This Villain is Soft - Chapter 109



Only Noblemtl

Episode 109

Although the tone was polite, it was close to an overt insult.

But Haon had experienced enough bullying at universities and research labs. This was nothing.

“Then, I’ll help you fix this quickly and then go to another task.”

In my experience, in these situations, it’s better to stay put than to back down, and the trolling will end more quickly.

“What should I do and how should I handle it?”

“Huh? Oh, here… … .”

As Ha-on sat on the workbench and spread out the bike repair kit, Deputy Manager Noh Hye-jeong also pointed out the areas that needed to be repaired in a dumbfounded voice.

When I kicked the dented bike frame away, I found a tangled mess of magnetic netting.

“… … .”

“… … .”

An awkward silence fell as the two men cut the net with nippers.

Although he had decided not to run away, Haon couldn’t stand the awkward atmosphere and wanted to run away to another workbench right away.

Moreover, I felt eyes glancing at my face from under my deeply pulled-down hat, and it made me sweat.

With her eyes covered by a hat and her lower face covered by a mask, Deputy Team Leader Noh Hye-jeong’s expression could not be seen, but she did not seem to be the type to hide her feelings well.

It feels like I’m working with a stranger who obviously dislikes me, and he’s even giving me looks like he’s telling me to go away.

It was a collaboration of incredible difficulty for Haon. Haon, unable to bear the prolonged silence, finally opened his mouth.

“Hey, Manager. If my face is uncomfortable, should I wear a mask tomorrow? There are a lot of fun masks coming out. Like Halloween.”

“Ah… … . That, that’s not necessary. Did it bother you? I’m sorry.”

The atmosphere became even more awkward as Deputy Manager Noh Hye-jeong turned her head awkwardly.

Haon began to regret saying something unnecessary.

‘What’s Halloween? I didn’t come here to play. When you’re nervous, why do you say things you don’t have to say… …!’

I looked around, wondering if I should have really gone to a different workstation, but it seemed like it would have been similar no matter where I went.

Even though everyone was busy with repairs and construction, whenever their backs or necks started to hurt and they raised their heads, they would inadvertently glance in the direction where Haon was.

The feeling of hostile or curious gazes staring down at your back.

I remembered the first day I entered my advisor’s lab.

“… … .”

It was a feeling that I could never enjoy even though I got used to it.

Haon cut the net without saying a word. No matter how much he cut, the tangled net kept coming out.

‘I didn’t come here to be friendly, you know. All I need to do is help the headquarters deal with Bae An-jae.’

The sound of the nippers was still building up on the workbench, and Haon thought about his usefulness in the midst of that calm enemy.

* * *

After fixing two bikes, two grappling hook guns, and three receiver bands, my assigned tasks were complete.

They say there is a shortage of workers, but each person has a lot of work to do, and yet there are still many engineers who cannot leave their work benches.

‘It’s my first day, so I guess they didn’t ask me to do much.’

While Ha-on was taking off his gloves and muttering to himself, Deputy Team Leader Noh Hye-jeong spoke in a whisper.

“great job.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

Haon also bowed his head hurriedly at the unexpected greeting.

‘You said hello. I should have said it first.’

As I wiped my hands, thinking that I should go first tomorrow, I saw Joo-yeol talking to Team Leader Kim Song-mi at the entrance.

Perhaps because I had just been suffering from subtle hostility, I was particularly happy to see him even though I had just seen him.

“Juyeol-ah!”

As I approached him with a big smile, a small explosion sounded from behind me.

I turned around in surprise and saw black smoke rising from the workbench right next to me.

“T, why is this happening all of a sudden… …!”

“Come out and see.”

Deputy Team Leader Noh Hye-jeong pushed the flustered engineer aside and sprayed the fire extinguisher.

The small spark was quickly put out, and the other engineers went about their work with nonchalant expressions.

The engineer who caused the explosion rolled his eyes with an awkward expression, then made eye contact with Haon.

Then he frowned, clearly showing his displeasure.

Haon flinched and turned his eyes. She was the engineer who had been glaring at me from the workbench next to me.

“Galaxy On.”

As I was approaching the sound of Joo-yeol calling me, Team Leader Kim Song-mi, who was with me, suddenly called the engineer.

“Seungyeon Seo! Bring your tablet and come here!”

“Yes, yes!”

He approached with a completely different expression than when he had been glaring at Haon.

“What was the problem?”

“I don’t think the calculations were wrong, but I don’t know why the motor blew up… … .”

Team leader Kim Song-mi, who was looking at the blueprints and formulas, handed Ha-on a tablet.

“Dispatch position. Check it out.”

Haon, who had picked up the tablet without thinking, read through the formula and then pointed to a certain part.

“Oh, the calculation is wrong from here on out. If the formula is correct, it won’t be able to withstand this much voltage.”

At those words, Seo Seung-yeon did not hide her displeasure and took out her calculator and tapped it.

“What are you talking about? The calculations were correct! Clearly─.”

And as soon as the value appeared on the calculator, he became speechless and his face turned bright red. It seemed like Ha-on was right.

“… … Normally, I wouldn’t make this kind of mistake.”

Team Leader Kim Song-mi burst out laughing at her grumbling words as she snatched the tablet from Ha-on’s hands.

“Okay! So come to your senses and get back to work.”

“……yes.”

Seo Seung-yeon glanced at Ha-on once, then turned around and left.

Joo-yeol, who had been silent, muttered with an expression that showed that he was not satisfied.

“Did I put you here for nothing?”

“Absolutely not! I like tinkering with the machines here. Really.”

When Ha-on shook his head, Team Leader Kim Song-mi clapped her hands.

“That’s good. I’ll start putting it into production tomorrow, so you know that.”

“What are you making?”

“What would you rather build, a decompressor or an EMP device?”

“… … !”

Haon, who was holding his breath, fell into deep thought.

Repairing machines without any engineering felt incredibly analog. How interesting would manufacturing be then?

“Both seem fun… … .”

As the worries grew longer, Team Leader Kim Song-mi spoke subtly.

“The vice-president will build an EMP device.”

“… … ?”

Haon was curious about her intentions in saying such things.

Deputy Manager Noh Hye-jeong must have seen me being uncomfortable all day, and yet she asked me to work with her tomorrow too.

She seemed to notice the thought and laughed as if it was nothing.

“The vice-president may take a little longer to get used to you, but he’s a really nice person.”

“Uhm. Okay, I understand.”

Although he gave a positive answer, Haon wondered to himself if that was really true.

Because among the people I’ve met in this dimension, there hasn’t been a single person who spoke kindly but was truly kind.

“Then you have to go to work tomorrow too! If you run away, I’ll chase you to hell.”

Team leader Kim Song-mi smiled with a strange look in her eyes, showing her teeth.

Haon swallowed dry saliva at the sight and felt a groundless conviction.

The conviction that I should never do anything that would make me want to get chased by that person.

* * *

After leaving the engineering office, Ha-on was led by Ju-yeol’s hand and explored various parts of the headquarters.

Previously, when I came to meet the Hunter, I only went back and forth between the lobby and the small conference room, so this was my first time seeing it properly.

It was hard to believe that this place was originally a gang stronghold, even though they probably didn’t pay much attention to internal remodeling because stabilizing the headquarters was the priority.

Rather, it felt like a small public enterprise building.

It was because of the employees and heroes who were busily walking up and down the hallways, talking on the phone or looking through documents.

‘Only the people inside have changed, but even the atmosphere has completely changed.’

Haon, who had been admiring me, suddenly found me and looked at the surprised employees, making me cringe.

“Juyeol. Is it okay for me to wander around like this?”

“It’s the building you gave me, so why don’t you just take a look around? It’s not like I’m going into the workplace.”

Because Juyeol spoke so calmly, I thought, “Is Haon like that too?”

“Would you like to see the accommodations too? They’re a bit dirty though.”

“Is that okay? I’m curious!”

When Ha-on’s eyes lit up with curiosity, Ju-yeol couldn’t hold back his laughter.

When it seemed like the engineers were being left out, I thought it might be more distressing for Haon.

But even after leaving the engineering office full of machines and tools, there was still life in his eyes.

I was so happy and proud that my heart was pounding.

“let’s go.”

Joo-yeol left the headquarters building and headed to the dormitory.

Haon looked around the dormitory with curious eyes, just like he did at headquarters. This place was already quite neat and tidy.

As I climbed the stairs and arrived at the floor where Juyeol’s quarters were, one door flew open.

At that moment, Ha-on was about to pretend not to know when he discovered the bell ringing.

Joo-yeol clicked his tongue slightly and grabbed Ha-on’s waist, then hurriedly hid in the shadows.

“… … !”

When Ha-on, who was suddenly held in his arms, was surprised and tried to escape, he hugged her back and head tighter.

Haon closed his eyes tightly, feeling dizzy.

I had never really paid much attention to it, but I was really concerned about the clear, firm muscles on my cheek and the thick arms that were holding my back.

What was more concerning was my heart, which had been pounding for some time.