#141 The Villain Saves the People
"This fucking bastard. Daring to run away instead of fighting me fair and square?"
There were three terrorists who entered the special storage room. But one of them ran off without fighting me.
"You're dead. Of course, before that..."
Before chasing the fleeing terrorist, I grabbed the bag they'd brought. The moment I touched it, the bag vanished like it had teleported away.
Where the hell did the bag go?
"Inventory's the shit."
The answer was right there: inventory. As a reward for making Siren's Heart mine, I'd gotten this inventory that let me store anything I could lift or touch straight into it.
To become a righteous bank robber, I first dealt with the witness, Deputy Director Hwang. I knocked him out with a chop to the neck, then shoved everything in the special storage room into my inventory.
"Paintings are the shit too."
Over nine hundred million dollars' worth of paintings were now mine. Add in the rest, and...
"An astronomical sum!"
Way beyond what my brain could calculate! No wonder everyone dreams of being a bank robber. Hell, if kids wrote "bank robber" as their dream job, you'd have to respect it.
Of course, if my own kid said that, I'd twist their little pecker on the spot. How dare you! You're gonna be a prosecutor and raise our family up, you little shit!
But our family's already chaebol-rich; no raising needed. My kids are gonna have it made.
"You're fucked, you bastards."
Anyway, after stuffing all the cash bags into my inventory, I headed upstairs to crush the runaway terrorist...
Boom!
"Whew~ As expected of the Hero Bank! These walls are tough as hell! I'll return to the Lord! I cleaned out my comrades... Huh?"
"....."
I was about to go up when a group of men burst through the wall. Comrades?
"You guys... terrorists, by any chance?"
"....?"
I approached the baffled-looking bunch.
*****
"Eek! Eek! Eeeeeek!"
"Huh? Comrade, what's wrong? The others..."
"The bomb! Detonate it now!"
"What's up, comrade? Calm down first. Everything's going according to plan."
The terrorist guarding the hostages upstairs tried to soothe the screaming Vinden. But Vinden looked like he'd seen a ghost and wouldn't settle.
"There's a monster downstairs! Detonate the bomb now!"
"A monster...? You mean like a real monster?"
The terrorist perked up at Vinden's words. A real monster downstairs would be a huge problem—everyone here could die. But he'd welcome it too; they could expose it to the world. The Hero Association's raising monsters under the Hero Bank! That scandal would tank the Association overnight.
But of course, nothing like that was happening.
"Detonate the bomb! Hurry! Collapse the building before that thing comes up!"
"Tch."
The terrorist clicked his tongue. That guy—he meant a person.
"I don't know who this 'guy' is, comrade, but our plan's perfect. No matter what comes up from below, we won't fail. Don't worry."
"No! It's failed! Completely failed! There's no money left!"
"...What? W-what the hell are you saying? No money?!"
Alqaeda targeted the Hero Bank's main branch for one reason: cash. That's why comrades across districts were risking their lives to buy time. And now the money was gone? All their efforts, wasted. Mission failed.
"What the hell is this? People are dying!"
Then a stranger's voice echoed from where Vinden had come up. Terrorists and hostages alike turned toward it. The hostages looked on with hopeful eyes. They'd overheard Vinden and the terrorist—someone was here to save them for sure...
"I've never seen such evil bastards!"
"...Steel Armor?"
One hostage muttered it despite knowing opening his mouth meant bullets. But no hole appeared in his head. The terrorists were too distracted by Steel Armor's sudden arrival.
"He's here! The guy's here! Aaaah! He's coming!"
Vinden screamed. He was human in skin only—a monster at heart. The image of him slicing a comrade's throat barehanded was still fresh. Vinden had prided himself on gladly sacrificing his life for God's will, but facing overwhelming terror made his own neck feel precious.
He knew he shouldn't, but he fled the bank anyway. And it was the right call.
"Fire!"
"Kill him!"
Steel Armor's unplanned entrance should've caused panic, but the terrorists reacted fast. They unloaded on him while their superpowered ones charged in with abilities blazing.
"Hello, bullet law..."
Steel Armor swung at the rushing terrorists. Bullets he'd snatched midair were wedged between his fingers.
"Bullet return!"
"Gahk!"
One terrorist spewed blood as a fist slammed his gut, smashing him into the ceiling. The bullet tore through his clothes, leaving a shallow hole in his belly. Blood stained his shirt red.
"Aaaah!"
"Keurk!"
"M-monster...!"
He flung the bullets like darts, dropping the gunmen. Holes pierced their heads, just like their victims. They struck first, but fell first.
Shaaaa—
White light flowed from the dead terrorists' bodies, absorbed into Steel Armor. Only he saw it.
One terrorist remained—the one talking to Vinden.
"Waaah~! Mommy!"
"Teni!"
"Don't move! Move and this brat dies!"
The terrorist grabbed a little girl, pressing the gun to her head. Terrified, she burst into tears; her mother wept helplessly.
"....."
With the kid hostage, even Steel Armor couldn't rush in. The barrel was at her temple. One wrong move, and she was gone.
What to do...
Steel Armor pondered his options. Blitz him with thunder speed? No—trigger finger was faster. Gravity Dominator? Same issue.
Then how...
How to save her safely? As he thought, he heard a gasp.
'Huh?'
A ragged breath and desperate gaze. The kid's mom? No.
"Haa..."
"....."
It was the Hero Bank's resident hero, gut-shot critically. Steel Armor met his eyes; the hero glared at the terrorist. Strangers today, but in this moment, their eyes spoke volumes.
Steel Armor nodded faintly. The hero unleashed his power.
Slice!
"Gaaaaah!"
The hero's ability severed the terrorist's trigger finger. Pain made him release the girl. Steel Armor launched forward.
"N-no!"
"You fucking dog!"
"Krak!"
Kids were taboo for Steel Armor. An unbreakable line. Even in a bad spot, using a child as hostage? He'd be less pissed with an adult.
"Ughhh..."
The terrorist crumpled, face mangled in seconds, moaning faintly.
"I'm not letting you die easy."
He'd make him a living corpse, regretting his sins forever. Sensing the rage-laced words, the terrorist knew his fate.
Click!
He hit the bomb switch without hesitation.
BOOOOM!
*****
"Damn it! Put it out!"
"Oil's keeping it alive!"
"Fuck!"
The dump truck was loaded with oil drums. Water heroes and firefighters struggled, but the flames raged on.
"Aqua Ball! Aqua Ball! Aqua Ball!"
Among them was off-duty B-rank hero Aqua Girl. She hurled massive water orbs at the blaze.
She'd planned a date with Master in District 7 today, waiting all dolled up. Awkward makeup, sheer white blouse from her closet—enough to turn heads. Guys even asked for her number.
Ready and waiting, the dump truck flipped and exploded. Flames threatened the city; Yuna grabbed a cute animal mask from a nearby shop and dove in.
She was a hero—off-duty or not didn't matter.
"Ngh...!"
She pushed her power to the limit, but the fire wouldn't yield.
If my limit was higher... or if I could control water...
A hero like her, stumped by flames? Aqua Girl burned with frustration at her limits.
"It's... out..."
"Thought we were goners..."
Team effort doused it. Exhausted, people collapsed.
BOOOOM!
"Agh!"
"What now?!"
"That's... fucking the bank!"
"....."
Just when it seemed over, the Hero Bank exploded.
Crack!
"R-run! Building's collapsing!"
Panic spread as it tilted.
"Hey! What're you doing? Run!"
"....."
But Yuna didn't flee. She stared blankly at the bank.
"...Master?"
In the sparkling inferno, she thought she saw him.
*****
With the last terrorist down, people sighed in relief. Strength drained at the thought of survival.
But it wasn't over till it was over. The terrorist went out swinging, detonating the bomb.
Time slows near death, and it did. Flames approached in slow motion.
Ah... so this is how I go.
Regret, injustice, sorrow—they accepted it.
"Urgh! Snap out of it, you idiots?!"
"...Huh?"
"Wha?"
A shout woke them. What...?
"Huh?"
They saw flames halted like a wall blocked them.
And—
"It's heavy, so crawl out fast!"
—Steel Armor, propping the building with every ounce of strength.
Steel Armor, the villain, had saved them.