The practical entrance examination held by nearly every academy in Academy City at this time each year.
Anyone living in the world of Hunters was bound to pay attention to the examination, where the scions of prestigious families, the disciples of renowned figures, and sprouts possessing outstanding talent all gathered.
Among them were people whose Hunter licenses had been revoked for abandoning the code of the Hunters or committing serious crimes—people commonly referred to as “villains.”
The woman was one such person.
“The night in Academy City is very different from the ‘outside world.’ Crimes like this are happening constantly in places no one can see.”
“Ah….”
“For villains like me, it’s practically the perfect environment to live in hiding. Sure, there are people who patrol the place, but all I have to do is avoid being noticed by them. Besides, even they generally don’t come to places like this.”
“Ugh….”
“You never know what might happen, so didn’t you hear anything like that while preparing to come to Academy City?”
“….”
“Or perhaps you thought it was nothing more than an urban legend and didn’t believe it.”
Academy City, District 23.
An alley far from the bustling downtown, hidden in the shadows of high-rise buildings.
The woman, having cast barrier magic that repelled the footsteps of passersby, quietly looked up at the examinee.
“Ugh….”
“It would be best not to struggle. You might get cut.”
The examinee was suspended in midair, bound by invisible threads.
Each time the examinee struggled, the threads tightened around their body.
The threads digging deep into their clothes and flesh left wounds like paper cuts.
Blood slowly seeped from those wounds and trickled along the threads.
Drip, drip, drip….
The drops fell with a sound like raindrops gathering on a spiderweb before falling.
The woman caught the blood in her palm and licked it as though tasting it.
“Bland. Tasteless. I expected nothing from a yellow examinee tag, but it’s exactly as I thought. The mana dissolved in your blood is nothing special.”
As if she had eaten something filthy, the woman spat the blood remaining in her mouth onto the ground.
The examinee, their consciousness fading after being attacked by the woman, opened their mouth at intervals.
“Why….”
Their voice was small and feeble.
They could not even finish their sentence.
But the woman could infer the rest of the broken question.
“Why am I doing this to you?”
“….”
“There’s no particular reason. I happened to have nothing to do lately and was bored, and the noise all over the city had been irritating me. If I had to call it a reason, I suppose it was taking my frustration out on someone. Simple amusement?”
“Ah….”
“What? Did you think there would be some reason? Sorry, but the lack of a reason is the reason. You’re not worth having a reason for. You just… yes, that’s right. You were simply unlucky.”
“Whimper….”
“But if you insist on finding some value in it, your appearance suits my tastes, so I thought I could dress you up nicely. And above all….”
The woman sharply slashed the air with one hand, her nails decorated with nail art.
The examinee bound by the threads slid downward until they were nearly level with the woman’s eyes.
The woman then reached out her hand.
“This is the reason.”
Her finger tapped the examinee tag attached to the examinee.
“I suddenly wondered just how much outstanding talent the examinees applying to Geumgang Academy, considered the best in Academy City, possessed. Someday, you’ll become my enemies, won’t you? Or perhaps you might even end up joining our side. So, as a villain, I wanted to check your potential.”
“….”
“That’s why I need your body.”
“My… body…?”
“Yes, your body.”
“What do you mean…?”
“If I take over your body, won’t I be able to observe the examinees up close? I doubt those instructors at Geumgang Academy would ever imagine that I would infiltrate the academy this way.”
“Ah….”
“It was already an academy with a lot of people, so there were some weaknesses in its security. But with tens of thousands of examinees coming and going from outside, do you really think they’ll notice me?”
“P-Please, spare me….”
The examinee’s pupils trembled violently.
The woman lifted the examinee’s chin with one hand, and delight spread across her lips.
“No.”
The woman took a bead from her pocket.
Holding the bead in her mouth, she—
“Mmph…!”
Forced her lips against the examinee’s and pushed the bead inside with her tongue.
The examinee struggled desperately to avoid swallowing it, but they could not overcome the woman’s strength.
In the end, the examinee swallowed the bead.
Immediately afterward—
“Ah…. Ah, ah, aaaah, aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
The examinee let out a scream that echoed throughout the surroundings.
It sounded as if their soul were being torn to shreds and reduced to nothingness.
“There’s no point in screaming like that. No one can hear you inside the barrier. Well, that isn’t the reason you’re screaming, I suppose.”
The woman silently watched as the examinee cried out in agony, even vomiting up great mouthfuls of blood.
And after a while—
“….”
The examinee’s scream abruptly cut off. Their limbs went limp, and their head drooped toward the ground.
But that lasted only a moment.
Creak, creak.
The examinee’s joints creaked with grotesque sounds.
“It’s working well.”
When the examinee raised their head, light had returned to the eyes that had lost all their luster.
The woman looked at the examinee’s face and smiled.
The examinee wore the same expression as her and opened their mouth.
Their manner of speaking was almost identical to hers.
“This is perfect. I was bored anyway. I’ll go enjoy what it feels like to be a student and see if there are any interesting-looking kids around.”
The woman responded.
Their conversation continued.
“Focus on the promising ones. The children of the Ten Great Families and other prestigious households.”
“And the disciples of renowned figures?”
“Come to think of it, I heard that the Disciple of the Battle Demon was old enough to apply to an academy now….”
“Do you think they applied to Geumgang Academy?”
“They’re the Disciple of the Battle Demon. Wouldn’t they?”
“It would be nice if we could see them.”
“Even if you do, don’t kill them for no reason.”
“Because they’re still young?”
“It’s not as though I have a grudge against the Battle Demon. I can’t eliminate a sprout that hasn’t even grown yet. It would be a waste to kill them, too. Unless that sprout turns out to be truly threatening.”
“Exactly. Waiting for them to grow is exciting, and fun, too.”
“What kind of child will they be?”
“I want to make them my puppet.”
“What if they aren’t your type?”
“Then I’ll just kill them.”
“What about the others?”
“I’m curious. I wonder what kind of kids there will be.”
“No one will know who I really am, right?”
“They won’t. How could they know? The owner of this body died long ago.”
“That my soul is inside it?”
“Surely no one will notice.”
“That’s true. There’s no way anyone could figure it out.”
One of the highest-ranking executives of the Demon Society.
One of the Six Demons.
“No one will. No one ever will.”
In the darkness, the Puppet Ogress, Lee Ga-hyeon, declared it with certainty.
* * *
When we left the Brilliant Café, night had already descended.
Do Si-eun repeatedly warned us.
“The night in Academy City is very different from the ‘outside world,’ so be careful. If you happen to take a dark path, you might get unlucky and become entangled with some nasty people, so try to stick to the main roads whenever possible. And especially, don’t go anywhere near the slums.”
“Got it, Noona. I’ll be careful.”
“I’ll make sure Gyeon-u doesn’t wander down any strange roads.”
“…You’re saying that as if I’m bound to do so.”
“You’re not going to?”
“Living in Academy City, you never know….”
“Don’t go. It’s dangerous.”
“…All right, Noona.”
I felt bad about lying so decisively to Do Si-eun.
To progress through the game’s story, I would eventually have to enter the slums.
But since I could not exactly announce that I intended to enter the slums openly, I brushed it off with a bitter smile.
For reference, the people living in Academy City referred to the world outside Academy City as the “outside world” or the “mainland,” distinguishing it from Academy City.
They regarded Academy City as a world separate from their own.
In reality, Academy City, which was practically a world made for Hunters, and Korea, where civilians made up a greater proportion of the population, were subject to different laws and had entirely different ways of life.
“Then I’ll be heading back. I still have some things to take care of.”
“I had a great meal, Noona!”
“See you next time, Unni!”
And so we parted ways with Do Si-eun.
We headed toward the hotel.
To prepare for tomorrow’s examination, it seemed best to return, wash up quickly, and go to sleep.
‘There are only three examinations left now….’
I suddenly recalled the examination schedule.
Starting with the third examination, we would not return to our accommodations midway through the day as we had today. We would eat and sleep at the gate.
So if an examinee were to be replaced during an examination—
‘It would have to be today.’
I was certain of it.
Because I knew the game’s story, I could predict what would happen during the practical examinations ahead.
Surely, by now, in some place unknown to me, one of the troublesome villains had taken over an examinee’s body.
And then—
‘She’ll try to infiltrate the examination to spy on the examinees’ abilities.’
A considerable number of examinees had already been eliminated during the first and second examinations.
For a villain intending to conduct reconnaissance, this was the perfect opportunity.
Knowing that future—
“Heun-neul.”
“Yes. Whyyy?”
“Be careful starting tomorrow.”
“Hm?”
“If someone threatens you, don’t show them any mercy.”
“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“Take care of all of them. I’ll give you permission.”
Of course, I had to prepare.
I had to get ready to face Lee Ga-hyeon, the Puppet Ogress, one of the game’s major villains.
“Um… do I need your permission?”
“Of course. I’m your owner, after all.”
“Honestly….”
Yeon Ha-neul looked dumbfounded.
Still, she didn’t deny it.
I became the childhood friend of the Mid-Boss.