I had clearly assumed that the Hero Association wouldn’t function properly for at least a week…
But seeing it back to normal in just two or three days, it was easy to instinctively sense that an overwhelming amount of money had been poured in.
Without Mobia, are the heroes just a bunch of rabble?
There were at least 20 to 30 heroes surrounding White High School in a wide circle.
Yet, none of them dared to actually enter the school building.
There was no one like Mobia, who could use telekinesis to completely suppress their presence.
Judging by the sections of the schoolyard that had been blown up, they had probably already attempted entry several times, only to realize how dangerous it was and hesitated afterward.
So this is why the Ministry of Defense keeps increasing its firepower.
Seeing the heroes unable to even approach Pyro Bomber, who was using a massive amount of explosives,
I instantly understood why the Ministry was so fixated on artillery.
With overwhelming firepower, even stepping foot into enemy territory becomes a risk you hesitate to take.
“Sae-eun.”
“Yes?”
“I’m going into that high school now.”
“……?”
“Normally, I’d expect to come back here. But just in case I can’t… see this phone?”
“…Yes.”
“If you press and hold the number 1, tell the saved number that the villain hunter is not coming back. Someone will come to help you.”
“…You have to come back safely…”
“I’ll do my best.”
Getting out of the car, I began climbing up the wall of a residential building located a good distance from White High School.
And when I reached the rooftop of that building—
“…Who are you?”
On the rooftop, five people were watching White High School from a distance.
“Summon.”
Right in front of them, I summoned my Villain Hunter mask and layered it over the recognition blocking mask.
“……!!”
“Vi… villain…!”
“Wow! It’s the Villain Hunter!”
As they each reacted in different ways, I asked them if this building belonged to someone.
“Th-This is our family’s house… that’s all…”
When the man said this was his family’s home,
“Summon, summon, summon, summon, summon.”
“?”
I summoned five bundles of cash, each worth 100 million won, and handed them out casually.
“Now, please run down to the first floor quickly.”
I began clearing everyone off the rooftop.
About a minute later, I saw the five family members scrambling down the stairs in a panic.
Since I’d already paid for it, I decided I could destroy the house as I pleased.
“Whew… I hope this doesn’t hurt too much.”
Standing at the edge of the rooftop—
Tat-tat-tat-tat—
I sprinted toward White High School for a running start—
Thud—Boom!!
With enough force to partially destroy the rooftop of the four-story house, I launched myself toward the school’s roof.
Fortunately, I landed on White High School’s rooftop.
Just land properly.
Right before hitting the rooftop, I tried to break my fall as quietly as possible to avoid alerting anyone inside—
Thump—
“Ah.”
Then it hit me—
I’d never learned how to break a fall properly, since I didn’t take Taekwondo as a kid.
“Oh right. I don’t know how to land properly, do I?”
Rrrrrrrroll—
As soon as I landed on the rooftop, I kept rolling until my head was spinning.
I simply hoped the augmented alloy would absorb all the impact, while also trying to distribute the shock evenly across my entire body as I fell onto the rooftop.
“Hoo… breakfall… success…”
I wasn’t sure if that really met the definition of a proper breakfall.
It had been quiet enough that no one inside the school seemed to realize someone had landed on the rooftop—
Creeaak—
“…..!”
Suddenly, the rooftop door opened.
“What are you doing, exactly?”
And there stood Pyro Bomber, stepping out and looking at me with worried eyes.
“…….”
“…Are you okay?”
“…How did you know I was here..?”
“Well, if someone’s trying to come in that blatantly and I still don’t notice… wouldn’t that make me kind of stupid?”
I couldn’t believe the day had come when I’d be treated like an idiot by Pyro Bomber…
“The heroes didn’t seem to notice though…”
“Heroes are idiots to begin with.”
“…….”
It was only now that I realized—
When it came to terrorism she was involved in, Pyro Bomber was far more of an expert than I was.
“Anyway, shall we head inside? We really shouldn’t be out here if something goes wrong.”
“…Thank you for your consideration.”
…
The moment we entered the school building, I explained the purpose of my infiltration.
“You’re stopping us on the condition that you get to face the Hero Association’s Vice President?”
“That’s how I put it, but since you know this is really revenge for Hye-won, I don’t actually plan on stopping you.”
“You’re pretty impressive, you know. How did you come up with the idea to tie the Hero Association’s Vice President into our terrorist attack?”
“This might be the first time I’ve ever felt good hearing praise from you, Pyro Bomber.”
“Aww, my babe~ Want me to give you a little pat on the butt?”
“…I’ll pass.”
“You hesitated just now. You considered it for a second, didn’t you?”
As she naturally approached and reached out to pat my butt, I gently pushed her head away.
“Our little villain hunter’s being so cute today~.”
Since she agreed that we had to put on a proper WWE-level performance in front of people,
We began discussing what kind of act we’d perform.
“I placed two bombs in each classroom. I’ve already issued a threat saying we’ll blow them up the moment any heroes enter.”
“I’ll summon bombs at the school gate without the students noticing, to block the entrance.”
“I don’t actually plan on killing anyone else, so they’re all fake bombs. Only the ones around the necks of the kids who bullied Hye-won are real.”
“Let’s just blow those up.”
“Weren’t you here to save people?”
“I’m here to help the two of you get out safely.”
“So you did come to save us?”
Since no one knew yet that Pyro Bomber and the villain hunter were working as a team, this strategy was still viable.
And so,
After wrapping up most of our strategy meeting, I took a peek inside the classroom where Hye-won was gathered with the students who used to bully her…
“……”
Hye-won was just silently toying with the button in her hand, standing behind the trembling students.
What choice will you make?
Right now, there was hesitation in Hye-won.
She was wavering, unsure whether to move her finger and kill them or not.
That hesitation was probably the reason why the attack, which Pyro Bomber had expected to end quickly, was dragging on.
“Let’s wait until Hye-won makes her decision.”
Even so, she continued to wait patiently without pressuring Hye-won.
She didn’t care whether heroes surrounded the place or how much backup arrived.
Even when the situation had reached a point where the pre-planned escape route no longer mattered…
She really cares about her.
Just like Pyro Bomber, I too chose to wait a little longer for Hye-won’s decision.
And I began explaining how the two of them could escape.
“You’re both wearing villain suits made of augmented alloy, right?”
“Hye-won’s wearing one, but I’m not.”
“Then I’ll take mine off and give it to you. Please wear it.”
“Oh my~ You want me to wear something you had on? I love that~ But before I say that, what about you?”
“I can regenerate injuries, so I’ll be fine. A few broken bones during the escape won’t be a big deal.”
“…Now I feel kind of bad.”
“I knew you weren’t using augmented alloy for my sake. You figured it was almost over and that I would need it, right?”
“Ugh, don’t say stuff like that. It’s embarrassing when you get it right.”
“Back to the main point. Once you’re both suited up, I’m going to throw you toward the mountain over there.”
The plan was simple.
Using my supernatural strength, I would throw them toward the mountain in the back.
The augmented alloy would absorb most of the impact, so at worst, maybe a few broken bones, but nothing life-threatening.
The two of them would escape using the car I had parked near the mountain.
It was a perfectly clear and simple escape plan.
“…What about you?”
“I’ve fallen onto rooftops before. As long as you land right, it doesn’t really hurt.”
“…Stop dodging the question and answer properly. How are you going to get out of here?”
“Don’t worry. I’ve got my own way out.”
“What, do you have teleportation powers or something?”
“Of course.”
“Don’t joke around. Just tell me how you’re getting out. If you don’t, we won’t leave either.”
“As always, I’ll take care of everything here and walk out the front door, fair and square. You really don’t have to worry.”
Of course, I’d have to come up with a proper escape plan when the time came.
But right now, getting the two of them out safely took priority.
…
After helping Pyro Bomber into an augmented alloy villain suit,
I headed back toward the classroom where Hye-won was.
Clack—
The door slowly opened, and I saw Hye-won trudging out from inside.
“Huh?.. V-Villain… hunter…”
At the sight of her, I glanced toward the classroom.
Inside, there were still more than a dozen students, trembling in fear.
“Why… why… why did… you come…”
Watching that scene, I couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of pride.
The positive feelings that came from knowing that a longtime companion had chosen not to kill.
Pat, pat…
“Huh…?”
As I gently stroked Hye-won’s head and told her she did well at the same time—
“Unnie… let’s go home.”
“Shall we?”
“Then, shall we get started now?”
We decided to fake a fight and naturally throw the two of them toward the mountain.
Boom— Boom— Boom!!
The moment Pyro Bomber pressed the button, a massive explosion erupted at the school’s front gate below.
Screams from the students began echoing throughout the school.
“Here.”
I too held a bomb in my hand.
Boom!
At the moment the bomb I was holding exploded to make it look like a real battle had taken place…
“?”
It was supposed to be a low-explosive bomb, meant only as a threat, causing just some torn clothing and light pain…
Yet, not a single shock was felt throughout my body.
“Did you say your name was Pyro Bomber? Seems you’ve been up to some audacious things since I quit being a hero.”
I could see both Pyro Bomber and Hye-won being lifted into the air by telekinesis.
“W-Wait a second…!”
Beep—
Boooooom!!
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