Hero Hack: Reversing Heroes and Raising Harem-Chapter 123: Welcome to the Basement

Zain and Velra quickly moved underground.

The narrow tunnel behind the market stall gave way to a dim corridor.

The first group they passed didn’t even glance at them.

Down here, everyone looked dangerous. No one asked questions.

"They think we’re just more villains," Zain muttered under his breath.

Velra didn’t look at them. "Good. Keep walking."

They passed another corridor where two men were arguing over stolen gear.

A third man, half-drunk and bleeding from his shoulder, glared at Velra and raised his chin.

"New faces. You work for Kurn?"

Zain didn’t slow down. "Does it look like we answer to Kurn?"

The man hesitated, then looked away. "Tch. Whatever."

Once they’d pushed past another hallway marked with red Xs, Zain leaned closer to Velra.

"Where are we headed?"

Velra jerked her chin forward.

"Below the scrap pit. There’s a maintenance shaft that leads to an abandoned zone."

"It’s dead space—no one bothers patrolling it."

"Perfect for a talk," Zain said. "Or a trap."

She glanced at him sideways. "You expecting me to betray you now?"

"Not you." He smirked.

"But your past? That’s a different story."

They descended a spiral stairwell covered in slime and handprints.

Eventually, they reached a rusted gate, half-hanging from broken hinges.

Velra kicked it open.

Beyond was a wide chamber.

Zain stepped inside and blinked. "It’s empty."

Velra took a few slow steps forward, checking her device.

"Weird. The signal said they were here."

"The trackers I planted shouldn’t be wrong."

Zain folded his arms. "Maybe it’s below."

Without another word, he stepped back.

He activated his Angelic Demon shift, growing his black-red horns.

His foot cracked the ground lightly—then his fist drove straight into the floor.

BOOM!

The floor gave way.

A hidden stairwell was revealed, leading into a darker depth.

Velra grinned. "There it is."

They moved quickly, descending into the deeper level.

The hallway at the bottom glowed faintly with red light.

When they emerged into the next chamber, four women stood in formation.

And recognizable.

Zain’s eyes narrowed immediately. "You."

Velra tilted her head. "The ones who I fought earlier."

One of the women stepped forward, hand already reaching for her blade.

Her voice was tight. "Velvet Demon. How did you find us?"

Another woman hissed, eyes darting between them.

"You shouldn’t be here. This was a secure location!"

Zain’s grin widened. "Clearly not that secure."

Velra took a slow step forward, her voice laced with cruel amusement.

"You should’ve checked your bodies."

The women flinched. One of them grabbed her neck—felt something.

"What...?"

She pulled it free.

A thin micro-tracker, embedded just under the skin.

Velra smiled coldly.

"That’s right. I let you run on purpose. I wanted to see where the rats would go."

Zain nodded. "So this is one of Valcair’s little dens."

But the lead woman smirked. "You think this is it? You’re wrong."

She spread her arms slowly, proud.

"This is just a decoy base. A fallback point. One of many."

Velra’s smile vanished.

"So you’re not denying he’s here. You’re confirming he’s hiding."

Another woman spoke up.

"We don’t know where the main base is. We only get summoned when needed."

Zain stepped forward.

"Then I guess we’ll just make you tell us where the next summoning is."

The women raised their weapons, tense.

"We’ll die before betraying him."

Velra scoffed.

"That’s fine. I have my way to make people talk. Or beg. Or both."

The fourth woman stepped back slightly, whispering, "They’re both monsters..."

Zain grinned. "True."

Velra walked forward, tapping her heel on the stone floor with every step.

"You attacked civilians. You wore my face. You insulted my name."

Zain cracked his knuckles. "You threatened my sister. I don’t forgive that."

One of the women suddenly activated her ability, Obsidian Skin.

Her arms were coated in jagged armor. "You won’t leave here alive."

Velra didn’t even blink. "You think that matters?"

Zain looked at the four, calm and cold.

"Talk now. Or we’ll peel the answers out of your bones."

The women didn’t back down.

Velra exhaled slowly. "Master. Permission to begin?"

Zain smirked. "Let’s see if they scream before they break."

Velra’s foot slid back. "Then I’ll take two. You take two."

Zain’s red eyes flared. "Don’t let them die too fast."

Velra only smirked as she looked at her target.

---

Velra stepped forward, pointing toward two of the girls.

"You two," she said, her eyes glinting. "Come."

The woman on the left snarled and cracked her neck. Her body trembled. ƒгeewёbnovel.com

A low growl erupted from her chest as horns burst from her skull and claws formed at her hands.

"Demon Shift," Velra muttered. "Ugly form. Not enough bite."

The other woman to the right vanished. Not blinked.

Vanished—her body dissolving into a blur, flickering through solid pillars.

"Specter Drift," Velra said. Her smile widened. "Cute. Now come try me."

The demon-shifted woman rushed first, claws slashing down in a frenzy.

Velra ducked, slid low, and launched a kick upward that sent shockwaves through the floor.

The blow caught her opponent’s jaw—but the beast didn’t even flinch.

She grinned, blood trailing down her cheek, and swung both arms in a crisscross arc.

Velra flipped backward once, avoiding the lethal slashes.

Only to feel a sudden breeze behind her.

She twisted her hips and spun low.

Too late.

A blur slammed into her back.

The Specter user flickered into view just as Velra skidded forward, catching herself on one hand.

"So you can phase through and hit mid-reform. That’s cheating," Velra spat, straightening.

"Don’t flatter yourself," the demon-shifted woman growled.

The Specter user tried to vanish again—but Shock Trace activated.

The moment she flickered through Velra’s path, a faint trail of pink lightning snapped across her side.

It stunned her just long enough for Velra to pivot mid-spin and land a heel strike directly to the woman’s sternum.

The phaser flew back, body sparking and rolling.

The demon-brute tackled Velra from the side.

But Velra’s legs coiled, and she twisted mid-fall, locking both her ankles around the woman’s neck.

They crashed, and Velra clamped tight with a powerful scissor hold.

"Waltz Zone—on."

The floor pulsed. Her speed tripled. Their reactions slowed.

She released the hold, flipped off her downed foe, and sprinted toward the recovering Specter assassin.

"Try drifting through this."

She unleashed a sweeping kick laced with Venom Trace, cutting the floor apart.

Mist hissed where her foot passed, and the moment the Specter woman reappeared—

She gasped.

Her body locked mid-phase.

"Poison in your reform. Enjoy that."

Velra turned again, breathing steadily.

"Two down," she said.