#105 The Final Winner

"Honey. We did it."

"Ah..."

High Fog came to his senses at the sound of his wife's voice. Shaking off the shock belatedly, he surveyed the situation inside the fog.

How much time had passed? What about Steel Armor and Tough Guy? Had his wife stolen Siren's Heart?

"Haa..."

After thoroughly checking every corner of the fog, High Fog let out a sigh of relief. Tough Guy lay unconscious in a wretched state, and in his wife's hand was a massive gemstone. That gem was the culprit behind this entire incident—Siren's Heart.

'Where did Steel Armor go?'

The one odd thing was that Steel Armor was nowhere to be seen. Had he gone outside somehow? It was strange, but upon second thought, not all that unusual. Hadn't Steel Armor navigated perfectly even through his fog? With that freakish sense of direction, he could've easily slipped out.

'Why didn't he chase after my wife?'

A new question arose. If Steel Armor could find his way, why hadn't he pursued her?

"Honey?"

"Ah. Sorry."

The chain of thoughts snapped at his wife's voice calling him again. He manipulated the fog to clear a path for her to reach him.

Moments later, his lovely wife emerged, holding the enormous teardrop-shaped gem.

"Ta-da!"

Proudly showing Siren's Heart to her husband, Hazel Fox froze in horror upon spotting her daughter in his arms.

"J-Ji-na! Honey, what's wrong with Ji-na? Did something happen to her?!"

"..."

High Fog couldn't answer his wife's frantic question. How could he tell her that Ji-na was actually a superpowered individual—and that he'd ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠tried to kill his own daughter?

Regaining his composure with effort, High Fog handed Ji-na over to his wife in exchange for Siren's Heart, trying to sort out the situation.

"It must've been a huge shock for such a delicate child. Probably passed out from mental trauma or severe stress."

"Ah, aaaah... What do we do, our daughter... Honey, Ji-na will be okay, right?"

Hazel Fox stroked her unconscious daughter's cheek, her face crumpling in worry. Watching her like that tore High Fog's heart to shreds.

Before the tears welling in her eyes could fall, he hurriedly spoke up.

"She'll be fine. It's just fainting. More importantly, get ready quick. Time to head home."

"Y-Yeah..."

Though she'd succeeded in stealing the Siren's Heart she'd longed for, Hazel Fox showed no joy. She'd been so focused on the heist that she'd forgotten her own children!

"Honey..."

"Yeah?"

"I... I'm not fit to be a mom, am ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I?"

"What're you saying?"

High Fog, preparing to dispel the fog, rushed over and embraced her. After soothing his wife, he transformed into fog as planned, clutching Siren's Heart, and slipped out through the vent.

"Huh?"

"W-We survived! The fog's gone!"

"Urk! So dizzy... Thought I was gonna die!"

As High Fog vanished, the fog filling the aquarium dissipated too. Ordinary people without powers complained of dizziness from the sensory overload.

But a bigger problem loomed.

"T-Tough Guy!"

"No way! Medical team! Get a doctor here now! Tough Guy's in critical condition!"

"S-Siren's Heart! Siren's Heart is...! Aaaah..."

The A-rank heroes who'd been lost in the fog gasped at Tough Guy's battered form on the floor. The curator, seeing Siren's Heart gone, finally fainted.

In the chaos, Stephanie slipped out with the unconscious Ji-na in tow.

"Mom! Hey?"

"Son! You hurt anywhere?"

"Nah, I'm good. But what's up with Ji-na?"

"Must've been a big shock. She passed out."

"...Passed out?"

Jung-nam tilted his head, puzzled. Too worried about Ji-na to notice her son's confused look, Stephanie missed it.

"Let's head home first. I'll take you."

"Sounds good."

Taking Ji-na from his mom, Jung-nam left the museum with Stephanie.

*****

'Ji-na passed out from shock?'

I couldn't hide my bewilderment as I chased the fog. Even after getting sniped by an assassin, Ji-na had shown up to work fine—a real tough cookie. For her to faint from mental shock? Didn't add up.

'Something must've happened inside the fog...'

If she'd fainted, something shocking enough to knock out a superpowered girl like her had gone down in there.

'Gotta look into it later.'

Siren's Heart took priority over Ji-na right now, so I tabled it and pursued the receding fog.

It stopped at a deserted warehouse. Without hesitation, I opened the door and stepped in.

"...Steel Armor? How'd you get here?"

Inside was a black car and High Fog, back to his original form. He freaked out seeing me enter.

I crossed my arms and told him,

"Told ya, didn't I? Only the last one standing gets to touch Siren's Heart. You broke the rules, High Fog."

"Never said I'd follow your rules, though?"

"Then why didn't you say no right there? You stayed quiet, and now you're claiming you didn't agree? Looks can be deceiving—you're a sneaky one."

"...Sneaky?"

His eyebrow twitched at "sneaky." Yeah, get mad. Stare at me all you want. Dad! Your unfilial son's here! Pour that fiery rage on your unfilial kid!

"..."

But High Fog ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠didn't move rashly. He swallowed his anger, regaining calm swiftly. Impressive self-control.

'This ain't good... How do I make him focus only on me... Ah! That's it!'

A brilliant idea flashed in my mind. I acted on it immediately.

"Oh yeah. Why'd you split from Hazel Fox, anyway?"

"...!"

High Fog, glaring like a predator, went wide-eyed. His hand gripping the dagger trembled.

Hazel Fox. Just mentioning his wife shattered his cool.

I clicked my tongue and followed up.

"Tsk tsk. Thought you two were tight since you've worked together so long, but looks like she's just a business partner. One you can betray easy—or a meat shield."

"...What'd you do to Hazel Fox?"

"Haven't yet. But planning to soon."

"..."

I figured he'd explode, but his patience held. Even though Hazel Fox was his reverse scale.

"Don't believe me? Why not call her? I'll wait nicely."

"..."

I stepped back to show I meant it. High Fog, still glaring, finally pulled out his phone and dialed.

*****

"Mom."

"Yeah?"

"Lend me your phone real quick. Think I lost mine."

"Oh? Here."

"Thanks."

I (Mark Three) took Mom's phone, silenced it, and pretended to dial. Dad's number popped up on the screen. I held it to my ear without answering, faking a call. Mom wouldn't pick up Dad's calls till this was over.

*****

"She's not picking up?"

"..."

Crack! Unable to stay calm, High Fog crushed his phone in his grip. His eyes blazed as he glared at me.

"This what you wanted?"

"Obviously."

Whoosh! Without hesitation, High Fog tossed Siren's Heart my way.

Hey, dude! What if it hits the floor and chips?!

Catching Siren's Heart, I told High Fog,

"30 minutes from now, release Hazel Fox. I'll call again then. Oh, and as of today, you never saw me. You don't know I took Siren's Heart. And no chasing me down, obviously?"

"Get lost. And a warning—if you touch Hazel Fox, I'll throw everything at you to kill you."

"Ooh, scary stuff. High Fog mobilizing everything to hunt me down? Yeah, couldn't stick around Dark City then. I'll etch that warning deep in my heart."

"..."

I shrugged and turned away. If High Fog really chased me, it'd be terrifying. Naturally, not as High Fog, but as Sanctuary Corp's Chairman Bal Ji-woon. And if he moved, the Hero Association would too. Not time to openly clash with them yet. Compared to the Hero Association, I was still a baby.

Waaah!

Leaving High Fog behind, I exited the warehouse.

*****

Threatening with Mom was a surefire hit on Dad. Worst case, I'd have my clones outside snatch Siren's Heart while the real me handled him. That's why I'd set all their powers to Gravity Dominator.

With Siren's Heart secured, I returned to the Skull Head Gang hideout.

"No one got caught by heroes, right?"

"Yes, boss. Thanks to the other bosses stepping in, everyone's back safe."

"Good. Go rest."

"Yes, sir!"

Jungbo saluted crisply and left.

"Alright~ Time to check it out~"

"Ta-ra-ra~ Ta-ra~"

"Boom-clap-clap boom-clap~"

"Ta-ra-ri~"

As I gripped Siren's Heart and called the system, my nearby clones chimed in. Hell yeah! Shoulder dance incoming!

Now, hand over that special reward!

"..."

"Sakura?"

"Sakura~?"

"What the fuck is this bullshit?"

Ownership ritual? What the hell is that, you otaku fuck?! Don't keep it to yourself—explain!

After a short wait, the system window reappeared.

"Infuse it with superpower energy?"

How? Following the system's lead, I placed my hand on Siren's Heart and activated Gravity Dominator.

Body enhancement just makes your body stronger—no real "using power" feel. But Gravity Dominator was different. I'd used it often in fights to pull or push enemies, so I felt the power distinctly.

Sure enough, activating it, I sensed my energy flowing into Siren's Heart. After a minute of infusion, the ritual completed.