Hmmm

A giant dragon, engulfed in scorching fire, roared through the air over South Korea, while above him, Stardus gracefully dodged its flames and continued her offensive.

The people watching in real time were understandably excited to see their hero in action.

*

[Stardus is so cool.]

[Stardus punch! Stardus punch! Stardus punch! Stardus punch]

[Stardus form is crazy]

[Koreas other GOAT]

[Wow, did she just dodge by diving down from the top of the flames?]

[Koreas alpha is Egostic and omega is Stardus, a national treasure couple]

[Broadcasting talent Stardus, who saves even her male colleagues, shes a morality book]

[But Stardus, what is she thinking while fighting?]

[Shes probably fighting with such intense focus that shes not thinking about anything but how to deal with the enemy]

*

Stardus, who was fighting the enemy with such a fiery gaze.

Hmph.

What in the world is he thinking?

She was thinking about something that didnt seem to have much to do with the battle against the red dragon summoned by that Chinese villain Li Xiaofeng.

She had heard of Li Xiaofeng. Roughly speaking, he was a Chinese Egostic.

And when he vanished in a burst of flames, that giant flaming weapon began to move.

That dragon, she was told, is the product of a great power that has allowed him to rise to such prominence in China.

I get the feeling hes being a bit lenient.

Yes.

She kept getting that feeling.

No, she didnt know what to call it. Its like hes purposely making his attacks very regular? Like hes testing something out.

And if what she was feeling was true, maybe that means.

Egostic made him do it.

Yeah.

She was forced to make that judgment.

And then there was that gaze from earlier

Huuu.

watching.

With that thought, she dodged another flame.

She didnt know what the hell he was thinking but she was certain that he was watching her

There was even a vague notion that perhaps facing that villainous dragon would mean a great deal to him and to her, some kind of test.

And as she continued to think about it.

[Gahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh]

Ugh

She ducked as another blast of flame from the red dragon flew in front of her.

Okay.

First of all, she didnt know what it is, but if she catches that dragon, what will be Egostic reaction?

Thats what she decided.

One corner of her mouth lifted, and she clenched her fist.

Okay. I dont know what youre thinking, but Ill play along.

With that, she took a deep breath.

Stardus, you need to dodge to the right here!

Somehow, she thought she could hear the echo of Egostic in her ear.

She flung herself to the right, dodging another blast of flame.

And just when she thought she had it figured out, she had a bit of trouble with that dragon, which had somehow gotten stronger.

***

While a red dragon is rampaging and terrorizing, inside one of the containers around the area that despite its ramshackle appearance, it was covered with various high-tech devices and monitors I set my headphones down with a satisfied smile.

Thats it.

Da-in, are you done?

Uh, I think Ive got all the data-worthy stuff now.

At the same time as I said that, the printer next to me was working on an impromptu basis.

I took a drink of water and flipped through the paper that came out of it.

I flipped through the paper, sipping my water, and saw the results, which ranged from Stardus current heart rate, fatigue, and other health-related predictors, to a score for her combat and evasion abilities.

The calculated results were slowly falling into my hands.

And when I saw it, I smiled with satisfaction.

Thats it. This is it

Stardus, youve gotten stronger.

I looked at Stardus as she stomped on the Chinese dragon, and I felt such fondness for her.

Is this the same Stardus that could barely stop a train in the beginning? Im so excited

[Cryaaaaaaaaaah!]

I didnt even need to look at the numbers, I was already impressed by the screen.

Against the backdrop of a blue sky, a red dragon was setting the entire expanse ablaze, while a yellow glowing Stardus was battling a being that looked like it was hundreds of times her size.

Of course, that was just a dragon Li Xiaofeng had created for testing, using only 60 percent of his power, but it was still impressive enough. After all, the governments official method of dealing with the dragon was to take it down by force of numbers, not one-on-one, so kudos to Stardus for standing up to it alone.

Anyway, there you have it, Stardus power is more than enough for the moonlight battle. After all, Stardus special power is the key.

In other words, Stardus body is already ready for the disaster.

Therefore, I asked Li Xiaofeng to fight more fiercely as if it was no longer a test, in order to keep Stardus sense of realism.

The result: a burning sky and bombs exploding everywhere, like a kaiju movie.

-Pfft. Pow, pow, pow.

Oh, the building melted. Im supposed to pay for that.

Oh well. Im going to spend some money again today. Terrorism is all about money.

Anyway, I watched the video of Stardus fight with a satisfied smile on my face. The viewers are responding well. Mmm, good, good, good.

When I was nodding my head like that.

Wow there it is again. Da-ins puzzled expression.

.

I couldnt help but cough in disbelief as Seo-eun looked at me with wide eyes.

A pranksterSeo-eun wasnt like this, shes grown up and shes become crooked.

As I was crying and playing with Seo-Eun, the terror was finally over.

Well

Normally, I wouldve ended it like this and gone home to clean up the mess.

Still. If I dont see Stardus today, I wont see her again until Catastrophe Day.

Yeah.

Maybe I should go ahead and give her a final pep talk.

Thats what every Archenemy I know would do in this situation. Yeah.

I grabbed the masks from my desk and said to Seo-eun, who was doing the final cleanup.

Seo-eun, give me a minute. Im just going to finish the broadcast.

Sure. See you later.

With that, and Seo-Euns permission, I put the mask on my face and walked out of the container.

I teleported straight to where Stardus would be to say one last goodbye to her before the end of the year.

***

Hmph

In a large clearing beneath an empty city center Stardus landed on the ground, breathing heavily, and looked up, panting.

[Chhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!]

She had finally defeated the strange dragon in aerial combat.

Somehow, shed found an opening to land a blow, and shed managed to slay the red dragon.

It twisted in midair, and with a cry and a burst of flame, it vanished.

Perhaps that didnt kill the dragon, but merely canceled the summoning of the villain, Li Xiaofeng, but a victory was a victory.

Is it over?

Just when she thought so, she gasped.

Well done!

A voice descended from the sky, clapping and laughing.

Egostic

Yes, its me. Well done, Stardus.

With a grin, he flapped his cloak, and landed on the ground as gracefully as he had come.

And he wasHe was definitely smiling.

Well, well, well, now youve taken down one of Chinas leading villains. Isnt that great?

It is.

Breathing heavily, she replied as she tried to think of something to say to him.

Egostic suddenly looked serious and said

Youre right, there are very few heroes who can defeat that dragon, not even on a world scale. You should be confident, Stardus. You already shine.

He chuckles, looking her straight in the eye as he says it, as if its a given.

And at the sight of him speaking with such sparkling eyes, Stardus swallowed hard for a moment.

What, is this a new method of mental attack? Haru, get a grip. You cant play at his pace

Still, its the first time Ive ever heard him say that to my face, so Im a little.in a frenzy. And his words, spoken with such purity and sincerity, hit home even harder.

Wait. Why am I getting so worked up about a villain praising me for stopping terrorism? I shouldnt be

As Stardus paused in her thoughts, Egostic continued, still smiling.

Anyway I didnt come here to talk about this. Stardus, I want you to remember this.

At the suddenness of his words, Stardus said with as much sarcasm as she could muster.

What is it?

Im a villain.

She didnt know if he was an asshole because he was a villain, or if he was an asshole because he was terrorizing and didnt show his face until the end, or if he was an asshole because he came back at the last minute and changed his mind. She wasnt sure of her own mind, so she didnt sound so much pouty as angry.

Of course, Egostic simply smirked and let the petty name-calling slide.

Not at all, Stardus.

Perhaps, by the end of the year. I think something will happen.

Then at the last moment, he says it with a serious face and with him setting the tone, Stardus became serious as well.

Whats going on? Do you know something?

I dont know anything lets just say its a villains instinct for smelling danger, whatever.

Having said that, he smirked again, as if he hadnt been serious before, and turned around to speak.

I hope youre taking care of yourself, Stardus, as the weather is getting colder. I dont want my hero catching a cold.

Wait. Its the end of the year, or something?

She asks, looking at his back as if to tell him not to change the subject, and he considers for a moment before turning his head to look at her and smiling.

Uh, yeah. I think there might be something, something big, maybe, something so huge that might change the world.

What? Wait, so Im not-

Knowing now wont change anything, but

He left it at that still smiling, but more serious than ever.

Looking straight at her, he opened his mouth.

Stardus, you can do this.

No matter what catastrophe befalls you, Stardus, my Arch Enemy, the one I trust. Its enough. You will overcome whatever comes your way.

The look in his eyes as he said it overflowed with trust in her, and her body stiffened at the sight of it.

And when that moment comes, Ill be there to help. Haha, when my partner, the hero, is in danger, its only right that I, the villain, help right?

He chuckled, and said that.

Seeing that, Stardus couldnt help but look at him with a smirk of her own.

Whats natural about that, fool?

Yeah. I dont know what it is, but its something.

Stardus smiled to herself, forcing herself to let that thought go.

***.

That evening.

What is it, me, asshole?

Uh-huh

Ouch. The dyne is broken.

I lay there, shocked by Stardus words.

StardusI guess she hates me. Thank God. Im glad.

In my dreams, I heard Stardus voice criticizing me