The Villain System Is Frustated

A Misunderstood Rescue Operation

"I haven’t had the chance to tell you that I actually hate you because you always make me feel like I’m going crazy!" Rina continued with a hitch in her breath as the penthouse window shattered into pieces from the impact of a mini-guided missile.

Bima didn’t have time to answer. He lunged toward Rina, pushing her to the floor just as a blast of fire swept through the room. Bima felt his brain throb painfully. The System in his head wailed like a broken ambulance siren.

[Warning! Lethal danger! The host must activate Destroyer Mode immediately! Enemy targets number twelve, equipped with full military-grade weaponry. If the host does not act immediately, the survival probability is zero percent!]

Bima scrambled to his feet. He didn't have time for fear. He stood amidst the scattered shards of glass while the attackers entered through the windows on rappelling ropes. They wore gas masks and tactical gear that looked highly professional.

"System, I don't want to kill them. Give me a way to neutralize them without bloodshed!" Bima commanded, twisting his body to evade a shot that slammed into the wall behind his head.

[Environmental analysis: The building's gas pipes are connected right behind this wall. Use your kinetic energy to rupture them and create a massive sedative gas effect!]

Bima didn't think twice. He swung a fist toward the concrete wall. Instead of shattering, Bima's hand was enveloped in a strange blue light he had gained from the system. The wall cracked and the pipe inside ruptured instantly. White gas hissed out under high pressure, filling the room within seconds.

The attackers who had just landed began to stagger. They hadn't expected Bima to destroy the building's own support system. One by one they collapsed, falling into a deep sleep due to the effects of the gas mixed with the system's chemicals.

Rina stared at Bima with wide eyes. She rose from the floor, smoothed her messy hair, and gave Bima a look that was hard to decipher. "What did you just do? That wasn't just physical strength, Bima!"

Bima panted heavily. He felt an overwhelming exhaustion, yet he forced himself to smile. "Just luck. I knew where that gas pipe was located."

Rina stepped closer, grabbing Bima’s collar with a demanding gaze. "Don’t play me for a fool. You just saved my life, but you also destroyed half of this floor. Who exactly are you?"

Before Bima could answer, heavy footsteps echoed from the hallway leading to the penthouse. Those weren't the sounds of the previous attackers. They were rhythmic, disciplined boot stomps, signaling the arrival of a far more dangerous group.

[Warning! An elite enemy group has arrived. They are no ordinary attackers. They are a mafia bounty hunter unit. Crime Points have increased drastically because you accidentally damaged public facilities. Total points: 500!]

"System, this is crazy! I'm trying to be a good person!" Bima shouted inwardly.

"Bima, listen to me!" Rina pulled Bima’s hand, leading him behind a massive pillar. "If we get caught here, we're finished. There’s an emergency stairwell behind that balcony door. You have to come with me now!"

They ran toward the balcony, but before they could reach the door, a man in a gray suit stood there. He held a silenced pistol and smiled coldly. He was the same man who had thrown the threat envelope in the orphanage hall earlier.

"You’re not going anywhere," the man said in a deep voice. "Our boss wants to speak with you privately. And he doesn't like to be kept waiting."

Bima looked at Rina. He saw her beginning to draw her dagger again, ready to fight to the death. However, Bima felt something was off. The man in front of him wasn't radiating sharp killing intent, but rather an aura that leaned more toward forced negotiation.

"Wait!" Bima shouted. He stepped forward, placing a hand in front of Rina to stop her. "What do you want? If you're looking for money or power, you've come to the wrong place."

The man chuckled. "We don't need money, Mr. Bima. We need the asset inside your body. We know that the system you're using does not belong to an ordinary human."

Bima froze. How could they possibly know about the system?

[High-level danger! The target is aware of the Super Villain System’s existence. Options: Eliminate the target or surrender your secrets to total destruction!]

Bima stared at the man. He felt a rage beginning to burn in his chest. He wasn't just an orphanage volunteer anymore. He was someone who had to protect Rina and the people he loved. Bima felt the power that had flowed through his hands earlier now spreading throughout his entire body, making his muscles feel like molten metal.

"I won't let anyone take what I have," Bima said, his voice calm yet trembling from the immense power.

The man fired his pistol. Bima didn't flinch. He raised his right hand, and with a movement so fast, the bullet was caught in mid-air right in front of his palm by a transparent energy generated by the system.

Rina’s eyes widened in shock. She had never seen anything like this in her life. "Bima... what kind of power is that?"

Bima turned toward Rina, giving a thin, sorrowful smile. He knew his secret could no longer be hidden. "This is a curse, Rina. And I’m trying to find a way to break it."

The man in the suit took a step back, his face showing genuine shock. "Impossible! No host should be able to control that energy so stably!"

Bima stepped forward, each of his strides making the floor of the building vibrate. "Now, tell me who your boss is, or you’ll find out what it’s like to face something far worse than an ordinary criminal."

Suddenly, from behind the open balcony door, another figure appeared. It was a woman in a long red dress, her face hidden behind a luxurious silk veil. She clapped slowly, her voice sounding like a death knell.

"Extraordinary, Bima. You truly possess remarkable potential as a Demon King," the woman’s voice was melodic yet cold.

Rina glared at the woman with hatred. "You... you’re the head of that mafia organization! What are you doing here?"

The woman laughed, her laughter filling the smoke-filled room. "I am here to take what is rightfully mine. Bima, has your system told you that your contract with it is about to expire?"

Bima felt a knot in his stomach. A contract? The system had never mentioned anything about that.

[Warning! The host is being psychologically manipulated. That woman is a system hacker. Do not believe anything she says!]

"Bima, don't listen to her!" Rina shouted, leaping in front of Bima with her dagger ready to strike. However, the woman in the red veil simply snapped her fingers, and instantly, the floor beneath Rina’s feet gave way, sending her plummeting into the darkness below!

"Rina!" Bima screamed hysterically. He tried to lung forward to catch her, but the man in the suit grabbed his shoulder with immense strength.

"Now, Bima," the man whispered in his ear. "It’s time we discussed your true future."

The woman in the red veil approached, her gold-glimmering dagger touching Bima's chin. "You will be ours, or you will watch the woman you love crumble into dust before your very eyes."

Bima stared down into the hole where Rina had vanished. He knew he had no other choice. He glared at the woman, his eyes flashing red under the influence of the rampaging system.

"You dare touch her?" Bima asked, his voice no longer sounding human.

The woman smiled smugly behind her veil. "I won't just touch her; I will use her as a pawn to crush that ridiculous morality of yours."

Bima couldn't take it anymore. He summoned every ounce of energy he possessed, heedless of the consequences of existential erasure. Just as he was about to unleash his power, a soft hand from an unexpected direction grabbed his collar and pulled him into a secret door behind the wall, which had just swung open from the violent tremors.

It was Rina! She hadn’t fallen, she’d simply vanished into the building’s secret passageway. 

"Quick, Bima!" Rina whispered, pulling him deeper into the darkness of the corridor. "They have energy trackers. We have to get out of here before they find us!"

Bima followed Rina, his heart still pounding wildly. However, as they ran down the narrow, dusty hallway, Rina suddenly stopped and shoved Bima against the wall. Her breath was shallow and rapid, her eyes staring intensely into his.

"I know you’re hiding something," Rina whispered in a low voice, her hand slowly reaching for Bima’s pocket again, searching for something else. "And if we survive tonight, I’m not letting you go until you tell me everything. But right now, there’s something we have to do to stay alive."

Rina leaned in, her lips nearly brushing Bima’s ear, when suddenly the sound of heavy footsteps echoed from the end of the corridor. It wasn't the mafia's soldiers anymore it was something else. Something with an inhuman, mechanical stride.

"They’ve found us," Rina muttered, pulling out a small detonator. "Bima, I’m going to blow this tunnel to slow them down. You have to jump into that vent up there!"

"No! I’m not leaving you!" Bima shouted.

Rina looked at Bima with a smile so sweet it made his chest tighten. "If I can’t make it out, then you have to take this secret to the grave. Bima, I love you, but this world is more important than our silly feelings."

Rina pressed the trigger, and instantly a deafening explosion ripped through the corridor, sending massive chunks of concrete flying toward them both. Bima could only stare as Rina was swallowed by dust and fire, while the system’s voice in his head began screaming that he had just lost the only person he loved.