Olivier sprawled onto the sofa without even washing up.
“Maybe it’s because my clones are all working, but I’m exhausted.”
She was currently utilizing three clones.
Minjung Kim, secretary to the Agency Director.
Min-ah Kim, aide to the president of the Hanul Guild.
And Minju Kim, a researcher at the Hunter Research Center.
Recently, the Agency had suffered a terrorist attack, which led to the impeachment of the Director. Consequently, her workload as his aide had skyrocketed.
“There’s just too much work.”
Humans were always busy fighting among themselves. Originally, the position of Director of the Disaster Agency was one everyone coveted. Since the dawn of the Age of Gates, any position that could exert influence over Hunters sat at the very core of power.
Following the terrorist attack on the Disaster Agency, claims that the Director’s incompetence had invited such a tragedy led to persistent calls for his impeachment. Of course, the Director’s faction was fighting back, but the fallout was proving larger than expected.
“Humans, honestly.”
Even at a time when they should be uniting their strength, they were too busy dividing and fighting for their own interests.
At least the Demon King wasn’t like that. That was precisely why she had chosen to follow him. The Demon King didn’t discriminate between races; he bound everyone together under the single banner of freedom. When he became the king of monsters through absolute charisma, no one could stop him.
The Demon King intended to reign as the supreme ruler of the Continent.
That was when the Hero was summoned.
A Hero wielding the Heavenly Sword.
A man who enjoyed the full weight of the System’s miracles appeared. Within a single year, the Hero and the Seven Kingdoms alliance had subjugated the Demon King’s Army.
The resentment she felt then was indescribable. Because of an outsider who appeared out of nowhere, the Demon King had died. The legion, having lost its focal point, scattered.
Afterward, the War of the Seven Kingdoms began as they vied for hegemony over the Continent. The Hero, sacrificed for the sake of power, drew his sword once more to protect his beliefs. Usually, a Hero would lose in that situation. However, the Hero forced the Seven Kingdoms to their knees during the Ten-Year War.
“The Hero…”
Originally, it was a word filled with nothing but enmity. But now, it felt a bit complicated. A powerful enemy. It felt strange to have such a person on her side now.
When she met the Hero again, she had asked the Demon King, Im Jaejoon, if he held a grudge against him. It wasn’t that she doubted the Demon King’s magnanimity, but it seemed strange not to harbor resentment toward the person who had thwarted his life’s work.
‘If I had failed, I might have felt some resentment,’ the Demon King had replied.
In the end, the Continent the Hero created was the world the Demon King had wanted. Only their methods had differed.
*Beep, click.*
The door opened, and a woman in office attire walked in. It was the clone Min-ah Kim, returning home after finishing work at the Hanul Guild. Upon entering the house, the clone naturally dissolved into fragments of data and vanished.
The clone was absorbed into Olivier’s main body. At that moment, Olivier furrowed her brow.
It was starting again. That crazy guy.
***
“Hello, Ma’am.”
“It’s hot today. Keep up the hard work.”
The security guard at the desk stared blankly at the woman as she walked past with a kind greeting. She was like a flower on a cliff, seemingly unreachable no matter how far one stretched their hand.
She was beautiful, competent, and had an impressive career. Serving as the president’s personal aide, she was a career woman who stirred the hearts of many men.
*Click-clack.*
Min-ah Kim—no, Olivier—walked down the hallway, heading toward Team 3 instead of the aide’s office. She had urgent business with Lee Hyunbin today.
*Creeeeeak.*
When she opened the door to the Team 3 training room, a wave of sweltering heat hit her. Some people were doing weight training, and in one corner, a blond man was sprawled out like a corpse. At the tip of the blondie’s finger, a dying message was written in blood.
*Swish—*
The name ‘Lee Hyunbin’ was erased by Olivier’s foot before the last character could be finished. Enmity aside, the Hero was now a comrade in the same boat. If something bad happened to him, the consequences would fall on her as well.
“Team Leader Lee?”
“Oh, what’s up?”
The detestable man climbed down from the ring with a refreshed face, having just finished a sparring session. On the ring, the three foreign brothers who had recently joined were sprawled out spread-eagle. Even through his clothes, his lean, practical muscles were evident.
Olivier flinched and adjusted her gaze after catching herself staring involuntarily. Lee Hyunbin, wiping away sweat with a towel, crinkled his eyes. He then struck a pose like a contestant in a bodybuilding competition and asked, “What do you think? Good definition, right?”
“Phew… I have no interest in such scrawny muscles.”
“Like I’m interested in your scrawny…”
Olivier reflexively threw a jab at Lee Hyunbin’s chin.
“What gives? Why’d you hit me? Huh? Huh?”
“You clearly don’t realize how scary the world is these days.”
Frowning, Olivier gestured for him to follow her into the office for a moment. With a dissatisfied expression, Lee Hyunbin rubbed his chin and followed her inside.
“Why? What is it?”
“I have something I need help with from the Hero.”
“Help? What kind of help? D-Don’t tell me…”
Lee Hyunbin slightly covered his body at Olivier’s words. Seeing this, Olivier snorted in disbelief.
“I’m not interested in your body, so please…”
“Ah, right…”
Actually, being a succubus, she wasn’t entirely uninterested. However, she knew that if she gave a guy like this even an inch of leverage, he would tease her relentlessly.
“Actually, for a while now…”
Olivier hesitated for a moment before speaking. Lee Hyunbin tilted his head, wondering what could make her hesitate so much.
“What is it? Speak up.”
“Well, I’ve been getting stalked lately…”
“…”
At first, she thought she might be mistaken. She thought she might just be overly self-conscious. Of course, she drew the eyes of every man whenever she walked down the street. To see if she was just imagining things, she used her detection skill, and someone followed her from the moment she left work until she reached home.
It had been a week already. The stalker followed her tenaciously, monitoring her every move.
“Hmm, some guy with way too much time on his hands… You sure you’re not just being self-conscious?”
“What did you say?”
“No, I mean, you can just catch him yourself. A former member of the Demon King’s Four Heavenly Kings can’t catch a single pervert and has to ask the Hero for help?”
“That’s…”
Olivier’s voice trailed off at Lee Hyunbin’s words. He was right. However, unfortunately…
“I haven’t recovered my Synchronization Rate yet, so I haven’t regained my strength, alright?”
“Don’t you have at least one attack skill? Just something to not-quite-kill him…”
“I don’t…”
“You don’t?”
“My Synchronization Rate is only 1% right now…”
Lee Hyunbin looked at her with an absurd expression.
“I-I can’t help it! For an Elder Succubus to recover her Synchronization Rate, she needs… she needs…”
“Needs what?”
“To…”
“Ah, Energy Drain?”
Olivier knit her beautiful brows. Lee Hyunbin began to cackle as if he found it hilarious.
“One percent. Isn’t that just like having a crush? What have you been doing? You had such an overflowing aura in that other world, so why are you like this here?”
“Phew… I didn’t exactly have to do much there. Energy was absorbed naturally just by being near me.”
“Ah, is that so?”
Olivier let out a low sigh.
“Why don’t you just meet the stalker? He might be a pure-hearted guy who loves you sincerely.”
“Phew… He follows me all the way to my front door and rumbles through my mailbox. Do you think that’s a pure-hearted guy?”
“Oh? He’s a total lunatic.”
Lee Hyunbin blinked at her words. At that level, it definitely wasn’t just a matter of liking someone. It was a crime.
“So I just need to get rid of him, right?”
Olivier kept her mouth shut and nodded.
It’s been a while since I felt this.
The smooth sensation of the tights against my skin. The red full-body tights that accentuated my muscles. The gloves and boots equipped on my hands and feet. The belt fitted perfectly around my waist and the brilliantly shining helmet.
After a very long time, I took to the streets as Justice Man.
I activated the camouflage function of the Justice Armor. My vision turned gray, and I felt a sense of solitude as if I were the only one left in this world.
Olivier sent a signal. Upon receiving it, I began to tail her.
A stalker. What a waste of time. If you really like someone, you should confess to them directly or give up cleanly. Just following someone around like a shadow is unmanly.
Olivier’s commute. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
On her way, I saw her salivate at the sight of chicken skewers. After some internal debate, she bought one and munched on it as she walked. After throwing the skewer stick into a trash can, the place she entered was a movie theater.
Wait, what is she doing? She said there was a stalker. She asked me to catch him! What the hell is she doing?
No, wait. Olivier might seem mindless, but she was once a strategist for the Demon King’s Army. She never does anything without a reason.
I see. Thinking about it again, in a special place like a movie theater, people only look at the screen. But what does a stalker look at? They only look at their target. In other words, the man not looking at the screen is the culprit.
I stroked my chin. As expected of Olivier, she’s quite clever.
I looked around to find the culprit who would fall into her trap.
—Are you having fun?
A message suddenly came from Olivier, startling me. Was she watching me instead of the stalker?
Ahem. For now, there was no one suspicious in the theater.
By the way, this movie is actually pretty good.
—I heard this is currently number one at the box office.
Apparently, it’s based on a famous fantasy novel. The CG is great, and the camaraderie is well-depicted. Watching it gets my blood pumping.
The movie ended, and Olivier headed out. I followed quietly behind her. The next place Olivier went was a department store.
What are you doing? You were so worried about a stalker, yet you’re wandering around aimlessly.
After trying on some new clothes, Olivier struck a few poses while looking in a full-length mirror.
—Is this outfit too frivolous?
No, your outfits in that other world were frivolous. Honestly, think about it. You walked around in fishnets and garter belts all the time. Well, I did see your face turn red from shame occasionally. Being a succubus must be tough. Given their social standing, I suppose those outfits are like a uniform for them.
The tedious shopping continued. Trying on clothes, picking a few she liked.
Phew… thanks to having three jobs, she had three salaries. Amazing. She had no hesitation when it came to shopping. Single bags were easily over 3,000,000 to 5,000,000 won.
—These things are the joy of my life.
“Ah, is that so?”
—Should I buy one for you too, Hero?
“Why me?”
—As a reward for helping me today?
Come to think of it, consider the fact that a busy man like me is following her around just to catch a stalker.
—Don’t you know the three pillars of a man’s pride are his wallet, belt, and watch? I can afford to gift you a wallet for fulfilling my request.
“Pride, my foot.”
But the men’s wallet Olivier picked up looked like it was made of high-quality material. She’s buying me an expensive wallet just for following her once?
—We don’t know if this will be a one-time thing or a two-time thing.
It was the first time I found myself wishing for the stalker to show up quickly. Olivier accepted the gift-wrapped wallet and paid in a single installment. She then shopped for another three hours. Wow, I’m losing my mind.
Night had fallen over the streets. Even with the darkness, the city was still crowded with people.
—Hero.
Yeah, I can tell who it is too.
It’s blatantly suspicious. I initially thought Olivier was exaggerating. But someone really had started following her.
Despite it being early summer weather, he was wearing a trench coat, a hat, and sunglasses. It wasn’t the three pillars of a man’s pride; it was more like the three essentials of a pervert.
I began to tail the stalker who was tailing Olivier.
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