Ep 96. Peaceful Daily Life

In a dilapidated street,

The buildings collapsed.

‘No… Please… Wake… up…’

‘…in…Da-in!… Wake… up!… Hurry… up….’

‘I can’t… do… anything… with my… power…’

And, noise coming from somewhere.

And

‘Cough… I’m… sorry….’

‘…wer … Third… one… Make sure…’

I could hear someone whining and sobbing.

‘Don’t… You’re… still… alive, right?… Urgh…’

‘…….’

‘…Sorry…’

‘…. Can’t give up… Can’t let go….’

Scratchhhhhhh

“UAHHH!”

Haa, haa.

I woke up in the middle of the night.

…Gosh, fuck. What time is it now?

“…It’s 3 a.m.”

I murmured with my eyes closed.

When I came back to my senses, my back was covered in sweat.

…I don’t really remember, but I think I had a nightmare.

I can’t believe I woke up scared by a nightmare at this age.

“Haa…”

I sighed unconsciously.

….What kind of anxiety am I having in my mind? Why do I have this dream?

Come to think of it, there have been times when I continue to flinch even when I stay still. Feeling horrified.

Do I lack vitality? Is there a ghost inside my body?

If it keeps going like this, I’ll go back to the witch to get an exorcism. This world has almost everything I imagine, so maybe a real ghost is stuck to my body.

Phew. But anyway, I feel awake now.

I looked up at the window on the wall.

Between the dim mountains, my room is illuminated by the moon shining brightly.

…It’s a night where I suddenly feel the early morning vibe. It’s 3 A.M. It’s when a guy gets the most sentimental.

Everyone is probably asleep at this time except me.

….Yep, since I woke up, I couldn’t go back to sleep and there were no people.

Should I write things down one by one in advance?.

I got out of bed, turned on the light, and sat on my desk.

Then, I took out one of the books on the shelf.

This book is painted in light green with metaphysical shapes in a plain-looking diary.

Yes, the notebook I got from the green witch last time, it can’t be opened without my permission.

Only when I die, can people open it without my permission.

“Hmm…”

And there.

I started to write down major events that could happen in the future and things that could be the beginning of destruction if not prevented.

And important settings. Like an event that happens once in a while, or a way to resurrect after death…

It’s better to write all of this down in advance. Just in case what would happen to people. A professional villain prepares everything in advance!

I will roughly name the book ‘Ego Stream Emergency Manual’.

I stayed up all night and fell asleep while eating the next morning and got scolded by Soobin.

I slept late because I was working, but it was so unfair.

***

[The government allowed redevelopment of areas in Busan that were bombed by the last terrorist attack. The residents are excited about the lifting of the restrictions in 10 years.]

A peaceful morning

In the living room, where only the sound of TV could be heard from afar, I lay absent-mindedly on the sofa.

“Da-in, what are you doing?”

“Oh… I’m sunbathing…”

I feel like I’m recharging because the warm sun comes over from the window and I’m sunbathing on the sofa that shines on me.

I’ve loved to be in the sun like this since I was a kid. I have to charge some vitamin D.

“Now, have some fruit here.”

“Oh, thank you.”

Meanwhile, Soobin gave me the fruit plate.

I picked up a melon from there to eat.

Crunchy and delicious.

“Oh, Soobin. Is Seo-eun still down there?”

“Yes, Se-hee is down there with her, too.”

“Really? What the hell are they doing?”

These days, the two have been whispering among themselves and staying in the basement every day.

I think Se-hee is helping Seo-eun make something and… Gosh. As long as they don’t make weird things.

By the way…

I turned my head and looked out the window next to me.

The window was drilled with glass on one wall of the living room. It’s refreshing to look at the surrounding scenery. It’s also what I liked the most when I first came into this house.

Just like that, I was staring blankly at the TV and waiting for the call.

The news on TV was in full volume and was noisy with the uproar caused by Icicle. One peculiar thing is that the anchor explains with all their heart, how great and capable Icicle is and she can be compared to Stardus.

….Did Seola already control the broadcasting station?

As I was dazed by that thought, the phone finally began to ring.

When I looked at my cell phone, it said “Lee Seola” on the screen.

As I saw it, I answered the phone right away.

[Hello?]

“Oh, hey. Hello?”

[Haa, I didn’t have any time until now. I’m sorry. I’ve been busy because the association and reporters have been bothering me. There are things that I have to do at the right time.]

“All right, all right. You don’t have time, of course I know. By the way, talk about it quickly. At the end of yesterday, Stardus, so Shin Haru suddenly came. What happened?”

[Haa.. Haru. Don’t even mention it. I was so nervous because I thought my relationship with you was caught.]

“You didn’t get caught, did you?”

[Fortunately, yes. She saw the two of us laughing, but I don’t think she knows the details. I handled it well.]

“That’s a relief. Wait, by the way, how did she get there?”

[Of course. She asked for Shadow Walker to bring her there.]

“…I mean, why did she come? There’s no reason to come, right?”

When I said that, I heard her slightly snorting and laughing from the other side of the phone.

[…Well? Think about it yourself. I don’t know either.]

“…Wait, hey.”

[Is not really important, right? Let’s talk about the future. What are you going to do from now on?]

Lee Seola then naturally changed the topic and asked me about my future plans.

…Something’s off, but should I just let it slide for once.

I just gave her a simple answer.

“What do you mean? Now I have to strengthen my Villain Union. I’ll focus on increasing the number of new villains in the Ego Stream.”

[…Okay. In the meantime, I’m going to quickly take over politics.]

“……I don’t think you have to hurry yourself to that.”

[What are you talking about? I have to do it in advance so that there won’t be an unexpected event like the last time the president shoots a missile at you. It’s all for you.]

‘For me’ my ass. It’s probably because of her own greed.

I smirked at her transparent speech. Well, it’s not that I don’t like shady things. That’s Lee Seola’s charm.

We chatted for a little while. Generally, she mentioned again that it would be good if she could come to my house someday, and ended the call after talking for a little more.

And before hanging up, Lee Seola only hinted at me.

[….And you, I think you’d better focus on Stardus for the time being.]

“Huh? Well, I was going to focus on Stardus for the time being anyway… Why?”

[…Nothing, I just think that’s good for you. I’m hanging up.]

Lee Seola hung up after that.

…What the? So boring.

So after the call, I got up from my seat.

And I went out to the veranda by the window.

“Hmm…”

In the original, Stardus would always open the window of her house and lean like this whenever she had a problem.

…So I’m trying to follow her.

In the mountain with refreshing air and wind

I leaned my arm against the railing, thinking of a plan.

“From now on…”

Various, powerful villains will continue to pop up.

And it will continue to get exhausting. Stardus keeps popping up with enemies of various abilities that are too much to deal with alone.

Now, of course, things have changed a little.

As long as I’m there before, some of the villains will be involved in Ego Stream or I’ll get rid of them so the situation will get much better than the original comic. Like the Le Peace who are the main characters in this terrorist attack.

And especially, Stardus have gotten a lot stronger.

As her ability has been strengthened much earlier than the original, she will be able to withstand well against quite a few villains.

Well, it’s going to work out.

That’s right.

I stood still, brooding over it.

Why did Stardus suddenly run to Busan?

Honestly, I didn’t think much about it because I thought Lee Seola would tell me why, but now I need to think about it.

“Well…”

I thought for a moment, and then came to a conclusion.

Well, maybe it’s because she could feel the threat.

Otherwise, there is no other reason.

“That’s a good thing!”

That’s my conclusion.

If she thinks of me as a threat, that’s good. She has to think of me as an arch enemy to be sincere in the fight and use all of her energy.

I closed the veranda and returned to the living room with a light heart.

Seo-eun, who is sitting on the sofa as I can see when I come back to the living room. She must have come back from the basement

As soon as Seo-eun saw me, she made a strange expression.

“Da-in. Do you know that you got a new nickname?”

“What…”

“Look at this.”

Seo Eun gave me the phone she was looking at.

One of the posts on my fan cafe appeared on the screen.

*

[Ego-star? Ego-tra?]

Get lost Hahahaha

<<Ice mango>> is coming!

(Photo of Icicle and Egostic fighting each other with a smile)

(Egostic’s GIF complimenting Icicle)

= [Comments] =

[Really? Hahaha They look good together hahahaha.]

[I will support iced mango with all my heart]

[Ice mango sounds so nice. Hahahaha]

[You, Egostic, stop playing in Seoul and come down to Busan]

[Mango stick, you’re more suitable with Busan than Seoul!]

[If Stardus <<<Icicle, press like. Hahaha]

[What are you talking about? Egostic’s opponent is Stardus. Isn’t it natural that he should leave it to Stardus, an Egostic expert? I don’t think it’s right to tie up with the wrong hero.]

ㄴ[@newday313 Why is he trembling so much?]

ㄴ[Ego-star shippers are holding in their tears]

ㄴ[Arrested at Stardus’ house]

ㄴ[Looking at the profile, this person a diligent member, but they’re an Ego-star shipper. It’s my first time seeing them leaving comments.]

ㄴ[Can’t focus on the blue-haired tanning bully wwww]

[Ice mango. Fuck hahahaha.[This is going to be today’s snack]

*

“Do you want to have iced mango for snacks today?”

I touched my forehead as Seo-eun talked while laughing at me.

…I feel like my nickname list is increasing.