Side Story Chapter 13 – The ‘Hunter’ Method of Evil

Surely, I must look bizarre.

The deity here isn’t the one the Hunter was looking for.

There’s nothing worth the trouble of looking into.

As Ayeon said, I could just wait patiently.

But honestly, I couldn’t help but be curious.

Deities may showcase miracles, but most have their limits.

Not every god is omnipotent, which is a blasphemous but obvious truth.

But to boldly declare, “I will grant any wish,” over all those other gods?

I’ve already concluded in my mind that it’s impossible.

Yet, I couldn’t shake the fleeting thought of “What if?”

Otherwise, could so many people gather like this?

Plus, just watching wouldn’t be a bad thing either.

[Do you really need to see it?]

‘Honestly, aren’t you curious?’

[That’s true. I wonder what gives them so much confidence.]

So, I pushed through the crowd, moving closer.

To see if this god could truly grant any wish.

To find out who this god was for myself.

After some effort, the deity in my sight appeared quite mystical.

It took on a human form, but was wrapped in white cloth from head to toe.

Not a single spot was left uncovered, not even a toe.

Sitting there with arms elongated in an unhuman-like way.

I thought perhaps this was just to conceal their identity.

But, at the same time, the foreign appearance felt undeniably mystical.

Especially because of the word “deity,” which intensified that feeling.

In that moment, a woman began to plead with the mummy-like god.

“Oh, deity!”

“What is it?”

“Please give me money that would make my eyes spin!”

A simple wish everyone could think of, but not that easy to fulfill.

Yet the deity spoke in a matter-of-fact tone, as dry as the Sahara.

“Hold my hand.”

Nothing in the god’s demeanor changed.

Not the movements of the body, the tone of the voice, or the posture.

Even as the woman desperately clutched that hand.

That moment, a sudden change erupted elsewhere, as if in response to the unmoving god.

– Ding!

“Huh? Huh?! Is this real? Money has really been deposited!!!”

The woman’s mobile phone and her face.

Suddenly, the woman’s phone went off.

Her face turned to shock and horror.

It seemed an unimaginable amount of money had been deposited just as she wanted.

She looked at the god with eyes full of reverence, unsure of what to do.

But the god remained unchanged, only uttering a chilling voice.

The only change was that he slowly tightened the hand the woman had held.

“It has been fulfilled.”

Even as a mere spectator, it was truly astonishing to behold.

Just by talking, fulfilling wishes so easily.

With so many gods around, it made sense why people were flocking to this one.

Had I not known of the Hunter’s existence, I too would have wished with that woman.

‘…….Is that even possible…? They’re not even asking for a price…?’

[What trickery is this… Just feels cold, doesn’t it?]

Meanwhile, those around were witnessing this miraculous scene, hastily beginning to make their own wishes.

“Can I lose weight just by standing still?!”

“Please, make sure my mom isn’t lonely! She’s been struggling since the divorce!”

“Grant me overwhelming power over others!”

Just like the woman before, clutching at the god’s elongated hand in desperation.

From the god’s perspective, it might be a bit awkward, even blasphemous.

But he didn’t express anger; he simply let quiet words escape.

“Wait. It will be fulfilled soon.”

Perhaps because there were quite a few people wishing, they weren’t instantly granted.

But everyone sparkled in anticipation, quietly waiting for their wishes to come true.

As if just standing quietly would yield sweet rewards, like hopeful children.

The air seemed to thicken with excitement, as if the atmosphere itself had changed slightly.

At that moment, an out-of-place voice broke the atmosphere.

A thunderous rage hardened into a solid form.

Along with some inexplicable regret.

The voice belonged to a young man.

“Hey, you fucking asshole!!!!”

“What is it?”

One young man in a wheelchair.

Though he seemed to struggle with his legs, trying to grab the god by the collar and shout.

As if only this could relieve his overflowing indignation.

“How dare you do this to me!!!”

“Are you addressing me?”

The man’s voice thickened with rage.

I felt a bit of pity, though I couldn’t personally understand it at all.

Based on what I had seen so far, that god could fulfill numerous wishes.

So why was this man so angry?

Perhaps because he couldn’t use his legs, he wished to become a hero.

But still, the god wasn’t completely useless.

“Why did my lower half suddenly end up like this after wishing?!”

Now I realized it was not a congenital disability, but an acquired one.

Not just caused by his wish, but directly resulting from it.

I couldn’t make sense of it.

“Didn’t War Machine lose his lower half?”

“…”

I could understand now.

“…….Then… what about my suddenly deceased… parents…?”

“Batman.”

“Ah.”

Even the continuation made it clear.

Indeed, the god had granted the wish.

Just in a direction the man had never considered.

“Literally, I ‘gave you the chance.’ Now you become a hero.”

It seemed that by saying “chance,” he had acquired his disability.

Of course, nowadays there are heroes with disabilities, but

there’s no way that man wanted that disability as a condition.

At that moment, a high-pitched scream echoed, almost a wail.

The source of the voice was, unsurprisingly, the woman who had been granted her wish first.

She was holding the phone and venting her frustrations.

“They said money from voice phishing has been deposited?! I’m innocent!!!”

Even as a bystander, it was genuinely pitiful to witness.

But nobody here cared about her.

No, to be precise, they couldn’t ‘afford’ to care.

“I lost weight, but… cough why is my skin falling apart…? cough Why is it so hard to breathe…?”

“Hey, mom! We’re family, right? D-Don’t do that! That’s a bathroom, you know!”

“Endless armband?! I don’t want this kind of power!!!”

As the wishes poured in, people began to experience their fulfilled desires.

[Why is weight suddenly dropping…?]

‘Terminal cancer…’

[Oh, that’s insane.]

But it was completely different from what they had wanted.

As each wish was granted, the frantic flames of chaos rose rapidly.

Yet, in the midst of the carnage before my eyes, the god merely mumbled quietly.

Maintaining the same unchanged demeanor as before.

“All has been granted.”

In a moment of hesitation, I approached the god.

Carefully pulling away the cloth that wrapped around his extended hand.

I couldn’t help but let out a big sigh.

‘Fuck, as expected…’

[So this guy showed up too… I thought he wouldn’t come…]

It was a Monkey’s Paw.

No wonder the arms were unusually long and the fingers stretched.

This god, with a Monkey’s Paw, had granted wishes in such a fucked-up manner.

The white cloth seemed to be for the purpose of hiding his identity.

Had anyone recognized him, no one would have wished from him.

There had been warnings about evil gods coming through the Hunter.

But seeing this fucking asshole, that warning suddenly felt more weighty.

It was dangerous.

If the Hunter had not been here, I might have wished from the Monkey’s Paw too.

I would have added to the chaos these people were experiencing.

“I will grant any wish.”

Did he genuinely enjoy the suffering of the people he caused?

At that moment, a burly man broke through the chaos, confidently stating his wish.

“Send me to heaven!”

“It is done.”

However, contrary to those words, the man’s appearance didn’t change one bit.

He wasn’t dead and going to heaven; he was still there.

Soon, the man cast a questioning look at the god, silent.

“In comparison to hell, this cruel reality is heaven for you.”

In a dry tone, the god overtly mocked the man.

But still having granted the wish, the man grasped that hand again.

Yet this time, the tone carried a heavy emotion.

“Feels good being bloated!”

“……Wh-what are you doing…?!”

Confused fury and embarrassment mixed together in a rich array of emotions for a god.

“The Monkey’s Paw sends me to heaven!!!”

“Wait, stop…!”

As the man gripped the bloated Monkey’s Paw, shaking it back and forth.

Now I realized the man wishing was none other than a Hunter.

Even if his wish to go to heaven didn’t materialize,

he showed a firm will to physically go to heaven himself.

“Monkymachiing!!!”

“Please, stop it already!!!”

That determination from the Hunter persisted, not just once but multiple times, waging a battle.

“Ha… now that we have lube, I must go back.”

“Ah, no!!!”

Before that determination, the evil god showed fear for the first time.

Seeing any further might jeopardize my sanity, so I decided to retreat.

But even the sounds from behind told me what was happening.

Somehow, I could visualize the scene unfolding before me.

“Monkey! Climb the tree!!!”

“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!”

Especially hearing the Monkey’s Paw plead with a voice filled with fear made it clearer.

[……The Hunter has won…]
‘That evil god was shit…’

Surely, there is truth in old sayings.

Barbarians are conquered by barbarians.

Evil is conquered by evil.

Poison is countered with poison.

And evil gods must be ruled by Hunters.