Chapter 57: Illusion Smoke Villain – Haze Fog ④

It was an experience that was hard to put into words.

For a moment, I felt an irrational fear that I might simply disappear like this—but the time I had spent as smoke probably wasn’t that long.

The blast had carried the gas instantly, and it seemed I’d put a considerable distance between myself and Raiden. The location—some kind of ruined building, about halfway up. Maybe a demolition in progress?

"Ahh~ Wrapping others up in smoke along with yourself takes a bit of time, you know,"

During the fight with Raiden, Haze Fog had repeatedly turned their body into smoke. If Flux is liquid, this guy is gas. And not just their own body—they can apply it to others too. Pretty strong, huh?

"Heh, convenient. A villain’s gotta be good at running away to last long, so you’ve got talent,"

"Ha ha! Talent’s nice, but I’m after luck that’d make a lottery win look normal,"

Even though Raiden had looked worried, Haze Fog had still managed to kidnap me without a hitch. Skilled—but this wasn’t the time to be impressed.

"You seem pretty relaxed, even after losing your guards, miss,"

"Oh, you noticed. Not bad, Haze Fog,"

The “guards” were probably Mio and Flux. Flux, specialized in assassination, was also a master of stealth. Water is everywhere, and Japan has plumbing—perfect for hiding. Yet Haze Fog seemed certain Mio wasn’t nearby.

"So, you’re taking over for D.E.T.O.N.A.T.E., huh?"

They could turn into smoke. Exploding with a bomb wouldn’t hurt them. A perfect human-timed explosive. Haze Fog shrugged lightly.

"Well, that’s quite a burden to be told,"

"Someone holding you hostage or something?"

"The favor I got was covering someone’s debt,"

"Ha ha! Worthless!"

"Yeah, I lost a lot at the races…"

Horse racing. Huh… maybe public servants like them don’t get paid much.

Or maybe I just think that because I don’t gamble. Whether they earn a lot or not, they can’t stop throwing money into it. That’s gambling addiction for you.

"Delta likes bombs, huh? If the goal is just to kill, any method would do—but they seem to love blowing stuff up,"

"Who knows. I have no idea what they’re thinking,"

Haze Fog said that with smoke. Not very villain-like. More like a public servant—or a reluctant salaryman. Stress written all over their face.

"So, Delta nearby?"

"If so—"

Their words were cut off by a deafening roar.

Haze Fog and I both widened our eyes and looked toward the sound. By now, it was clear this wasn’t Haze Fog’s second bomb.

Glass from the building shattered, revealing a massive chunk of metal. It seemed intent on destroying everything, filling us with despair.

Ironclad. Jin.

I had no idea why they came, but when Ironclad fought, the damage was insane. I lost track of how many of my favorite shops were destroyed—and how many times I myself got wrecked.

Once Ironclad showed up, this building was done. And maybe so was I.

"Ugh… Ironclad—miss, what kind of friends do you have?"

Haze Fog muttered, pulling a face more strained than when Raiden appeared.

"I wanna ask you too. What’s your relationship with Usuzumi?"

No ulterior motive in that question, I’m sure. I mean… not that I’m curious if Haze Fog is Usuzumi’s ex. Okay, maybe I am, but knowing wouldn’t change much.

"They were a colleague I often teamed up with. Knowledgeable, interesting to talk to, and even my dumb stories amused them. Didn’t think ill of them, so the other day I let them leave before anyone got hurt,"

…Still not clear enough. They were close, yes, but to what extent? No time to dwell. Jin.

Meanwhile, Ironclad rampaged, and the building continued to crumble. Haze Fog chatted with me while turning to smoke, carrying me to avoid attacks—but how long the building would hold was uncertain. I didn’t know which floor we were on, nor how many were above us—but I hoped to avoid being crushed flat.

"Hey, Ironclad. This one’s gonna take me to Delta. I wanna meet them, so I might as well let myself get kidnapped,"

"Kill,"

"Ah, no… Berserker mode,"

"What’s that mode?"

"They don’t listen,"

"…Yeah, that’s a problem."

No matter what you said, he only replied with “Kill”—and he was genuinely trying to do it in his berserk state.

He often went like this when facing Raiden.

I’d better make an excuse that I’ve never pushed him to reach this state. Even with such a short-tempered man, my strength lies in being able to maintain a reasonably calm conversation.

"He’s just a metal-manipulator, and you can turn into smoke… shouldn’t that be enough to handle it?"

Saying that irresponsibly, Haze Fog let out a sigh, along with a plume of violet smoke.

"Ahh, don’t pin too much hope on me~. Escaping alone is easy, sure—but you’re with the miss, so that complicates things,"

"Ah, I see. A handicap match with me as your baggage. Ironclad’s coming to kill you along with me. Good luck,"

"Weren’t they friends?"

"That guy can kill even friends,"

"Well, damn. Public safety material, huh?"

I personally think he’s absolutely unsuited. He’d probably kill his boss too. But if Haze Fog immediately says that he can kill friends, it probably means he’s had the experience of killing a friend back when he was in public safety. Letting Usuzumi go shows he wasn’t suited for that life—maybe that’s his self-mockery.

Once steel beams from the building started flying, Haze Fog seemed to give up decisively. A correct call. Otherwise, the building—and I—would have been crushed.

"Well, maybe we should try again later. Damn, I’ve taken on a troublesome job. Might be too much for me,"

"Good luck. I’m rooting for you,"

"This throws off my rhythm,"

Well, I do wanna meet Delta too.

But I hadn’t expected so many forces wanting to stop me from seeing Delta. Inferna happened before, so caution is natural. If I fall into darkness, it’d be a disaster. Maybe I’m overestimating myself here.

Wrapping others in smoke takes time, Haze Fog said. Escaping alone is easy. That wasn’t just showing off. In a flash, they became smoke and vanished.

What remained was a murderous Jin. Wait—am I still in danger?

Jin clicked his tongue loudly, gathered the metal around him, and hurled it, causing more destruction to the building. …It hasn’t collapsed yet, right? Are we okay?

I could lecture him about not taking it out on objects, but if it ricochets onto me, I’d die. Silence is golden.

"Were you just here by chance?"

No reply from Jin. Meaning… he came here for me.

Maybe Sudama told him. Sudama had been whining that night streets are dangerous, right before I left home. He doesn’t yet know Usuzumi can take the form of a middle-aged man.

Sudama can’t really converse with D.E.T.O.N.A.T.E., so he’d have to fuss at Jin instead. Maybe he got fed up and left home—or maybe he seriously came to look for me.

How he found Haze Fog’s location, after tricking Raiden and Flux and kidnapping me, is unknown. Jin knows tech surprisingly well—or maybe it’s just instinct.

If I said, “Thanks for coming to save me,” it’d probably embarrass—or no, anger—Jin, so I said nothing. That seemed to worsen his mood anyway.

"Tch… I owe you one,"

"An old man’s tsundere, huh. That might be in demand,"

"Try making some effort to talk,"

A villain telling me that… the day has come. Jin’s a remarkably sane man. The society letting someone like him be a villain is at fault, really.

I don’t know if the “debt” he mentioned is for medical treatment or for providing food, clothing, and shelter. But at least one of those wasn’t unwanted interference.

"Thanks, Jin,"

"...Tch,"

"You try talking too,"

Who responds to a thank-you with a tongue click?

Jin’s lack of social skills is astounding—but honestly, the reason he’s a villain isn’t society’s fault.