“…This is the place.”

Ha-Yul gazed at the deserted back alley.

A back alley where you couldn’t see ahead, let alone sense any presence, due to the lack of light sources.

It was a different world from the dazzling night view of the city that hurt the eyes in the distance. He moved his feet to such a place and expressed his doubts.

“Why is there no one here? This place is strange…What is this?”

This is definitely the spot.

He was sent to by his superiors, who even canceled the vacation they had given him, saying there was an urgent task.

They had given him a vacation to get him away from the field, but now they were calling him back.

His annoyance was about to explode, but he somehow suppressed it and came to the designated location, only to find this.

Forget about there being anything. There wasn’t even a single person. There should at least be someone to explain the situation.

…He had a hunch. That something was up.

“Whew… Huff…”

To calm his mind and body, he took out a cigarette from her pocket and put it in his mouth.

Based on his experience with countless superhuman crimes, he always had to be thoroughly prepared if he were put into an abnormal situation.

If he noticed nothing wrong, then he subconsciously realized that something was suspicious.

“To get this unpleasant feeling at a location designated by my superiors. What on earth is going on…”

“As expected of an investigator, you have good instincts. You remind me of Siwoo.”

“?!”

There was definitely no sign of anyone’s presence!

The moment he heard the voice, Ha-Yul kicked the ground to leave the spot and took a deep breath.

Whoever it was, to address him without any presence in a place like this.

It was extremely suspicious.

‘I have to subdue them immediately and find out what’s going on…!’

“Oh my, don’t move. If you do… you’ll die?”

“…D-damn it.”

Cold sweat trickled down.

Through the smoke from the cigarette he was smoking, he saw thin threads.

The threads were spread out as if enveloping him. To others, they might seem like ordinary threads.

…But he could instinctually tell. His life was no longer in his hands.

He had seen these threads many times. He had investigated them thoroughly before he went on vacation, so there was no way he couldn’t remember.

They were Arachne’s threads.

‘Damn it. If only I had a little more time!’

Then these measly threads wouldn’t even be able to touch him.

If he showed even the slightest sign of resistance, it was obvious that his neck would be gone in an instant.

… It’s over.

“… Wasn’t Arachne only supposed to kill villains? Ha, this is why I hate villains. If something doesn’t go as you, you’ll do anything…”

‘Was I a hindrance?’
While chasing Arachne, he had thought it would be dangerous. Still, he never imagined there would be retaliation when he had stopped the pursuit.

‘Damn, am I going to die here?’

Claire’s nagging voice suddenly came to his mind.

She was always noisy, telling him to stop doing dangerous things.

When she was worried that another incident would occur where she lost her former colleague and friend, Ha-Yul brushed it off, telling her not to worry.

‘… She’s going to cry a lot again. Damn it. I had decided not to make her cry anymore.’

“Hello, Investigator. It’s been a while?”

Thump, thump.

In the alley with no people and no sound, the footsteps echoed hauntingly.

The sight of her approaching was perhaps to be expected.

“…So it was you after all, Arte Iris. You were the culprit.”

The girl he had been continuously suspected approached him with her ominous eyes slightly open.

Her smile, combined with those ominous eyes, felt as if they were mocking me.

“You’ve been quite a nuisance, Investigator. To bother me even when I have an alibi.”

“…”

“What do you think I’ll do to you?”

It’s obvious without even looking.

The instinct to eliminate bothersome obstacles is common to all humans, and in a way, it’s a natural behavior.

If it’s a person, most people avoid them, try to correct them, or endure it, but…

Villains are different.

There’s no need to go through the trouble. They can just get rid of nuisances.

“You’ll kill me. Damn it.”

“No, I was going to let you live.”

“What?”

What is she talking about?

‘…Not going to kill me? Why?’

“There’s a reason for everything. I have no intention of killing you.”

“…Then why did you attack me?”

“Oh my, attack? Let’s call it restraint, shall we? You’re not even hurt anywhere.”

Her blunt words were repulsive.

In the end, she’s also a villain. Although she’s still keeping him alive, it must be because she has some kind of plan.

Having his life held hostage by a villain, his mood plummeted to the depths.

“…Well, it’s nothing much. I just want to make you an offer.”

“An offer?”

“Yes, an offer. It’s not difficult.”

Whoosh.

In an instant, the threads floating around him wrapped around his body and forcibly lifted him to his feet.

“?!”

“Ah, don’t move, okay? I’m not used to this, so I might tear your limbs if you resist too much. If you don’t want to end up in the hospital, it’s best to stay still.”

Hearing Arte’s words, he completely relaxed my body.

Resistance was meaningless. It was obvious that doing so in this situation would yield no results.

The thought that he would either die or experience an excruciatingly painful time crossed his mind.

“What’s the offer?”

“… It’s not difficult, right? Come, let’s go together.”

He didn’t even want to think about what happened after that.

A terrible sensation.

As if his body wasn’t his own. Like walking on clouds in a dream.

Ha-Yul realized how unpleasant it was to entrust your body to someone else.

It felt like becoming a puppet tied to the strings of a puppeteer.

No, it’s not even different, is it? He was literally tied up with threads and forcibly dragged around.

To think that he would end up entrusting his life, which he wouldn’t even fully trust to a reliable colleague, to a villain.

It was truly a cruel twist of fate.

“Well, we’ve arrived.”

“Where is this?”

“The outskirts of Übermensch’s hideout. A place where half of the remaining remnants are.”

“…!”

Ha-Yul didn’t know what she was trying to do, but Ha-Yul could easily imagine what would happen here.

Suddenly, the terrible scene from the mountain lodge came to mind, which was why he first took on the Arachne case.

“Now, look over there. They’re villains.”

“…Villains? What are they doing right now?”

“What else? You’ll know when you see it, right?”

‘What on earth is she trying to show me?’

It was too dark to see clearly, so he unconsciously squinted his eyes to look, and only after they adjusted to the darkness did he realize.

A disgusting act was unfolding.

“Why are you showing this to me? I’ve already seen countless things like this. If you were trying to shock me…”

“No, it’s not about shock or anything. …Those people, if it were you, what would you do to them?”

“What?”

“If it were you, what would you do to them?”

“What a strange question. Of course, arrest…”

“And after arresting them?”

Abruptly.

His eyes, focused on the disgusting scene, now captured Arte’s ominous eyes.

She looked like the devil.

“If you arrest them, they will go to prison, right?”

“Of course. If you commit a crime, you have to pay the price.”

“Are the victims satisfied?”

“What?”

“The victims who were harmed by the villains. What did they and their bereaved families say?”

“Th-that’s…”

At her question, he seemed to hear the resentment of the countless victims he had met.

It’s not just one or two.

Why is the sentence only that much? Why are they released after paying bail?

Why, why, why, why.

The words of numerous victims echoed in his ears.

“Don’t you have it too? The experience of someone close to you being seriously hurt by villains. …Like a colleague dying?”

“H-how do you know that…!”

“It’s only natural if you’ve been in this industry for over a decade. Isn’t that right? That villain who hurt your loved one, what is he doing now?”

“He’s serving his sentence. Why are you…!”

“Aha. I see… Are you sure?”

“What are you trying to say?!”

“Doesn’t that person look somewhat familiar?”

Ha-Yul, who was about to shout something at Arte, had no choice but to shut his mouth.

…The sight of a familiar face.

“N-no way…”

“Serving his sentence? Ahaha. Then who is that person over there?”

“Th-that can’t be. That’s impossible. He killed an Association detective! A criminal who killed a superhuman!”

“You know it too, don’t you? That villains can also return to society.”

“…!”

He knows.

The fact that if you break through the extreme survival rate and serve for a certain period on the front lines, you can return to society.

But, no way. There’s no way…!

“The criminal who killed your former colleague is committing another crime. This time as part of a much larger criminal organization.”

“…”

“Ah, but what can we do? Even if a villain is caught, if they’re lucky, they can return to society again. Since he survived once, the second time will be even easier.”

“…”

“The number of unfortunate victims will only increase, and the suffering of the citizens will pierce the sky!”

The horrific scene before his eyes and the heinous scene etched in his mind overlapped.

The victims are different. But the perpetrator is the same.

The monster who killed people and laughed openly was repeating the same actions after being released into society.

“…What on earth are you trying to say?”

“Ahaha, ahahaha! Have you finally become willing to listen?”

“Tell me! Fucking tell me! What are you trying to say?!”

Arte, laughing loudly enough to be heard by the villains in the distance, suddenly stopped laughing and said to me.

“Investigator Lee Ha-Yul.”

“…”

“I will make you an offer you cannot refuse.”

The threads slowly loosened.

Even though the threads on my arms and legs had loosened, allowing him to escape, he stood rooted to the spot.

Even when the threads around his neck, which had forced him to look at the terrible scene, loosened, he still kept watch over that scene.

He was already caught by the devil.

“Arachne wants you.”

“…Me?”

“Won’t you join us in cleansing society of its trash?”

_______________________________________

Author’s Notes

Why do people have to work on the weekends?

Bosses are bad!!!

Oh, and I’ve made a post for all of the fanarts.

I’ll update it whenever I get new ones.