Chapter 2: Girl’s head (1)

There is such a thing as madness in the world.

Usually, that madness is divided into two categories.

They are called false madness and true madness.

However, this cursed world was a stage for the ‘true’ ones.

[Madness is sent by God, but sanity comes from man.]

–Plato–

Perhaps because it was the words of a great philosopher, I found much to agree with.

Just as he said, madness is sent by God.

From the moment that damned God threw me into this insane world, I couldn’t help but firmly believe Plato’s words.

Honestly, I don’t know whose doing it is, but who else but a god could do such a thing?

Turning a perfectly normal person into a character in this garbage game.

****

[A strong and powerful morning! Today is December 24th! It’s 6 AM!]

My eyes naturally opened at the strong and powerful alarm sound.

I went to the bathroom in my pajamas to start my day.

After washing my face and brushing my teeth, I admired my now-familiar reflection.

She really is beautiful, still.

It’s not just her face.

Her modest chest and slender waist, just by their silhouette, could quite easily charm men.

Moreover, her body isn’t just fair and free of excess fat; it’s also beautifully toned with muscle.

With such looks, one could even pick a few rich people in this cursed world and live luxuriously.

Though one probably wouldn’t live long, oh well.

“Ah, damn it… I forgot to buy milk yesterday.”

Of course, that’s just talk because it’s physiologically impossible for me.

I absolutely have no intention of living that way.

Also, her eyes are red and lifeless, which is unsettling, but maybe that’s just a matter of personal preference?

Anyway, I am one of the common folk living an ordinary life.

I’m the kind of person who wakes up in the morning, grabs a quick meal, and then goes out to earn money to live another day.

But if there’s one peculiar thing about me.

“When I come home, milk and eggs… oh, and cabbage and beer. Anything else I need to buy?”

I am a resident of ‘Hero City,’ a city managed by superhumans known as Awakened.

Yes, hearing the name, can you roughly guess now?

This cursed world is based on a game called ‘Hero Maker.’

A character-raising gacha game where you train heroes and protect the city’s safety from villains.

Unfortunately, I am trapped in the body of an unfortunate girl from that world, living this cursed life.

[Character List]

∙Name – Capella

∙Age – 18

∙Awakening Grade – A

∙Category – Villain

∙Description – The Corvo Family’s Executioner.

Trained as a killing machine by the mafia organization ‘Corvo Family’ from a young age. For 10 years, she has eliminated numerous Awakened, including both heroes and villains. There are records of her eliminating Awakened of higher grades than herself, so exercise caution upon discovery.

That girl’s name was Capella.

At the age of eight, her entire family was murdered by a superhuman who appeared in the city, and she, on the verge of death, accidentally awakened her power and barely survived alone—a tragic girl.

After becoming an orphan, she wandered various places until she was picked up by the mafia and raised as their executioner.

She eventually ended up being treated as a villain, fighting heroes, and ultimately concluding her appearance as a villain with an unfortunate past, but…

“Oh, right, Christmas is coming soon.”

After I became that Capella, the story changed a little.

As is typical for possession stories, I also know the original story’s knowledge, so my situation is better than the original Capella’s.

Although it was impossible to protect my parents back then and I ended up an orphan, I also had no intention of becoming the mafia’s hunting dog, so I came into this city.

Many heroes in this world are monsters, so if I became a villain, I wouldn’t live out my natural lifespan.

Furthermore, no matter how strong an Awakened Capella is, facing multiple heroes is impossible, and there are countless stronger Awakened, so you have to give up on innate talent, right?

Becoming a target for heroes is absolutely out of the question.

This is why I’m not becoming a villain like the original.

If I had, I might have enjoyed a brief period of luxury thanks to the mafia.

“While I’m at it, I should buy a gift today.”

So, the conclusion is that living unnoticed is the best in this world.

Fortunately, within Hero City, even as an Awakened, there’s no threat of being forced into the military or abducted by the government.

Also, there’s no reason to unnecessarily draw attention and become a target of heroes’ vigilance, and if something dangerous happens, I can just go into a shelter and quietly keep myself safe.

I have lived unnoticed for 10 years that way.

And I will continue to do so.

[Due to sandstorms from the western desert, going out without a mask is prohibited in Floor C area, and especially outside the city walls, a monster appearance warning has been issued, so please be cautious.]

Someone might call me foolish for this.

That knowing the various secrets of this world and future knowledge, and possessing superhuman strength, living like this is just being lazy and cowardly.

If they were in my position, they could use that knowledge to become the strongest hero or the strongest villain.

It’s true.

Contrary to what’s known to the world, Awakened can continue to grow stronger even after awakening, and powerful treasures lie dormant throughout the world.

That’s precisely why I’m being cautious.

It’s because I know the dirty and ugly secrets of this cursed world, and I know about the existence of dangerous weapons that could plunge the entire world into crisis if things go even slightly wrong.

I didn’t have the confidence to handle such things.

Besides, I couldn’t become a hero or a villain in the first place.

****

“Hey, Mr. Kim! Eat your lunch and then work!”

“Yeah, miss, aren’t you eating?”

I appreciated their kindness, but I politely declined with a wave of my hand.

It’s easier to move around on an empty stomach.

“Then at least drink some water here. If you try to finish work too quickly in a place like this, you might just collapse.”

“Thank you.”

Perhaps thanks to the safety goggles covering my eyes, the laborers reacted quite normally.

The bottled water taken from the icebox was truly like the water of life.

Instead of eating, I moistened my throat with cool water, then wiped the sweat from my forehead and looked around.

The sweat-soaked laborers, taking a break, had gone under the tent to escape the sandstorm and were drinking coffee.

Outside the tent, there were traces of battle everywhere, and monster corpses, as large as trucks, were scattered here and there.

This was a workplace for moving monster corpses.

After heroes dealt with monsters that could harm their city, laborers processed the corpses.

If left alone, other monsters would gather, and monster corpses are said to contain many rare resources, so nothing goes to waste.

“This time, the corpses are relatively clean. Who thrashed these guys so neatly?”

I kept a slight distance from the other laborers while drinking my bottled water.

I don’t particularly like conversation, and I prefer to rest quietly alone.

Even so, I could hear everything they were talking about.

“They say the Golden Witch handled it. Thanks to her, we just have to load up the holed monsters. It’s also hard to deploy equipment with this sandstorm.”

‘A magic-type hero, I see. That’s why they were dealt with so cleanly.’

Usually, machines are used more than laborers in such cases, but on days like today with sandstorms, there’s a risk of malfunction, so people are used instead.

But it’s not good for people to inhale sand dust either.

They do provide work goggles and masks, but they don’t completely block everything.

The reason they still use laborers is because people are cheaper than machines.

Additionally, it’s to create jobs in the city.

“And thanks to that young lady, the work is progressing quickly. She looks young, but she’s incredibly strong. Much better than most young lads.”

“Could that young lady possibly be a C or B-grade Awakened?”

Moreover, they aren’t ordinary people either.

Naturally, only Awakened, people with superhuman strength, not ordinary citizens, are accepted at such workplaces.

Even if they look like ordinary middle-aged men, they possess enough strength to tear apart a bear.

“You joke well. If that were the case, why would she be doing this tough work instead of hero work? Sigh, if only my daughter were as kind and diligent as that young lady…”

“Didn’t you say Mr. Park’s daughter is going to high school next year?”

“Don’t even get me started. A few days ago, she got caught secretly taking her old man’s cigarettes and had a big fight with her mom.”

Instead, it was lower-grade Awakened, those not strong enough to be heroes, just about 3-4 times stronger than ordinary people, who were working here.

For these Awakened, at best, dealing with one or two weak monsters is their limit, so even if the B-grade monster corpses here were to gather in a group, they would be difficult to handle.

Therefore, doing this kind of daily labor is the safest way to earn some money.

The daily wage is quite high due to the risks, which is why I’m doing this for extra income.

Because I can earn enough for about a month’s living expenses with this.

“It should be about time…”

As the break time was nearing its end, I checked the current time.

2 PM.

The time when Hero Association staff, including heroes, eat lunch, and when supervisors with some standing enter the city to eat at a restaurant instead of having a packed lunch.

Now would be the perfect time for an attack.

Bang—!

“What’s that explosion sound?!”

An explosion occurred in a corner of the workplace.

The laborers, startled while eating, all got up from their seats, and most climbed onto trucks, preparing to flee.

“Everyone, hurry up and get on! Where did that young lady go?!”

“She must have gotten on another truck! Just leave quickly! If we dawdle, we’ll all die!”

Even the highest-grade Awakened among the laborers here was only C-grade.

Even they weren’t active heroes, so they couldn’t even buy time.

If there were surviving monsters, staying here would surely lead to a massacre, so they were getting onto the trucks and evacuating as per the manual.

Equipment can be collected later, but if people die, it’s over.

“…Just as I said it, they arrived.”

I looked for something suitable to use as a weapon, and just then, I picked up a crowbar that seemed good for swinging.

Since it was a workplace, acquiring a weapon was easy.

Then, let’s go do some serious work.

A smile naturally formed on my face at the sight of money rolling in on its own.

I didn’t come to this construction site just to get a daily wage; I came to hunt the ‘villain’ who would attack this place.