Chapter 307: A Night for Two

Since I was imprisoned time has passed very quickly.

The prison was narrow to begin with… Well, not exactly narrow, more like wide, but still, being in an enclosed space makes time go by slowly but for some reason, it went by so fast.

And the reason is.

“Huh? What’s wrong?”

…Because of her next to me, of course.

I looked over at Stardus, who was sitting next to me, squinting and working, and I couldn’t help but smile.

It’s been a few days since we’ve been in this prison together.

…And in that time, I’ve found myself growing quite a bit closer to her.

I was on the couch and she was sitting next to me, tapping away at her laptop, she looked at me and said with a slight smile.

“…You work next to a villain Stardus, aren’t you being a little too careless?”

I said, glancing at the laptop screen.

…Even when she’s here with me, she’s still working as a hero.

She was out last night taking down a villain when she heard about the attack, and the next day she was writing a report on him.

Stardust smirked at my words, then glanced at me and said.

“Whatever. It’s not exactly dangerous information for you to see.”

Then she turned her attention back to the laptop screen.

She smiled softly, then opened her mouth to speak.

“…I wouldn’t mind if you see it.”

With that, she turned back to her work.

I muttered to myself, “Is that so…” and stared at the couch for a moment, lost in thought.

…What does she mean when she says it’s okay if it’s me?

Is it because I’m a safe villain who wouldn’t do anything dangerous with her secrets if I saw them? Or is she just saying something to sway my mind? Or is it…

“…..”

Yeah, what the hell am I going to do now?

I shook myself out of my thoughts and listened to the sound of her typing next to me.

-Tapping, tapping, tapping.

…just like that time passed quickly as she and I worked on various things together for nearly a week.

“How is it?”

“…Delicious, Stardus, you’re a good cook, aren’t you?”

“…I’m not going to let you off the hook for flattering me like that.”

“Haha. Did you catch me? I’m not lying when I say it’s delicious.”

“….. Want some more?”

I take a bite of her dish.

“…Hey. Egostic. It was sent to me by a fan, but I’m bored, do you want to try this?”

“Jenga? No, where the hell did you get this?”

” You don’t have to…”

“No, this looks like fun, let’s do it.”

We played a board game together and I have no idea where she got it.

“…Egostic.”

“Yes, Stardus?”

“…From now on, when we’re together, don’t call me Stardus, call me Shin Haru, my real name. It’s ridiculous to call me by my hero’s name when it’s just the two of us.”

“…Um, uh, okay, Shin Haru. But do you mind telling me your real name so I know who you really are…”

“…You already knew that.”

“…Haha.”

“And now, tell me your name.”

“Uh, I’m… Wait, you’re leading me on so naturally….haha, just call me Egostic.”

“Tch…”

Actually, I couldn’t give her my name, even if I wanted to, because I’d already sold it once before on the beach, even though it might not be in the government’s records…

“…This is a little uncomfortable.”

“Is that why you don’t like it?”

“No. Here, let’s see what this is.”

…And I even took a walk outside Carqueas, with her in one hand and the ability-limiting cuffs on the other.

Then I realized that this island in the middle of a stormy sea was actually quite scenic during the day.

There’s even a park in the middle of it. It was probably designed for the inmates to come out for lunch, but since they never let the able-bodied out of their cells, there didn’t seem to be anyone else there except us.

We walked through the park with one handcuff on my left hand and the other on her right.

A gentle ocean breeze was blowing, and the sound of our words echoed in the middle of it all.

At some point, I noticed her glancing at my cuffed hands, which were now linked together like bracelets, and I opened my mouth to ask.

“…What’s wrong?”

“No. Aren’t you a little cold…?”

As I watched her wiggle and talk like that I opened my mouth to answer.

“Yeah, I know, my hands are getting cold.”

I said and she walked over and reached for my fingers.

I take her hands in mine and hold them tightly, as if I’d been the first one to embrace them.

“…It’s warm now, isn’t it?”

“….Yes.”

She nodded, her face slightly flushed.

I turned my head and looked toward the forest with a feverish expression on my face.

…I think I know her behavior pattern now.

I’m guessing she might be a charmer. It was like she decided to just seduce me and get me to like her enough to turn myself in and tell her all my secrets…

‘But what if?’

I liked her in the first place. I’d done all this for Stardus.

That’s why her plan didn’t work on me at all.

“…Nice. The view.”

“…Yeah.”

I clasped her warm, soft hand in mine, against the cold sea breeze. We walked through the park in silence, her warmth keeping me going.

Just like that, we enjoyed our prison escapades.

…To be honest, I enjoyed it.

Who am I in the first place? I’m Stardus’ biggest fan, probably more than anyone else in the world, and I can’t imagine not liking spending time with her like this.

Of course, there were a few times along the way when she wasn’t around.

“Egotistic, there’s been a terrorist attack in Seoul, so I’m off.”

“Okay. Bye.”

Just like now, when there was an attack.

Being a hero, she would be the first to fly. After all, her flight speed is fast enough to get from here to Seoul and back in a flash.

“… Can you not run away?”

“I won’t run away, so don’t worry.”

After I reassured her, she looked back at me with anxious eyes, and finally she left.

I was left alone, wondering what to do, when I suddenly realized something.

“…”

…Wait, why did I come here?

I came to kill a creature from the beginning of time, a Wish Granter who sleeps in the deepest depths of this prison but I was so busy playing with Stardus that I forgot.

…Then I realized that tomorrow would be a week already.

It was time to hunt down the Wish Granter.

“…”

With that, I sighed as I reached into my coat hanging in one of the closets and found the enchanted recording device safely tucked away.

…It was time to tell Stardus, and execute the operation sometime tomorrow.

Finally, the moment had come to part with her.

***

~And at that time~

“…Yes, it’s Haru. Why?”

“Uh, nothing… I’ve been sharing a room with Egostic lately, keeping an eye on him, but we don’t seem to be getting any closer than I thought…”

In the office of the president of the Yuseong Group, Lee Seola was listening to Stardus with a blushing face, her head bowed and her fingers fidgeting as she spoke.

‘…I envy you, Haru.’

She was dying to save the country from itself, and Haru only had to worry about her love life…

In the aftermath of Egostic imprisonment, Lee Seola is on the verge of overwork as she tries to calm the protests that have now grown to a national scale.

She sips caffeine as she listens to Stardus, who has come to receive counseling from her after leaving prison to quell terrorism.

More than that, she was shocked that Haru hadn’t made any progress with Egostic so far. How could that be?

Anyway, for such a frustrating friend, with a slightly tired and muddled brain, Lee Seola gave her some serious advice.

“Haru, you two should have a drink together.”

“…Drink?”

“Uh, alcohol is supposed to break down barriers and bring people closer together.”

“I see…”

As she said that, Lee Seola silently thought to herself.

‘I don’t know. If a man and a woman get together and drink alcohol, something will happen.’

“Wait, Haru, I’ll give you a bottle….”

With that, she staggered over to the closet and pulled out a bottle of wine from the depths.

“Here. Take this and drink it together. Then you’ll have your answer.”

“…Really? Thank you, Seola.”

Lee Seola handed the wine to Haru.

It tastes sweet when you drink it, but it’s actually very strong. It was a special wine that made you drunk in an instant.

As she watched Shin Haru leave with the bottle, Seola silently thought to herself.

‘…Right.’

Only when the two of them have made some progress will Da-in’s psychological barriers be lowered.

…Lee Seola, she had a plan.

*Pause

~That night~

“Egostic, do you want to have a drink?”

“What?”

Stardus returned to the cell with a bottle of wine in hand.

I hesitated for a moment, then said.

‘…Sure. I have to tell her my plans for tomorrow anyway.’

Maybe I can convince her with alcohol.

Wine doesn’t get you drunk much anyway.

“…Yeah. Sure. I’ll get a glass and some appetizers.”

I replied.

***

After we cleaned up, Stardus and I drank, and some time passed.

“Come on, Egostic, let’s make a toast. Cheers!”

“…Yeah.”

…I silently clinked my glass against Stardus’, who handed me a wine glass, red-faced and smirking.

In the darkened room illuminated only by a small light, I held my dizzy head and thought for a moment.

‘…Is this wine, is it stronger than I thought?’

Shin Haru, who is a weak drinker anyway, is already completely drunk. It wasn’t normal to see her laughing so uncharacteristically. It’s like she won’t remember what happened today.

…And I, myself, was actually quite disoriented.

“Hmph. Hmm. Hmm…”

…Although Stardus was really, really cute, holding a glass of wine and grinning from ear to ear with a flushed face.

Since I had something to say, I chewed on my snack for a moment to regain my composure before opening my mouth.

“Shin Haru, I have something to tell you.”

“Huh? What is it, a confession?”

“…No, of course not.”

For a moment, her words almost made me squeal with laughter, but I managed to hold it in.

After a moment of silence, I spoke.

“Shin Haru, I’m finally going to tell you why I came to Carqueas.”

…And so I explained my plan to her in detail.

Somewhere in this prison, an ancient creature called the Wish Granter is sealed away.

If left alone, it will surely harm this world, and I intend to destroy it.

So…I want her to help me.

I asked her to do so.

“…Something like that.”

“…”

She listened to me with a quietly serious face and when I finished, she was silent for a moment, thinking, then she smiled and opened her mouth.

“Okay, I’ll help.”

“…Phew. Thank you.”

…I breathed a sigh of relief at her words.

She’s for the people, after all…

Just as I was thinking.

“Egostic, you asked for it, so I’ll do it.”

She looked at me, smiling, jaw set, and said…..as if she was doing it for no other reason.

Her eyes were so sincere and for a moment, I was speechless.

While I was at it Stardus was silent for a moment, then took another sip of her drink and smiled at me.

“…Egotistic, thank you.”

“For what?”

“Just…Everything.”

“Haha. A hero thanking a villain. If anyone else hears that, I’ll make fun of you forever.”

“Haha… Yeah. Maybe.”

She shook her drink as she said that then yawned and turned to me.

“Shall we go to bed? You said you wanted to start tomorrow.”

“…Yeah, sure.”

“…Wait. Why don’t we watch a movie before we fall asleep, there’s a TV in front of the bed…”

“Sure.”

“Yeah…”

With that, Stardus stood up from her seat.

I watched her stagger for a moment, then quickly rose with her, standing beside her to support her.

Her soft arms slipped into mine.

“…”

I pushed the strange thought out of my mind as we reached the bed, and together, Stardus and I fiddled with the remote, turning on the television and scanning for a movie to watch.

“…That one. Yeah, let’s watch that.”

…And before I knew it, Stardus, still in the same supportive position she’d been in earlier, almost arm in arm with me, had selected a movie with a red face.

I nodded, and put the movie on.

…Why a romance movie.

Just like that we watched the movie, clinging to each other, the only light in the room coming from the TV.

The movie was simple.

A story about two people who love each other, but can’t because of their different identities.

…There’s a pretty sad scene in the middle, and Stardus sobbed next to me. She’s very sensitive.

While watching the movie I was drunk and thinking about other things with my brain.

…Is this right?

Should she and I be together like this? What does she, the hero, think of me, the villain? Is it just a ruse, or is there more to it?

I don’t know. My head hurts and I can’t think straight.

But I do know this.

I am, and always have been, single-minded.

So I watched the movie in silence, feeling her warmth on one side of my arm.

And so, at last, in the movie, their love is realized.

“…Egotistic.”

Stardust called out to me, quietly.

…and I met her blue eyes, watery, looking up at me.

I gave up trying to think anymore.

Just like that.

On the dark bed.

“…”

“…..”

Locking eyes with her, I moved my face silently closer to hers.

…

After that, I don’t remember much.