Villain Hides His True Colors - Chapter 46

Chapter 46

I had no choice but to let out a small exclamation as soon as I read the effect of the newly acquired < Reputation of a Warrior >.

This…

< Reputation of a Warrior >

Reputation: 40,100/100,000

*1st Stage Effect: Improve the abilities of those in the company of the Warrior. (The greater the trust in the Warrior, the greater the effect.)

*2nd Stage Effect: – Locked –

Although the 2nd Stage Effect wasn’t open, the 1st Stage Effect alone was unusual.

An Area of Effect buff!

I had similar commander skills in the past, so I was well aware of the power of this AoE buff.

At its extreme, they were fraudulent skills that could be used to gather ordinary children and deal with heroes.

However, as AoE buffs had such strong effects, it would usually come with at least one fatal weakness. Whether it was the criteria to cast the skill was harsh, or the mana consumption increasing exponentially depending on the number of people, or many other constraints that followed.

Therefore, every time an AoE buff was used in the past, the burden on my body would increase to the extent that it interfered with the fights.

So in the end, I had to give up my ambition to play as a solo army commander and synthesize all of my commander and AoE buff skills.

But this…

No matter how long I looked at it, there were no words related to restrictions or limitations.

Although the ‘trust in the Warrior’ could be said to be a limitation, even that wasn’t a penalty but a condition for an additional buff.

And, don’t tell me…was there no limit on the number of people either?

Assuming yes, this was a really ridiculous skill.

If there was no limitation between a hundred or a thousand people, then it may be possible to gather troops and conquer Earth.

This was truly a jackpot.

In particular, for me, who needed to increase the power of humanity to target the content called the demon army someday, it could be said to be an ability I welcome with open arms.

Looking back, my decision to take < Warrior’s Journey > seemed to have been the best judgment. I couldn’t believe the skill had reached this level.

In any case…

What was this number?

I doubted my eyes for a moment.

[Reputation: 40,100/100,000]

I needed to raise my reputation to 100,000. Honestly, I couldn’t tell whether it was too much or not, but considering that the current number was less than half of the total, it seemed far away.

Also…it was reputation work.

In general, reputation work in RPGs was a series of tedious labor. It was demanding and annoying to raise, and could fall in one instant.

The reputation of saving 100 villagers could be wiped away by killing one animal in the village without mercy.

I guess this skill will be difficult in that regard.

Well, if it had such a good effect and growth was easy, the game balance would collapse.

While I was organizing my thoughts, someone suddenly pushed my back.

“Ah, kid. Why are you staring into the distance like that?”

“Hmm?”

Looking back, there was a woman with colorful hair. She was the bomb girl who had created the colorful mushroom clouds during the 3rd test.

She picked up one of the items piled up in front of me and spoke.

“You don’t have to refuse. Everyone gave it to you because they wanted to. Hehe, you all feel the same, right?”

“Yes! Please have a look at the shinai I gave you. Even if it looks like that, it’s a sword made by a famous craftsman.”

(PRN: Shinai are bamboo swords typically used in kendo.)

“Yes! Please drink the potion I gave you!”

The bomb girl, who at best had only gave me a leather jacket, was puffing out her chest if she had prepared everything.

“…”

I picked up an antique longsword nearby. However, no message came to mind in the status window.

Trash.

This antique wasn’t even an item. I threw the longsword to one side and quickly classified the other items as I checked their options. Still, I was hoping there would be something useful among them.

But…All the things they had given me were trash.

Sometimes there were items with options, but most of them were useless miscellaneous items.

“This is cute! Try it on! I’m sure it’ll suit you, hehe.”

The bomb girl held out a cute cape with pink frills and shook it.

“…”

This item was already checked a while ago. A D-Grade miscellaneous item with only the effect of ‘gaining favor with men.’

I stared at the items and sighed for a long time.

“Haa…”

“H-huh? Wh-what’s wrong? You don’t like it? I-it’s cute…”

She looked at me with a puzzled look. Other candidates standing around me gave a similar look.

As such, I told them.

“Everyone, thank you so much for thinking of me, but you don’t have to do this.”

“B-but it’s our sincerity…”

“No. I didn’t help you guys because I wanted something like this.”

There wasn’t even a single good item.

People exclaimed with admiration on their faces. At the same time, a message popped up in front of my eyes.

[ +10 Reputation. ]

Oh?

My reputation unexpectedly rose. It was a very insignificant number, but it was still something.

So it was roughly like this.

An idea crossed my mind on what I should do from now on to raise my reputation.

It was the moment to show off my acting skills I had honed so far. Recalling the expression of a hero I had seen in a TV commercial in the past, I gave a pleasant smile.

“I’ll accept everyone’s sincerity, so please take these items back. They’re all precious things to you.”

People all around me covered their mouths as tears welled up. And soon after, they nodded with a solemn look.

“…Okay. However, I’ll make sure to pay you back this favor someday.”

[ +10 Reputation. ]

Good!

As a result, people expressed their gratitude and began to take back the useless trash that had piled up in front of me one by one.

“Really…thank you. If you come to Sinuiju someday, please pay my family a visit.”

[ +1 Reputation. ]

“I’m sorry. Actually, I’ve been jealous of you all this time…Thanks to you, I was able to come to my senses.”

[ +1 Reputation. ]

.

.

.

It was just returning the trash they had given me, but my reputation was rising.

And that was how my reputation rose by 50.

[ Reputation: 40,150/100,000 ]

Although I couldn’t farm items properly, it could be said that it was quite a profitable business because my reputation had risen like this.

“…Huh? Where’s the ring I gave the boy?”

“My family heirloom isn’t here either!”

“Everyone! If there’s someone who took it by mistake, please return it to the owner~”

Well, still, not all of them were miscellaneous items. Thanks to this, I was able to pack a few items from the pile of garbage.

“Please have a clear conscience! If you’re going to be a hero, you can’t be like this!”

[ +1 Reputation. ]

Surprisingly, raising my reputation might be easy.

* * * * * * * * * *

After the brief commotion, I looked at the candidates gathered here.

The number was 89.

Considering that there were currently 100 survivors, it was no exaggeration to say that most of the survivors were here.

Damn!

I felt another heartache when I thought of the dead again. But rather than get hung up on the past, it was now time to plan for the future.

The next step was to lead these guys and escape here safely.

Fortunately, I had an AoE buff, so if I could use them well…

Looking back at the candidates, I spoke.

“Everyone. I’m going to escape this place through the base camp.”

And sure enough, voices of concern were heard from all around.

“B-but isn’t the supervisor guarding it?”

“Th-that’s right! Going there now is suicide! If we just calmly wait until support comes…”

Boom–!

I pulled out Red Velvet Curse and hit the ground. People flinched and trembled at the sudden shock.

“Do you think you can survive if you just wait here?”

“Th-that’s…”

“I’ll tell you for sure. If we continue to stay here, everyone will die. Actually, you all know it well.”

“…”

What I said wasn’t just a threat to move them. Of course, that was my intention, but In fact, it was clear that other robots would come one after another to attack us if we continued to stay here.

And in this extreme environment, unlike robots, humans will quickly run out of stamina.

“I have no intention of letting a single one of you die. So you need to trust me more from now on.”

“B-but…”

Even with my words, there was no movement. Everyone was just looking at the surroundings with a frightened look.

Hmm…it seemed they were completely traumatized by what had happened.

I guess the effect of < Reputation of a Warrior > was useless now.

But right then, Mousin, who was watching the situation from the side, spoke.

“Hmph! You chicken shits! I can’t believe I was competing with such scaredy cats. You guys stay here and die or whatever. I-I’m leaving. Tsk!”

Soon, he and his group lined up behind me.

I looked at him for a moment. When I looked closely, I could see that he was shaking slightly.

This was unexpected.

I didn’t think this idiot would move first. Next, the bomb girl with colorful hair approached me.

“I want to leave too~ It’s so cold here. Hehe.”

Her expression was awkwardly stiff as if she were forcibly smiling. Anyone could tell she was trying to hide her fear. However, she stood firmly next to Mousin without expressing her feelings.

And then.

A group of subtle light came out of their bodies, and their stiff expressions gradually began to relax.

Oh?

Was this how the skill works? It seemed to not only have the AoE buff mentioned in the description, but also the effect of raising morale.

The light that started like that began to spread more and more to its surroundings.

***

Reaper Scans

[ Translator – Yasi ]

[ Proofreader – Karane ]

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***

Others didn’t seem to be aware of the lights, but in my eyes, there was a bright swarm of lights permeating their bodies.

Those who had a lost expression began to gather by me one by one with a shine in their eyes.

“I-I suddenly feel like I can do anything?”

“Yes! There’s no way to stay here anyway.”

“What’s the big deal with robots anyway? I’ve already experienced it during the 3rd test.”

And at some point, there was a group of brightly shining lights next to me.

Who could look at them and think they were the same people from earlier? There was not a shadow of defeat or despair in their eyes.

This…It was definitely effective?

Brave warriors full of confidence in victory. On top of that, even if they didn’t look the part, they were actually talented people who were high-rank hero candidates.

Even if the opponent was an A-Rank hero with transcended abilities, if it was this much and along with my AoE buff, I thought it was a fight worth trying.

This was fun.

It felt like I was directly commanding units from an RTS game.

I told them.

“Everyone, please let me know what your abilities are.”

Something like knowing your enemy and knowing yourself?

To win this fight, I needed to understand the characteristics of the units I had.

So I started to figure out everyone’s abilities and characteristics for a while as a plan was devised to deal with the A-Rank hero.

And as a result…

“The most important people in this operation are ahjussi and noona.”

“M-me?”

“Huh? Me?”

Mousin who only had the talent to run away. And the bomb girl who was the worst team player but had overwhelming firepower.

With the combination of these two, the A-Rank hero will fall.

“There’s a job I have for the two of you.”

Contrary to their puzzled expressions, I smiled confidently.

* * * * * * * * * *

What the hell…is that boy?

Recalling the scenes she had seen a moment ago, Samaria couldn’t help but open her mouth a little.

The image of Noah easily blocking the energy emitted by a giant mechanical dragon with his whole body.

That’s…impossible.

She had seen that machine before. On the day Dr. Jaegal took the A-Rank promotion test, she was also at the scene.

The name of the technique was < Dragon’s Rage >

Dr. Jaegal, who was considered highly versatile but weak in terms of firepower, in fact had earned A-Rank just because of this killing blow.

Frankly, she wasn’t confident in taking such an attack with her body either.

But he…

A hero candidate who was only 13 years old.

At first, she had thought he was just the kind of person who had no hesitation to kill.

But looking at the abilities he had shown so far, she began to think more and more that Pamir may be right.

As someone who had lived for many years, she had never seen anyone with such diverse abilities at such a young age before…

Choi Noah is unbelievable.

She frowned. From what she had seen so far, there was no more doubt. Noah was definitely a Warrior.

What the hell do I do with him?

Would it be better to give up on him now? She thought about it for a moment before shaking her head.

Wait…that’s not it…

A Warrior was an existence who could change fate. So, if she could use him well, wouldn’t he be able to solve even the shackles she had?

Right. This is actually an opportunity.

Her expression turned peaceful again.

What was the probability that a Warrior would appear in the world? There was no way of knowing, but it must be close to an astronomical low figure.

And now an opportunity was in right front of her.

If I can make a Warrior into my own toy…

Just imagining it, she already felt numb all over her body.

Ah… It’s not time for that here.

A dormant, deep voice flowed out little by little.

When Samaria’s mana fluctuated, Pamir immediately looked back and asked.

“What’s the matter? Is there something wrong?”

“N-no. The situation hasn’t changed much.”

“Hmm…Well, it hasn’t been long yet. I hope you keep watching and let me know.”

“Yes. I will.”

Fortunately, Pamir moved on without any doubt.

As he said, it was too short of a time for something to have happened, so it was plausible.

Let’s watch the situation a little more for now. Then, if I have the chance, I have to use a scapegoat for the Warrior.

She was drawing up a plan in one corner of her mind as she continued to observe Noah.

After some time, Noah and the other candidates had gathered and began to move.

Where are they heading?

Nearly 100 people were dashing on the snowy field.

Those who had the ability to move or accelerate supported those who lagged behind as they moved forward at a high speed. The figure was organized like a beast.

Over there…It’s near the base camp. Don’t tell me they’re going to attack it?

That was too reckless. No matter how many numbers they had, the opponent was an A-Rank hero.

In particular, Dr. Jaegal’s specialty was defense and he could fortify and defend the base.

Fortunately, however, the group would swerve and change directions to some extent as they ran.

And at the forefront, there was a man dangling from a long wooden pole.

He was the eldest son of the Deiros family, famous for being a ‘newbie hunter.’

The hell…what are they doing?

She increased the output of her familiar so she could overhear their conversations.

“How is it? Ahjussi? Do you sense you’re going to die?”

“Aaaahhhh! D-dangerous! I-it’s dangerous here!”

“Okay. Everyone, to the left!”

They changed their direction in an orderly manner again.

Unintelligible behavior. By making such a fuss, she was sure the robots would notice and rush at them. So why?

As such, the group circled around the snowfield for a while.

And at some point…

Eventually, robots throughout the snowy field had gathered and surrounded them.

The number exceeded hundreds and was into the thousands.

In addition, there were giant robots sparsely placed between the other robots as guards.

The moment she saw it, she let out a short sigh.

This…is the end.

Will the Warrior die here? Did she misunderstand?

As soon as she thought as such, suddenly, something could be seen from the gaze of one of her familiars floating in the distant sky.

Above the sky and high enough to meet the gaze of her familiar.

A baby angel who looked just like her familiars was flying with a woman dangling from it.

This girl…?

She definitely remembered seeing her during one of the tests. A woman who had taken off her clothes and caused an explosion at the test site.

But what’s she doing up there?

Did she run away by herself?

At that moment, the angel who was holding the woman let go of his hand.

“Kyaaaak!”

The woman crashed to the ground at a high speed.

And…

Boooooom–!

At an altitude before hitting the ground, a huge explosion occurred and was followed by a blinding light.

____