REAPER SCANS

Mr. Magical Girl

[Translator –  goguma]

[Proofreader – ilafy]

Chapter 20: Association - ??? 『????』 (2)

What was the easiest way to infiltrate the Association, a large-scale attack, stealthily sneaking in, finding a gap in their security, or some other special method?

All of them were wrong.

"Good evening.”

“You’re working hard, even at this late hour. Have a nice evening.” The security guard standing by the Otherworld power detector didn’t even bother to check who greeted him, responding to my hello with a mechanical reply.

I was confident he wouldn’t even remember what I looked like. Maybe if the security guard had taken his job more seriously, the most he might have noticed was that I resembled someone.

Even then, the thought would quickly slip away. He’d dismiss it, convinced that it was impossible for a monster like that to appear at the Association, and he wouldn’t want the responsibility if something went wrong.

Like that, the Black Marauder breezed past the security to infiltrate the Association.

Despite being called an Association, it was a public institution. As long as you looked human, you could walk through the front door without issue.

Rather, it was trying to breach their defenses by unleashing the Otherworld’s powers that would get you caught.

While the approach wouldn’t work on the more important facilities with tighter security, entering the Association building itself wasn’t too difficult.

Even so, there were a lot more security cameras than before.

I walked carefully, avoiding the lenses of the cameras mounted on the ceiling. I wasn’t sure how much their facial recognition software had improved, but I doubted it was worse.

Moving through the cameras' blind spots, I moved slowly, so as to avoid raising any suspicion.

- Registration Number 30-0623-C. Please come to the consultation window.

“We have to move quickly. The response team has already left!”

“Hey, isn’t that the person who took time off to reflect? This is a huge scoop!”

“The cafeteria’s still open, right?”

“That’s because your training took too long!”

The sound of a broadcast calling for someone, the sight of Association-affiliated heroes rushing off to their assignments, reporters murmuring excitedly after landing a scoop after having staked out all night, a man and woman drenched in sweat, likely just finished with their training…

All were familiar scenes from a place I once worked. I found the sight comforting.

Awakeners and non-Awakeners working together for humanity in an institution where Awakeners were respected and heroes were acknowledged…

I’m sure Donghoon would have been happy to see it.

As I moved, lost in thought, I found myself heading in just as a crowd of people left, flowing toward the exit in the opposite direction.

“Ah, sorry.” My small frame accidentally bumped into someone. After a brief bow to apologize, I walked past him.

“I feel like I’ve seen you before…” the man I bumped into muttered to himself but quickly lost interest and turned back toward the exit.

I navigated through the crowd, bumping into several people as I moved against the tide toward my destination. What I was searching for was beyond that flow of people.

* * *

Reaper Scans

Translator - goguma

Proofreader - ilafy

Join our discord for updates on releases!!

https://discord.gg/reaperscans

* * *

I ignored the multiple “Authorized Personnel Only” signs and continued forward; after a few minutes, I found what I had been looking for.

It was a hallway—clean but definitely showing signs of age with a few stains from years of use. Doors lined the walls, each with a doorplate marked by a number. As I listened, I heard various voices.

The place was just as I remembered. I’d doubted it, but it really was the same poorly-constructed dormitory with thin walls. It was hard to believe that a high-ranking public official like Taejoon Kim was living there.

Was it a trap like I suspected?

I recalled the first thought I had when I was given the information… ‘Danger Rifle might have given me false information to set me up.’

Even so, I didn’t see the need to prepare any contingencies. Whether it was a trap or something else, it didn’t matter when I could just run away.

I just needed to confirm it. With my crowbar slung over my shoulder, I walked down the hallway.

‘Room 304, Room 306… Room 311… Found it.’ Before breaking down the door, I enhanced my hearing to see if I could pick up on any sounds coming from inside.

“I’m telling you, working at the Association is a pain in the ass. The pay? Well, yeah, the pay’s good.” It was definitely Taejoon’s voice. He was talking on the phone with someone, but I at least confirmed he was there.

I wedged the tip of my crowbar into the small gap in the door.

Crack—

The lock gave way, and I swung the door open, forcing my way inside. The room was small, slightly less than 20 square meters.

Despite the small room, all of the furniture and appliances inside had an oddly shiny sheen, creating an unbalanced feeling. In the middle of it all, Taejoon lay on his bed, speaking on his phone.

“What the…? Who…?”

Thud—

Taejoon’s phone fell to the ground as a horrified expression washed over his face. “The Black Marauder…”

“If you stay quiet, it’ll end with just your hands and feet.” Then, I thought, ‘I might have to break a few more things depending on what you tell me during the interrogation.’

“Wh-what the hell…?! What is going on?” He was horrified, as if he had no idea why I’d gone to find him.

At least it wasn’t a trap.

I placed my hands around his throat, gripping firmly and pressing down on his arteries.

Clack—

All of my efforts were rendered pointless when he vanished into thin air. My hand, which had been pressing on his neck, turned into a clenched fist while the sensation of his heartbeat disappeared.

‘What was that?’ I had kept my eyes on him, so how had he disappeared in the blink of an eye?

‘Does he have a teleportation ability?’ No, something felt off. It couldn't be just that.

Suddenly, all sound completely vanished. The whispers from the other rooms abruptly stopped, and I no longer sensed any presences around me.

Bzzt. Bzzzt—

The lights on the ceiling flickered.

Something was definitely wrong. An Otherworld’s corrosion? A large-scale teleportation?

I readjusted my grip on the crowbar as I hurriedly ran out into the hallway.

The hallway lights were already off, with the only source of light coming from the green “Emergency Exit” sign. Even that was flickering, barely clinging to power.

The situation strangely resembled a memory from my past.

It was a memory of everyone around vanishing mysteriously as the building went dark and the lights flickered. If my predictions were correct, a chilling sound would creep in next.

Creak. Creak—

It sounded like a rusted, metallic hinge creaking. While the noise grated on my nerves, it also oddly comforted me. I suppose it was because I had grown just that familiar with it.

“I thought I shouldn’t trust in precognition, but… I guess it was worth coming here.” An aged male voice echoed from the dark hallway. 

I shifted my gaze to see a sturdy wheelchair with an ordinary-looking old man seated in it. He wore a slightly worn jacket and a newsboy cap over his white hair, looking like any other elderly man from a nursing home or hospital. Any hero who’d survived through the turbulent times would know he was anything but ordinary.

“I guess the only difference between you and him… is your hair color? It’s been a while since I last saw him, so I can’t seem to remember it too well.”

From the moment the bizarre situation started, I knew he would show up. Still, a part of me had hoped it would be anyone but him, and my heart wavered at the sight.

“Could you say something? I know you aren’t him, but I want to hear his voice after so long.” The old man raised the cane in his lap. It might’ve looked like an ordinary wooden cane, but it exuded an immense aura as square columns erupted from the walls to restrain me.

They moved so quickly that I couldn't detect them, as if the building had always been designed that way.

Creak. Creak—

The entire hallway tilted, turning into a ramp for his wheelchair to roll down. Once the old man reached me, trapped between the walls, the tilted hallway returned to normal.

We locked eyes. 

His pair of old eyes, long retired from worldly affairs, carefully inspected me. “Sure enough, you look identical. Especially that sour expression on your face.”

‘What about my face, huh? What are you talking about, old man?’ To keep him from reading too much into my expression, I poured more strength into my crowbar.

Rumble. Rumble rumble—

Despite my efforts, the concrete only trembled, showing no signs of breaking. “That’s pointless. I guess his knowledge wasn’t copied over? It’s not something you can break out of with simple strength…”

‘I already know, so just shut up, you old fart.’ I began releasing my suppressed emotions, allowing a tremendous amount of mana to flow through my entire body.

I should’ve been thankful to my old comrade—he’d prepared a perfect battlefield that could handle my full power. It had been a long time since I had something like that.

Crack. Crack crack—

The cracked. My right arm moved forward, steadily dismantling the walls.

“…I see. I understand why the Association called me now.”

There was nothing that couldn’t be broken with simple strength. If you couldn’t break it, it was only because you were weak. I embodied that ideal, breaking through the architect’s space.

Slam—

My right arm burst through the wall, and my red crowbar also came into view. Pieces of concrete scattered into the air when I swung the crowbar at the old man’s head.

It was a semi-serious attack with considerable strength behind it—not the kind of attack I would use to break the limbs of rookie heroes.

A shockwave erupted from my skin that swept through the surroundings, destroying the building and the walls that confined me, sending even more shards of concrete flying.

After destroying the ground beneath me, I was thrown into freefall. I attempted to regain my balance and noticed the old man observing me. 

He was neither surprised nor furious—he was calmly and coldly calculating the situation. It was his usual demeanor during combat that I’d seen many times before. “So you managed to destroy my space… You’re definitely not an A-Rank, you’re at least an O-Rank. I’ll have to have a word with those bastards at the Association.”

‘Old man, you can discuss that after this is all over. Right now… I’m going to enjoy this moment as well.’

Crash—

A loud sound rang out, deafening me for a second when the right hand I’d used to swing my crowbar reached an expected result—the feeling of hitting something solid.

Obviously, it was a wall. I kicked off the wall to turn my body, not bothering to check if my attack had landed. I wasn’t the type who enjoyed checking the results of an attack that had clearly failed.

A black wall appeared instantly where I had just been. Though it suddenly materialized, it seemed as if it had always been there.

I had to keep myself constantly moving from that point onward. A single moment of hesitation or a single mistake would lead to my defeat.

I continued to swing my crowbar as walls materialized out of thin air, attempting to swallow my weapon.

The walls, both attacking and defending, narrowly grazed my skin and blocked my crowbar that I swung through the openings.

Walls continued to form and be destroyed while I let my body move purely on instinct.

Our combat repeated like that for a while, as if it were a choreographed dance.

“Why don’t you at least say something? Your stubborn personality is just like his.” He took a moment to speak—an action that was useless in combat.

I readjusted my grip and thrust with my right hand. Walls obviously formed in front of me, but I didn’t stop. It was too quick to even say that he let his guard down. Still, a single second was crucial in a battle between two experts.

Clang—

A sharp sound, like a nail embedding itself into a wall, rang out as my crowbar pierced through the wall. He ducked to dodge the attack, anticipating that his defenses would fail, but…

“Watch your head.” I spoke for the first time as I pulled my crowbar back.

Grab—

I felt my crowbar catch on something and immediately pulled with all my strength.

Thud—

The old man let out a magnificent shout just before his head, caught by my crowbar, slammed into the wall. Although I couldn’t see his face, I was certain he was surprised to be forced out of his wheelchair.

I wanted to savor the victory for a moment, but I retrieved my crowbar and leaped back. As expected, more walls formed to trap me again, and I narrowly continued to dodge them.

Having landed a blow, my priority was to escape, no matter what.

I couldn’t catch Taejoon, but that was fine. Not only was I able to meet an old friend after a long time, but I was also able to get a proper workout. It had been a while since I had such good exercise, and it felt somewhat nice to see my comrade’s face again after so long.

‘Now, how do I run away…?’

I stole a glance at the old man, hoping to see any signs that he might let me go. Though his expression remained as cold as ever, a vein was visibly throbbing on his forehead.

‘Ah, he’s pissed.’ He became incredibly clingy when he was upset. I turned and ran, desperate to find a way to escape from the space.

The Infinite Castellan… He was an S-Rank Awakener with influence in countless countries and the architect behind all of the Association’s buildings.

Once responsible for supporting us from the rear, the old man was relentlessly chasing after me.

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