 

* * *

 

Shia and Alice left first.

 

They were the most urgent.

 

– Grab.

 

“Then we’ll be…”

 

“Huh!? S-Shia?”

 

“What is it?”

 

“T-That…”

 

“Your hand is, um, touching my chest?”

 

“Your uselessly large fat lumps are at fault!!!”

 

Even in this urgent situation, she couldn’t stand it.

 

Shia’s voice was sharp as she carried Alice.

 

While I was averting my gaze, they quickly moved away.

 

“Why hug like that in the first place…?”

 

“It’s the fastest way. Anyway, Yu-jin, I’ll contact you through the Chairman’s phone when we’re done!!”

 

– Flash!!

 

“This way, you can see my underwear…!!”

 

Alice’s voice fading like the Doppler effect, and a glimpse of white fabric between her thighs were a bonus.

 

…Honestly. My wives are so cute even when we’re busy.

 

I love them. Really.

 

Anyway. After the two with heavy responsibilities left.

 

We headed to the scene.

 

Right in front of the academy gate. To the busy street where Winterer had caused chaos.

 

And amidst the stinging smell…

 

“This bald head will be smashed like a watermelon in nine~ eight~ seven~ four~.”

 

“Tsk. Can’t even count properly.”

 

“…Ah. You’re so late. Is it because you’re old?”

 

“At my age, the joints creak.”

 

Seol Ha-yeon and Winterer.

 

Korea’s strongest Awakener and Korea’s worst villain faced off.

 

“You said you had something to say? Let’s hear it.”

 

“———I’ll take control of the villains. I won’t kill. So please stop bothering us.”

 

“…What?”

 

It was the beginning of an unprecedented terror attack.