Fated to Be Loved by Villains

EP - 027.1 - Purifier

“…Do! Dowd! Are you okay!”

I hear a voice calling me like that amidst my faint consciousness.

Then I could feel a hand pulling me out from the rubble of the collapsed building.

Dust and broken debris tumble from my body.

“…Elnore?”

As I was dragged out, I met eyes with Elnore, who was looking at me with a worried look.

“You…!”

Elnore's eyes shook as she fully confirmed my condition.

I'm probably pretty injured.

Well, I was helplessly crushed by a collapsed building.

“…”

This is what happens when the skill doesn’t activate. 

As I confirmed before in the mock dungeon, the skill would only react to attacks that are 'hostile.'

If it was simply a building collapsing due to the aftermath of the impact, then Dowd Campbell's F stats will remain as is. 

‘Fractures, concussion, dislocated joints…’

My vision was shaky as I feel warm liquid flowing down my face. I was dizzy and uncomfortable.

“…Huu.”

Right. This is how it goes. 

An insect-like existence's life, whose stats are all F, is as fragile as a candle in the wind. There's simply no other way around it. 

〚…This is amazing.〛

With quivering eyes, I stared up at the sky where a mutated Marquis Riverback floated. 

The Devil's Essence that he swallowed earlier is now lodged in the middle of his chest, pulsating like a heart.

With demonic energy wrapping around his body like armor, he was already too far gone from being human.

An abomination.

There is no other way to put it.

〚When the Prophet gave me this, I wondered if there would even be a situation where I would use this.〛

He grinned as he looked down at me and Elnore.

〚I’ll admit it. You were more troublesome than I thought. 〛

Then, he flew up to a higher altitude.

〚However, will you be able to handle this?〛

Yeah.

I wonder about that too, you btch.

‘…Straight from the first chapter.’

I can't believe this worldly bullsht. 

Looking at Marquis River back swiftly flying away, I inwardly sighed. It’s a speed that I didn't even try to think of catching up to.

Originally, the ‘corrupted power’ that Marquis Riverback would have used is generally like a devil by-product.

It's a power that humans have researched and crudely mimicked. 

On the other hand, the ‘Devil's Essence’... 

They are items that contain the ‘remnants’ of the devil. Using it will turn one into a demon, able to wield a very small portion of their power. 

For example.

-!

-!!!

Elnore’s expression hardened upon seeing 'things' suddenly rising from the fallen debris. 

Without a semblance of their human form, a 'thing' couldn't be more apt in describing their grotesque shapes. They're but amalgamations of melted flesh.

Their screeches, like metal scraping, clearly indicated their hostility to every living being nearby. 

“Hii, hiik!”

“What is that…!”

Curious about the sudden collapse of a building, people naturally started to gather to get a whiff of the large-scale incident. However, they immediately bolted away after seeing these freaks of nature. 

‘…This is not good.’

The spread of demonic energy will spawn creatures similar to those in Pandemonium, the devil's home. 

And these? These are the same devil worshipers that Elnore had cut down earlier.

Under the influence of Marquis Riverback, who turned into a demon, they transformed into ‘Man Eaters’, the bottom dwellers of the Pandemonium.

Other than their threatening combat power, what’s more troublesome was that any human they killed will also turn into a Man Eater.

It’s a chain reaction, like a zombie apocalypse.

To make matters worse, they were in the middle of a busy shopping district, and the area was packed with people who had come for the Full Moon Festival. 

It was the worst place at the worst time.

[ Main Quest ]〖 Chapter 1 – Purifier 〗

[ Defeat the ‘Purifier’! ]

[ It's game over if there's too many casualties!! ]

[ Reward: 1 Evil Essence ]

[ Reward: 1 Hero Fragment ]

[ Reward: 5,000pt ]

And once again, the system did not disappoint, as a damned quest appeared right in front of my eyes.

Reducing the number of casualties here is not a joke.

-!

-!!

Right after the Man Eaters mutated, a lightning-like blow suddenly shut their mouths.

It was a textbook strike using a spear. Several Man Eaters who tried to stand up were pierced and got sent flying.

“Hyeong-nim! What the hell is this…!”

Wiping the blood on my forehead, I saw Tallion running towards me from a distance. 

Did this guy make that strike?

"I heard a commotion and came to see what's going on! What are those monsters, and Marquis Riverback...!"

This is nice to see. 

Originally, at this point, this guy should have become corrupted and turned into something similar to that. 

“If you were still wearing the necklace, you would have turned into something like that.”

“…Yes?”

Instead of answering, I simply pointed my finger at one of the Man Eaters.

The evil energy emanating from the House of Purification's necklace, that's still hanging around its neck, is clearly visible to anyone. 

Normally, it would just end with them losing a bit of their sanity. But now, they've completely crossed a river of no return as they've transformed into a Man Eater. 

Seeing this, Tallion’s eyes widened.

“…This.”

His expression rapidly changed by the second.

He's probably quickly organizing the current situation in his head.

"I just want to confirm one thing."

"What is it?"

"...Did Marquis Riverback lead this incident?"

He had dropped the honorifics. He may be asking a question, but he already seemed half-convinced. 

He was probably told to ‘make sure to wear the necklace’ several times on a regular basis.

I smiled at the anger in Tallion's eyes. 

Well, he ain't no npc. 

As someone designed to be Elijah’s rival, his ability to judge and act in an emergency could not be compared to ordinary students.

“We can discuss responsibility and mistakes later. For now, if we don’t deal with that, this place will become hell.”

He somehow stabalized his shaky gaze and aptly conveyed.

I have gained his ‘trust’ by making him take off the necklace.

And now, it’s time to reap this advantage.

“Listen to me carefully. If you make even one mistake, it's over.”

I proceeded to give him instructions.

At first, he was listening to me with a serious expression, then it changed to absurdity, and in the end, he was looking at me like he was looking at a madman.

“…That, is that even possible?”

“Yes.”

It has to. 

I didn't run around everywhere for nothing.

If you can’t do that much, it's the end. 

“Then, what about Hyeong-nim…?”

“I’m going to take care of something else.”

‘I have two goals.’

The first is to prevent civilian casualties in the area.

The Man Eaters are still sluggish right now, but as time passes and the demonic energy grows thicker, they will become faster and stronger.

Most of the ‘instructions’ I just gave Tallion were just to block them.

And the second goal is... 

“We need to cut the root.”

We need to eliminate Marquis Riverback, the source of the demonic energy.

That's what I'm going to do. 

“Do you know where he went?”

Elnore asked in a low voice.

She's probably asking how we could chase after someone flying that fast. 

“Yes, well. I have my guess.”

Should I say that I have an idea?

Actually, there is only one.

I can’t make mistakes.