episode_0026

Modern society is fundamentally sensitive to rumors.

That’s because information comes in from everywhere.

Whether it’s fake news, real news, or whatever.

Therefore, people usually don’t believe anything except what they see with their own eyes.

Conversely,

-KWAH-KWANG!

“Kkeueueuk!”

With a massive explosion, the suspect, no. Peacemaker retreats.

Is it because the clothes were made by Eclipse? The mask that only covers part of his face hides his seemingly kind impression well, without revealing his face.

No, the more I see it, the more upset I get. Why doesn’t she make something like that for me?

The more I express my resentment to Eclipse, the more she avoids eye contact and tells me to just wait, which makes it even worse.

Anyway,

-KWAH-KWANG!

As he slams his foot hard on the ground, another explosion erupts, and Peacemaker, who was descending lightly, soars into the air again.

And I, the very person who caused that explosion,

“I’ve been looking for you for a long time!”

was shouting.

To get so much media attention in such a short period.

Not many villains get this much media attention, you know.

Basically, villains don’t like being the center of attention.

Of course, if you run around shouting, “Please arrest me!” everyone is bound to pay attention.

Usually, the ones who like that don’t live long.

That’s because if you diligently show your face in the media, you become the number one target for arrest.

And if you survive that process, you become a famous villain.

From their point of view, I’m just a budding attention-seeking villain taking the necessary steps to become a famous villain.

If I get caught here, I’m done for, but if I don’t, I’ll make a name for myself.

But fortunately.

-PAA-AAT!

Peacemaker, skillfully regaining his posture in the air, lands safely.

For now, there’s no chance Peacemaker will catch me.

Because we’re in cahoots.

And this explosion too,

I lower my head to look at the ground.

An exquisitely executed bomb.

A collaboration between Firebringer and Eclipse.

They say it’s fireworks that hide flames in the darkness to maximize sound and effect, but honestly, I don’t know about that, but it passes since it works well.

Next…

I raise my head and look at the others.

People blinking in confusion.

“A real hero…?”

“What’s that…?”

People mutter as if they don’t understand.

That’s what I wanted.

Just planting strange thoughts like, what is a real hero, and is the current hero fake? is already half the success of my goal.

Look at Snow, who was about to fly towards me from far away but froze in place.

All this is because I diligently sowed doubt and confusion.

Now, an explainer character needs to appear to throw some bait.

The person who will play that role is-

“What even *is* a hero in the first place?”

Me.

I raise my finger and point at Peacemaker.

What can I do? Since there are so few people in the villain party, I have to be the mascot, the explainer, and basically do everything besides fighting.

“A hero, quite simply, is a hero.”

My finger points at the others.

“I don’t know if we can really call the heroes of today ‘heroes’.”

“…”

“Is it a hero who chases money, abandons duty, and merely becomes a dog of the ruling class?”

Peacemaker grits his teeth.

Man, he’s a good actor. Anyone would think he’s actually feeling guilty. No, what if you *are* feeling guilty?

“Of course, you’ll say that you’re still different from me, who attacks orphanages and robs banks.”

That’s true, though. Honestly, if someone is as bad as a bank robber or orphanage attacker, they’re not a hero.

Come to think of it, the guy who attacked the orphanage *was* a hero. You’re disqualified as a hero. I’ll kindly put you on the villain side later.

“In that sense!”

-KOONG!

As I stomp my foot, another handmade firecracker explodes, and flames rise, causing people to retreat further with shouts of surprise.

“Peacemaker! You overcame all that obstruction and sweet talk to get here!”

People’s attention turns to Peacemaker, and he strikes an awkward pose.

Good.

Then now…

It seems like the time has come to stage my own crisis.

“But that tiresome hypocrisy ends here!”

I clench my fist and charge at him.

“Die! Peacemaker!”

*

“That crazy bastard…!”

Watching the live broadcast, the man clutches his head.

“Who is Peacemaker! Find him, quick!”

“Uh, there’s no one! Really!”

“Damn it!”

He swears and clenches his fist.

He’s been had.

They didn’t even give him time to manipulate public opinion.

Originally, he was going to drag Peacemaker into this incident as the mastermind or a villain and make him take the blame.

“…Badface…!”

That monster-like, scary-looking guy ruined things again.

This is a literal fatal blow to the legitimacy of the Hero Association.

Normally, he could just dismiss it as nonsense and laugh it off, but not now.

This was a devastating blow to the Hero Association at the very time when it was losing its legitimacy the most and needed to establish its identity.

“What are you doing! Get the heroes together right now and catch that bastard-!”

In the end, all he could do was shout hysterically.

*

“…”

It was as if a huge dagger had been plunged into Snow’s heart.

What is a true hero?

Isn’t a hero someone who saves people without expecting a reward?

But what is this situation?

Isn’t this the situation she has always talked about, heard about, and seen?

“…”

She couldn’t know exactly what Badface meant by those words, but at least that’s how it sounded to her.

‘Can you truly be seen as a hero?’

“…”

Can she see herself as a hero?

No, even if she can, is this place she belongs to truly a place where good people exist who save the world and care for others?

“…”

She felt like she could confidently answer no.

*

-KWANG!

Let’s see.

Using the fourth firecracker, I quickly did a backflip.

-SWISH!

At the same time, as promised, Peacemaker launched an attack in that direction.

He’s really fast, this guy.

It’s a good thing we practiced, or we would have messed up.

“Hee… Hee…!”

Peacemaker looks at me, sweating profusely.

Practiced sparring is always harder than real sparring.

I, too, was sweating like rain.

“Hoo…”

Repeating breaths in and out, I look at where Eclipse and Firebringer are.

It’s about time they came.

-POOSH…

Sure enough, a small flame is shot into the air.

It’s the retreat signal.

A signal to run away because the heroes are coming soon.

Okay. Let’s stop here.

“As expected, your skills are still no joke.”

As I utter the agreed-upon line, a sense of relief fills Peacemaker’s face.

Yeah. It was hard for you too, right? I understand.

“But now that I’ve caught you once, it will be easy to catch you twice. So-”

I turn my gaze to the other heroes.

Fortunately, I only saw Snow.

Well, with protests happening like this all the time, not every hero can come every time.

“…I will crush that well-meaning ideal of yours that no one else has.”

Saying that, I step back.

I turn my gaze to Snow, and she lowers her gaze to the floor as if she’s been stabbed.

I meant for her to glare at me or chase after me. Did she get scared by my face again?

Why was I born with this cursed face…

No. Let’s go for now.

-PEONG!

As I stomp my foot, a shadow swallows me up along with the sound of smoke.

It’s time to go back.

*

“…”

“…”

Eclipse and Firebringer were also watching Badface from not far away.

“Was that intentional?”

“It was.”

To Firebringer’s question, Eclipse answered calmly as if there was no need to think about it.

“There’s no way that guy would say something without thinking.”

Firebringer looks at Badface.

He has a face like a demon, but his actions are different.

He took her out when she was being oppressed by others, and he was the one who noticed when the orphanage was attacked by the hero and rushed over.

Even to the point of giving Eclipse all the credit without a moment’s hesitation.

Unlike his appearance, he ultimately cares for people.

She couldn’t understand why he called himself a villain.

“…Honestly, you’re not a villain, are you?”

Firebringer muttered quietly, and Eclipse closed her eyes at those words.

In reality, he’s just an ordinary person with no abilities.

Of course, if you see his punching or how he uses his body, you can’t just call him an ordinary person, but either way, it’s the same in that he’s an ordinary person without abilities.

Despite that, he’s a man who fearlessly throws himself into conflicts and incidents like this between ability users.

His voice, saying that he was a ‘villain with conviction’, played in her head,

“…No. He is a villain.”

She opens her eyes again.

“Huh?”

“He’s a villain.”

In this world divided by the black-and-white logic of hero or villain, he is someone who denies the corrupt heroes and walks according to his own convictions.

“He’s just a villain with conviction.”

Eclipse muttered, and even after he let out smoke, she didn’t take her eyes off him.

Soon, he appears from the darkness.

“You worked hard.”

“You worked hard.”

The two encourage him, and,

“It’s okay, it’s okay.”

He waves his hand and looks at the two.

“Let’s go quickly. I’m hungry.”

“Okay.”

“Yes!”

The two follow behind him.

Because he is a villain with conviction.

And.

That day, the media exploded.