The Villain's Sister - Chapter 46

“Why does it feel like there’s more stuff?”

“Trips always end with more luggage than they started with.”

“Triiiip? You said you were just going to be away for a few days, and now you’re calling it a trip, not a runaway?”

Tristan grumbled as he loaded the bags into the trunk.

I giggled and got into the passenger seat first.

I couldn’t stay indebted forever, and since Raphael had finished moving, I had to go back home.

‘More than anything, it feels strangely uncomfortable.’

Tristan seemed bothered by the fact that he’d drunkenly spilled things he’d rather keep secret, and I was struggling with thoughts of Raphael.

We needed some distance for the time being, and the timing worked out well.

“Just drop me off in the next town over. If my brother sees me, it’ll be a huge problem.”

“What the hell kind of mess did you make for your brother to be so overprotective?”

“Excuse me? Just because you’re driving doesn’t mean you won’t get hit, you know?”

“Hit me and see what jail looks like.”

I barely resisted the urge to grab and twist his annoying mouth.

Soon, Tristan’s hearty laugh filled the car.

Without realizing, I chuckled along a little.

“By the way, that guy Johan—he really doesn’t want to receive a hero’s award? There’s also a police reward, you know.”

“He said no. He’s not the type to like that sort of thing.”

Tristan mentioned Johan helping out at the department store hostage incident and brought up the reward money.

I declined the award on Johan’s behalf.

Since I couldn’t get in touch with him anyway, and he’s not the type to care about awards or money, a little white lie wouldn’t hurt.

“He must be a decent guy, despite appearances.”

“He’s got a really bad personality, actually.”

“Why so serious all of a sudden?”

Bantering with Tristan, we arrived at the destination.

I took out my luggage and thanked Tristan.

“Thanks for everything.”

“I’ve been well-fed too.”

“That’s all? I cleaned the place top to bottom, even replaced the pilled blanket, and you leave all that out?”

“Never miss a word, do you? You’re exhausting. Go on, get going.”

“Just kidding. I had a lot of fun staying with you.”

It felt like I was just a normal twenty-one-year-old.

Tristan raised one eyebrow. Normal? he murmured softly.

I meant that I got to experience a life unconnected to the organization, but I couldn’t say that outright.

“I mean, it was a taste of ordinary civilian life.”

“You little—”

I stifled a burst of laughter and was about to wave goodbye when I heard a familiar voice.

“Deva?”

It was Maria.

“Devaaaa―!”

Maria, who had been far away, screamed and came running.

She hugged me tightly and gave a kiss on both cheeks.

It wasn’t a greeting used on Mist Island, but Maria, who immigrated here young, had taught me the greeting from her homeland, and it became something just between us.

“You have no idea what I’ve been through. I’ve been holding it in so I could tell you in person, and we finally meet! I missed you so much.”

If there were a speed-talking contest, Maria would win first place.

Whether it was from not seeing me for a long time or something exciting happening, she was more hyped up than usual, like a charging bull.

“Okay, calm down. Um, Maria. Want to say hi? This is Tristan. Tristan, this is Maria. You know, my friend.”

“Oh, the one who always answered my calls. Hello, I’m Tristan Lindbergh.”

When Maria confirmed it was Tristan, she covered her wide-open mouth with her hand and asked in a trembling voice, “T-the Tristan who’s dating our Deva?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Oh my god! I’m so touched to meet you. Please take good care of our Deva.”

“Ah. Yes.”

“If you’re not too busy, maybe we could go to a cafe nearby―”

“He’s busy. Tristan, time for you to go to work. Thanks for the ride. See you on the weekend!”

I quickly shoved Tristan into the car.

He glanced at me and Maria briefly, then gave me a playful smile.

“What’s this? Am I someone you’re embarrassed to show your friends?”

“You know that’s not what I meant. Don’t you have work? Hurry up and go.”

“How cold.”

Out of Maria’s sight, I widened my eyes and glared at him.

Then Tristan silently laughed and squinted his eyes in amusement.

“Maria, I’ll see you again next time. Let’s chat all about Giselle then.”

“It was nice meeting you, Mr. Tristan.”

Tristan was leaving, and Maria said, “Please tell me those guy friends of yours are as handsome as him. Then introduce me to them.”

“Sorry. No matter how I look at it, I think I’m the only friend he has. I’ve never seen him contact any friends while he was at home.”

“That’s such sad news. But a handsome nerd would be nice to live with.”

“More importantly, it’s dangerous for us to be together like this.”

“It’s fine. I moved.”

“Moved?”

Maria swallowed. Then she began explaining rapidly.

“I quit the cabaret and now have to go to an office, but there wasn’t a good bus to get there. Raphael heard about it and told me to either take a car he wasn’t using or move. It just so happened to be the neighborhood you recently moved into, so I asked for a new place too.”

“Office? Did your boss say something and make you quit? Did you get a new job?”

“As if.”

“Then what is it?”

“I finally signed a contract with Jojo Records!”

“Whaaat?”

Maria and I got so excited that we grabbed each other’s hands and screamed.

Passersby glanced at us, but we didn’t care at all.

“You, you, you’re only telling me this now? No way. What do you want to eat, name it! First, let’s raid a dessert shop, then for dinner, let’s crack open the 1877 vintage wine Raphael treasures!”

“Deva, calm down and take a deep breath.”

We hailed a taxi to her new place while planning a pig-out party.

It had been a while since something good happened, and I was thrilled.

Maria, now a singer on TV—how cool would that be!

Just imagining it made my chest swell with joy.

As I was about to scream out of excitement, a news flash came on the radio.

― This morning, the drug cartel boss Sunshine, imprisoned in the central government underground prison, has escaped. Sunshine was apprehended last year by Black Pistols…

The floating sensation I had felt vanished, and I crashed down to earth.

Sunshine’s escape.

It was the signal that the original story had begun.

***

Red Shadow concentrated on the conversation of the Two Star members from the rooftop.

“Surely Death Adder won’t win this war, right? Big Bear’s been preparing hard to take them down.”

“If Death Adder’s weapons were just regular weapons, maybe. But if they win, aren’t we all dead? With that blue gas going around, the drugs we make have become outdated junk.”

“They already look down on us in Two Star because we came from Lucky Ginger. If we move to Death Adder, we’ll be like used tissues. But since the boss escaped, shouldn’t we join them?”

“You think so? That bastard escaped and hasn’t looked for us even once. We were discardable from the start. Scott didn’t even realize that and strutted around like Sunshine’s right-hand man. Idiot.”

Now that the name Scott was mentioned, there was no need to listen further.

Red Shadow jumped down from the roof and used magic to snatch the guns from the members.

Bang!

Bang!

He then shot at their sides with the stolen gun as a warning.

“Aagh!”

“Shit!”

As the bullets grazed their skin, they collapsed to their knees.

Their opponent was Red Shadow. It was better to beg for their lives than to resist pointlessly.

“We’ll tell you everything you want, just spare us.”

“Tell me everything you know about Scott.”

Scott was the one monopolizing the distribution of the blue gas.

Red Shadow had been running through the city every night trying to catch him, but the bastard was elusive.

“All we know is that he lives somewhere on Saint Paul Street. Oh, and he goes to a nearby casino every night!”

“He ties his blond hair in one. His height is about this much…”

After hearing the detailed description of Scott, Red Shadow eliminated the two without hesitation.

Bang, bang!

Blood spread to even the gun he dropped on the floor.

He immediately headed to Saint Paul Street.

Saint Paul Street was a bustling area located in the slums.

After waiting on a building rooftop for about an hour, he spotted someone matching the description.

Red Shadow grabbed the guy by the collar and teleported to a secluded alley.

Scott, thrown against a wall, flailed and grabbed a trash can to stand.

A freshly drawn knife gleamed in his hand.