NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 183
“So, this is what crime transport looks like in a world with powers?”
Normally, you’d just slap on some handcuffs and drag the criminal away, but in this world where abilities are alive and kicking, things are a bit different.
Ordinary criminals weren’t much different from those in the real world, but here, it’s all about the powered-up villains.
Simply handcuffing them wasn’t going to cut it. Just because you cuffed them didn’t mean they couldn’t use their powers, and they certainly weren’t about to admit defeat.
That’s why heroes never find themselves overwhelmed. They are essential for bringing in those villains.
Hero duties include not just subduing villains but also transporting them.
You’d think this was a police job, but sadly, there’s no handy gadget yet to suppress those abilities with handcuffs.
So, they needed a hero right next to the villain to keep them in check. And not just one, but two.
Why two, you ask? Well, the first time you manage to subdue a villain might just be sheer luck, so it’s safer to double up on personnel.
If they started acting up again, they needed to make sure they were thoroughly subdued.
It may seem a little wasteful, but that’s just the way heroes roll.
And, while it wasn’t crucial, there’s an added bonus: the villains tend to behave.
When the heroes they were just trying to kill are standing right next to them, even the bravest of criminals think twice before mouthing off because, well, life is precious.
After all, they could literally end up with a cracked skull.
Sure, there are some really crazy ones who keep jabbering, but then it’s just a matter of beating them senseless until they pass out or slapping a muzzle on them.
Criminal rights?
Yeah, right, like that exists.
Anyway, that’s the standard protocol. You can kill them if you want, but there’s no need to, so you just take them in.
Now, the moment you attach ‘can’t die’ to a criminal, that’s when things start to get complicated.
When they can’t die but aren’t too strong, it’s relatively straightforward. Just keep hitting them or use some drugs until they pass out, and then you can transport them without any fuss. Forget about rights; they won’t die, so no worries there.
If they’re a bit stronger, the approach is similar, but the drug preference goes up.
The tougher ones, lucky for them, don’t just faint easily, and your brain isn’t a place that gets toughened up; if you screw up while trying to knock them out, they might end up dead.
The real headache comes when you’ve got someone strong who you can’t knock out with drugs and you have to take them in without killing them.
That’s right, I’m talking about me.
Drugs might work if I allow them, but in this case, I really didn’t want to be drugged.
These aren’t my friends, and I don’t feel like doing that for Heros Company. They didn’t really seem keen on drugging me either.
Thus, the situation became unbearably complicated.
“Wow, they brought something expensive. What’s it for? Looks like it’s gonna hurt.”
To move just me, they’d called in a massive transport craft, and even went so far as to completely retrofit its interior for just one purpose.
As mentioned, there wasn’t a convenient gadget for suppressing powers like handcuffs. In other words, there were machines designed to suppress powers.
I had no clue how they worked, but that machine was right in front of me, and it was clearly something I’d have to get into soon.
“We’re not sure either, but it’s supposedly a prototype… something that manipulates the internal reality level to suppress the ‘unrealistic’.”
“Wait a minute. I’m an Ein. I’ve got all sorts of freaky stuff in me. Won’t that kill me?”
If they said ‘unrealistic’, I had to first define what ‘realistic’ even meant.
Is the ‘Ein’, mutated due to the gate’s effects, normal? Or is the ‘Mimic’ from another realm living inside me normal?
It was pretty fuzzy, and that made me hesitate to step in.
Honestly, whether I lived or died didn’t really matter anymore. But dying helplessly in front of my friends? No thanks.
“You don’t need to worry about that. It’s been specially adjusted just for you… there’s no way you’ll vanish without a trace the moment you step in.”
Yeonhwa assured me it’ll be okay. If Yeonhwa says it’s fine, I guess it’ll be alright.
Whether it’s some kind of needle or just a guiding pin, the interior packed with who knows what made it feel like I was looking at Iron Maiden.
But this seemed dense enough to be okay.
If you step on a single thorn, you’re done, but if you step on a thousand thorns, you might just stand on top of them. There was some kind of condition for that, right? What was it again?
Since I couldn’t remember, it was probably fine.
“… I know you won’t resist, but people are still anxious. Please step in, Blanca. It won’t hurt, so don’t worry.”
Minho even gave me a little push, making it impossible for me not to step in.
“Alright, if that’s the case. Being the world’s strongest force, you should have a little more guts.”
I mocked the Heros Company employees inside the transport ship as I stepped into the machine.
As expected, nothing went through my feet. Instead, I started floating inside the machine like a frog on a powerful magnet.
This felt less like a transport and more like a binding.
The atmosphere sure felt that way as well as being tied up tight.
From the moment the machine closed, all I could see was the occasional bluish glow from the machine’s interior.
From an unnamed experiment subject to being treated like a being that needed strict supervision and restraint… sounds about right.
…How ridiculous. Seriously.
I closed my eyes, hoping I wouldn’t flip upside down on my way there.
— — —
Blanca’s ‘interrogation’ lasted for over 24 hours.
As we waited outside, giving subtle cues to hurry up, even Rapis’ and her grandparents arrived to put on the pressure, yet it still dragged on.
They asked so many questions that halfway through, I honestly decided to give up listening live and just accepted the reports instead.
The motives of the Liberators, the scale, member information, base locations, the fall process, what they saw and heard when they joined the Evil Society, what happened in their hideout…
And so on. Heros Company seemed hell-bent on squeezing every bit of info out of her like a ruthless interrogator.
But against that pressing demeanor, Blanca wasn’t just answering questions; she was spilling everything, even stuff they didn’t ask about.
At first, I thought she might be trying to reduce her sentence, but listening to her talk made it clear why she was so chatty.
‘Why spill everything? Because if I tell someone, then they’ll remember.’
Not for herself, but for them. For the Liberators.
Of course, she didn’t spill all the beans.
She refused to share anything regarding the lab or her physical family’s information.
The former was simply something she didn’t want to talk about, and the latter was probably because she didn’t know.
Anyway, that wrapped up Heros Company’s investigation.
Yet, despite everything, the faces of the Heros employees were full of discontent; they apparently still hadn’t eased their feelings even after capturing her.
Can’t blame them. Her revelations probably shattered their trust that took years to build in an instant.
Even employees without any loyalty to the company had their livelihoods threatened, making it understandable they’d harbor resentment toward Blanca.
However, her fate was now in our hands.
All they could do was bluntly inform us that she was locked up over there.
“Thanks for your hard work. Hey, guys, I’d like to have a private chat with Blanca for a moment, is that okay?”
I could’ve waited until later, but I just had to ask now. Why exactly had she chosen those guys instead of us?
“Just don’t do anything weird, Minho.”
“What’s weird? I just want to talk about something I don’t want anyone else to know.”
“Is there still a secret left at this stage?”
Ageha looked at me suspiciously, but after a bit of awkwardness, she backed off, admitting that maybe people do keep one or two secrets.
“Thanks for understanding.”
“If you keep it to yourself for too long… I’ll get mad.”
…But still, is it accurate to say I’m using her, Rapis?
Saying it won’t take long, we headed towards where she was located.
“Hey.”
“You look relaxed. Weren’t you in the middle of enemy territory?”
“Oh, it’s because of the person in front of me. I can lay back and relax even in the enemy’s midst.”
…As expected, she felt most comfortable.
“So honestly, Blanca. Why did you side with the Liberators back then?”
“That? Oh, I told you already. You were friends, and they were family. No matter how precious friends are… they’re not family.”
“Even knowing that family was wrong?”
“I thought, as long as I was there, they’d succeed somehow. Even if it was wrong, I figured I could correct it.”
But I turned out not to be that person.
Blanca jingled the chains of her handcuffs, laughing at her own predicament.
“A foolish girl climbed up not knowing her place, and this is the result.”
“Don’t be too hard on yourself. What about those of us who got duped by that foolish girl?”
Blanca just smiled and told me to think whatever I wanted.
“So… what do you plan to do moving forward?”
“Moving forward, huh? I don’t know if I even have a future, but… I’ll definitely seek revenge.”