93
Ch.93 Is Under Investigation
The hero glared at me with sharp eyes and grabbed my hand, which was holding the hot dog.
However, when I didn’t react at all to his attempt to make me let go with a crushing grip—krrrk—his sharp gaze turned bewildered.
“What the hell? Are you a superpower human?”
“That’s my hot dog.”
“Ugh, aaaah…!”
Instead, I gripped his wrist tightly until it creaked, forcing his clenched hand to open.
Having reclaimed my hot dog, I devoured it in two bites.
“Y-you bastard, are you a villain?”
“A villain? Over a hot dog?”
“Ah, no, no! He’s just a visitor from out of town…”
“A superpower human from out of town? No way.”
The hero, who had been submerged in the freezer, pointed his phone at me.
Facial recognition—my face was scanned by the city’s citizen search system, the same one used by the police of W-City. A beeping sound followed.
“See? No superpower human registration. If you were an outsider superpower human, you’d have to register first, and your info would pop up in the alerts. There’s no way we wouldn’t know.”
“He says he’s not a superpower human. Just an outsider who came to A-City at a bad time…”
“Hah? A non-powered human couldn’t withstand a superpower human’s grip.”
Munch, munch… gulp. After swallowing the hot dog in my mouth, I crossed my arms and replied to the hero.
“Guess you’re just weak.”
“You little… Who’s weak?!”
“Ahahaha! Well, you just became a B-rank superpower human, so I guess you’re not that strong.”
At that, the hero emitted a wave of energy and floated slightly above the ground.
Telekinesis? No, airflow manipulation.
The man, now weightless, compressed the air around me, tightening it.
Seems like he’s trying to immobilize me.
“Whatever you are, you’re suspicious. I’ll subdue you and take you in for questioning—”
“One more hot dog.”
“Wha…?!”
Ignoring his unimpressive power, I rummaged through my pocket and pulled out a few more bills.
The shop owner, glancing between me and the hero, took out three sausages and buns and began grilling them diligently.
“This is… Kind of weird?”
“At least A-rank. An unregistered A-rank superpower human? Definitely a villain.”
“He doesn’t look like a villain, but he’s definitely suspicious. What are you?”
“Not a villain.”
Without causing a scene, I stood quietly with my arms crossed and stated the facts.
But the heroes, refusing to believe me, rose to their feet and amplified their powers.
“No way. You’re way too suspicious. You’re coming to the interrogation room.”
“We definitely need to question him.”
The hero who had risen from the ice stepped outside the shop and used the same ability as the other man.
A power-coupling combo—probably designed for ability amplification.
One compressed, the other blocked. The oxygen around me vanished instantly, and the pressure difference squeezed my entire body.
“Hey! Civilians! Evacuate now!”
“Kyaaah!”
“Run, the heroes are using their powers!”
“Eeek…!”
The belated evacuation order. Flap, flap. The storm sweeping through the streets startled the fleeing citizens.
The shop owner, who had been grilling hot dogs, ducked behind the counter as the machine holding the buns and sausages rattled.
I walked a short distance away from the shop to a less crowded area and gestured for the civilians to stay back.
“What’s up with that guy?”
“Looks like he’s telling people to stay away?”
“That’s not the point! He’s completely ignoring my ability!”
Whoosh. A compressed air bullet shot from his hand.
“I’m not just about restraints!”
“Hey! Wait—!”
“Aaaah!”
Boom! The poorly compressed air bullet exploded with excessive force.
A child, about to be caught in the blast while running away.
I kicked off the ground, shielding the child with my arms and legs.
The ground crumbled beneath me. Planting my feet at the starting and landing points, I reached the child in an instant and stopped.
The shockwave hit the small shield formed by my elbow resting on my knee. The child, having tripped in fright, scraped their knee and ran off crying.
“Waaah! Mommy!”
“Th-this guy… My ability isn’t working on him at all!”
“Phew… No, hey, what the hell are you doing?”
See this?
Creak, creak, creak. My arm swelled slightly beneath the skin, partially mutating.
Confirming that the civilians had retreated far enough, I clenched my fist and gestured for one of the heroes to come closer with my other hand.
Taking it as a taunt, the hero cupped his hands together, creating a small storm within them.
“Don’t tell me… Are you reinforcements from a villain association in another city?!”
“Wait!”
The roar of swelling energy—Bang! The bullet fired with a sharp sound.
I met the spiraling compressed air bullet with my fist.
Boom! The sound of the bullet exploding. Immediately, I broke through the storm and grabbed the man by his collar.
“Wha—Ghk?!”
Whoosh! The man, now lifted by his collar, was dragged along as I kicked off the ground and leaped.
A light, parabolic jump, then landing.
Crash! I stuffed the hero headfirst into a nearby trash can, dusted off my hands, and returned to the food truck.
“Hotdog.”
“H-here you go…”
Mmm, delicious.
After that light exercise, as I ate another hot dog, the comparatively calmer-looking hero approached me.
“Why didn’t you attack me?”
Without a word, I pointed at the child crying in their mother’s arms far away while chewing my hot dog.
Understanding the reason for the attack, the hero chuckled and picked up another hot dog.
“With that kind of reason, you’re definitely not a villain. What are you? A superpower human from another city? Why aren’t you registered?”
“I’m neither a superpower human nor a villain.”
“Not a funny joke. If you’re not a superpower human or a villain, then what, a monster?”
“I’m just strong from working out a lot.”
“Working out?”
Do A-City heroes not even know what working out is?
The hero, baffled by the term, picked up another hot dog.
“Superpower human… Judging by that term, you’re definitely an outsider… But do you even know what you just did?”
“I put trash in the trash can.”
“Well, if you see it that way, I can’t argue. But whatever you really are, you’re definitely a criminal now.”
“A criminal?”
“Yeah. Violation of the Hero Priority Law, Superpower Human Registration Law, assaulting a hero, destruction of public property—oh, you said you’re not a superpower human? Then add refusal to comply with hero directives.”
Listing off strange laws that don’t exist in W-City, the hero tapped his phone and showed me a screen with an Emergency button.
“If I press this button, the entire A-City will immediately track you—”
Snap! I reached out and smashed the phone. The hero silently alternated his gaze between the shattered device and me.
“You just added obstruction of official duties and another count of destruction of public property.”
“How are you going to report it without a phone?”
“I’ll just report it when I get back. Don’t you know about hero cams? Your face is already—”
The hero, pointing at his chest, paused and gulped.
Over his heart, the hero's cam pinned to his collar was already destroyed.
Same for the hero stuffed in the trash can.
If I had wanted to, both their hearts would’ve exploded already.
“…At least A-rank, huh. Seriously, what are you?”
“Just a regular guy who trained his body through exercise and hard labor.”
“Yeah, right…”
Thinking they had no way to track me now—that’s when it happened.
The hero, now on high alert, rummaged through his pocket and pulled out a metal case.
“If you think you can just run away after breaking the cams and phone, you’d better think again.”
Inside was a single large-caliber bullet the length of an index finger.
The moment the bullet left the case, it split horizontally, revealing teeth.
Triangular ears and a tail extended sharply as the bullet floated in the air, its eyes gleaming.
“Bad luck. I’m part of the Hound Team. One of the few who carries a Magic Bullet. Ever heard of it? Baskerville’s Magic Bullet.”
“Hmm.”
Baskerville—the troublesome S-rank hero Gu Seo-ryong mentioned.
I don’t know what the Hound Team is, but this thing in front of me is an ability called the Magic Bullet.
An inanimate object moving like a living creature.
Sniff, sniff. The bullet caught my scent and grew more aggressive.
“Interesting ability.”
“Well, it’s unlikely, but if you kill me, Baskerville’s Magic Bullet will chase you to the death. Even if you don’t kill me and just run, the moment I order it to pursue, it’ll hunt you down relentlessly.”
The faint energy wave emitted by the bullet sent signals around it, transmitting my information somewhere.
Even if I crush this bullet, new ones will keep coming after me.
Not a real threat to me, but an annoying ability… So this is why.
Once targeted, the ability will keep chasing me until the original user is dealt with.
“No matter how strong you are, an S-rank hero should still scare you, right? So, how about it? Instead of making a big deal out of this, why not just come along for a quick investigation?”
“An investigation, huh.”
“Not to interrogate you as a villain. You clearly seem like a superpower human, so just a quick check and some registration. It’s illegal for superpower humans to roam unregistered in A-City.”
His tone was surprisingly friendly—didn’t seem like a lie.
As if to show he held no hostility, the hero closed the case containing the bullet.
“If you just come quietly and cooperate with a simple investigation, I’ll overlook the illegal stuff. No chase necessary. I’ll even vouch for you not being a villain. How about it?”
I briefly considered Gu Seo-ryong’s words.
Don’t cause a scene. If Baskerville’s ability starts chasing you, it’ll be a pain.
I haven’t caused much trouble yet, but if this bullet starts chasing me, things will get noisy.
It’s only been a day. If I want to find the research lab, I need to stay low-key.
No choice. Might as well play along for now.
If something comes up during the investigation, I’ll figure it out then.
“I’ll cooperate with the investigation. But on one condition.”
“Great, what is it?”
In return, I set one condition.
Earlier, this guy ate a hot dog without paying.
And the mess with the ice, too.
The shop owner’s worried gaze at the ice and his uneasy feelings bothered me.
“Pay for the ice. And the hotdogs.”
“You… Really aren’t a villain. And not from A-City either.”
The hero sighed, pulled out a card from his pocket, and handed it to the shop owner.
A card labeled Hero Registration. The owner carefully took it and processed the payment for the ice and hot dogs.
“Bill it all. Everything this guy mentioned, including the ice.”
“Ah, thank you. For the hero to pay for everything… Oh my.”
Even after taking the card, the owner hesitated, unsure if this was really okay.
Judging by his reaction, heroes don’t usually pay.
Doesn’t seem like there’s any compensation system either.
***
A-City, District 9. A small building with a sign reading Superpower Human Affairs Division.
Is it because A-City is bigger than W-City? Or because there are far more citizens and heroes here?
This city seems to have separate outposts for heroes assigned to each district.
“You little brat! Cut the crap and confess already!”
Inside the building, heroes who had just returned from a fight showered and lounged on sofas, snacking while on standby.
Among them, non-awakened police officers worked at computers, handling paperwork.
And in front of me, a hero with bandages around his neck, chest, and shoulders was venting his frustration.
“There’s no way you’re not a superpower human! Stop talking nonsense! What are you, part of a villain association?!”
This was the hero I had stuffed his belongings into a trash can earlier.
I rattled the handcuffs on my wrists and yawned.
Wearing these cuffs, which I could break anytime, was my way of showing cooperation. The yawn? Just bored and sleepy.
Enraged, the man slammed the desk hard enough for the whole building to hear.
“Who the hell explained the right to remain silent to this bastard?!”