Chapter 6
Chapter 6
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Shocking Debut (1)
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Our Player, Bal Jeong-nam, had no idea, but the Sanctuary Corp lab was currently infiltrated by a bunch of people hiding their true identities.
Take his mom, Stephanie Yu, for instance. She was Sanctuary Corp's vice president on the surface, but her real identity was the master thief who stole treasures from the elite—Hazel Vixen.
The reason Stephanie had never been caught despite ripping off so many tycoons' treasures wasn't just the inside man she'd planted in the Hero Association. The biggest factor was the cutting-edge suit and gear developed by Sanctuary Corp itself.
Sanctuary Corp had been nothing more than a tool created by Bal Ji-un and Stephanie to aid their thieving exploits from the start.
'With that, stealing treasures will be a breeze!'
Stephanie eyed the chimera with eager anticipation.
'Chameleon genes, huh... Without infrared or thermal detection, spotting it would be damn near impossible.'
Han Ji-min bit her lip as she examined the results Dr. Cruemora had presented.
'If that falls into the villains' hands...'
It wasn't just blending in with the surroundings' colors. Without the special lens glasses she was wearing right now, even spotting animals injected with chameleon genes would be tough.
Impossible to detect with the naked eye meant they had top-tier stealth capabilities.
On top of that, Dr. Cruemora had publicly declared his dream of a world where non-powered people could wield superpowers.
That meant he either already possessed or was on the verge of perfecting a technique to safely inject animal genes into humans.
If that tech got into villains' hands, all hell would break loose.
'I need to report this.'
Han Ji-min was here officially as a Sanctuary Corp shareholder, but her true identity was a Hero Association hero.
One with powerhouse abilities that put her at A-rank if you went purely by rating.
Heroes in the Hero Association were divided into those who hid their identities and those who didn't, mostly to protect their families from villain retaliation. Han Ji-min was one of the former.
With her strong powers and few people knowing she was the A-rank hero Ice Queen, it made her perfect for undercover work like this.
She glanced around cautiously and started texting someone.
"..."
Han Ji-min looked at the chimera with eyes full of concern.
'Assimilation ability... Not bad. No, it's actually pretty great.'
While some fretted over Dr. Cruemora's research being misused, others naturally saw it differently.
The cold-faced man, Legacy Bon, stared at Dr. Cruemora and the chimera-labeled animals like a hawk spotting prey.
It was a seriously useful power. Hell, "useful" didn't even cut it.
You needed special gear like the sunglasses he was wearing to detect the assimilation. Which meant that if you could just neutralize that gear somehow, no one could spot the assimilation ability at all.
And what really thrilled Bon was that this was just the beginning of the research.
More animal genes would be studied and weaponized in the future. Infinite possibilities flashed through Bon's mind, and he cracked a cold smile.
'That's mine.'
Bon began plotting to kidnap Dr. Cruemora.
Sanctuary Corp always churned out fun toys, so he'd dropped by hoping for something interesting today—and he'd hooked a real big fish. Like Han Ji-min, Bon's public face was that of a Sanctuary Corp shareholder.
'He has no choice but to cooperate with me.'
Bon was certain Dr. Cruemora would play ball. The results the doctor had shown were animals, after all.
The doc hadn't done human trials yet. That's why he'd only brought animals.
If human trials had succeeded, it would've been a person standing there instead. The effects would be immediate.
'Probably some ethics bullshit blocking human experiments.'
That made Bon even more confident the doctor would cooperate. He trusted in the mad scientist's obsessive thirst for discovery.
'That's mine.'
Legacy Bon eyed the chimera with greedy hunger.
'What bullshit!'
Wikaido Vinden, a dark-skinned man watching the doctor, twisted his face in disgust.
Superpowers were divine gifts, bestowed only on those chosen by God. Making it so even flawed humans who weren't chosen could wield that power?
Dr. Cruemora, dreaming of a world where everyone had superpowers, was the incarnation of blasphemy against God.
'I can't forgive this!'
As one chosen by God Himself, he couldn't pardon this demon mocking the divine.
Vinden scanned the room.
Everyone here was a Sanctuary Corp shareholder—meaning they were loaded.
In capitalist society, money equaled power.
What if every damnable demon like Dr. Cruemora and all these Sanctuary Corp shareholders dropped dead right here?
It would plunge Dark City into chaos.
Once he gave the signal, his comrades infiltrating Sanctuary Corp with him would move. If they timed it right with the plan, they could wipe everyone out.
'No one survives this room!'
Vinden glared at Dr. Cruemora and the shareholders with furious eyes.
"Huh? Who's that guy?"
"Skinny black tights?"
"What the hell? A hero? You know who that is?"
"Nah, first time seeing that hero. Is it even a hero?"
"..."
'Feels exactly like being the monkey at the zoo.'
Strutting around in the black tightsuit drew murmurs from everyone who'd spotted me. Total attention magnet—no one could look away.
'Ugh, so annoying.'
I'm naturally introverted, so having all these eyes on me was pure torture.
Even presenting or reporting in front of people made my stomach hurt the second they looked at me.
But I had to endure it. I'd be dealing with crowds like this a ton from now on.
'Superpowers are pretty damn nice.'
Normally I'd bolt to the bathroom, but not anymore. Must be the superpowered body doing its thing.
"Excuse us for a moment."
"..."
That's when two guys blocked my path—Sanctuary Corp security guards.
They were seriously on edge.
Sweat beading on their foreheads, ragged breaths, hands gripping their batons tight.
I got why they were tense. A hulking figure decked head-to-toe in black tightsuit? Anyone would freak. I'd pretend not to see and run.
"Sorry, but could you remove the mask?"
"..."
The guard's voice trembled as he spoke, trying to hide his nerves, but a superhuman's senses picked it right up.
"Sir?"
"..."
I just stared down at them silently, and the sweat on their brows multiplied.
Scary as hell, sure. But overcoming that fear was their job.
'Props to their dedication.'
I silently saluted their professionalism. Like I said, I'd have bailed.
"No answer? We'll use force."
The guards finally drew their batons. My lips curved into a smile beneath the mask.
Respect was respect, but I had a role to play.
As the protagonist of my own story.
"Gah!"
"Jack! Damn it! Let go of him!"
I reached out slow and grabbed the left guard's collar. The one named Jack couldn't dodge my hand.
Obviously. Non-supers couldn't keep up with super speed to begin with. And I had the Body Enhancer power.
I'd gone all-in on defensive traits by level, but that didn't make my body weak. Even now, I could outrun a cheetah and overpower an elephant.
"Guh! Krk...!"
"Hah! Ha! Hiyat!"
Jack dangled in the air, flailing as he choked. The other guard was whaling on me with his baton.
'Tickles.'
Sorry, but it didn't hurt a bit. Like a baby patting me with cotton.
'Oh?'
Thanks to the guards, I learned one thing: HP.
In a world ruled by superpowers, I'd wondered why RPG-style HP existed. Turns out it was like this.
For a Body Enhancer, HP acted like a shield. Once it hit zero, real damage started hitting my body.
"Grraa..."
Jack passed out without prying my hand off. Holding him longer might choke him out for good, so I set him down.
"..."
"Uh..."
The other guard, who'd been hitting me, backed away in terror, eyes wide. He figured I'd go for him next.
But nah.
I pointed at the passed-out Jack. Take care of him.
"..."
"...Y-Yes? Jack?"
I nodded, brushed past the guard, and headed for the lab. He alternated stares between me and Jack, frozen in confusion.
Once past security—
"Halt! Turn back now or we fire!"
"..."
Lab perimeter guards and reinforcements via radio blocked me, guns trained right on me.
Seeing those barrels pointed my way? Kinda nerve-wracking.
'Hmm... No way a level 10 Body Enhancer dies to bullets, right?'
Just in case, I prepped my only active skill, Steel Skin, and took a step toward them.
"Damn it! Fire!"
Tat-tat-tat-tat!
A hail of bullets rained down on me.
"Vice President. Big trouble."
"What? What's going on?"
"A villain's shown up inside the company."
"...A villain?"
Stephanie's eyes widened at the word.
Cutting-edge facilities, machinery, armed guards who could hold their own on a battlefield—Sanctuary Corp was a fortress.
While other companies fell to superpowered terrorists, Sanctuary Corp thwarted every attack. It even earned the nickname "Ironclad."
For such a secure place to have a villain inside? Shocking.
"...Is that right? Where's the villain now? Alone?"
Stephanie calmly questioned the guard who'd brought the news. Surprised, yes—but not panicked.
Her coolness even flustered the guard.
"Y-Yes, in front of the lab. Solo."
"I see."
Stephanie nodded, eyes shifting to the CCTV feed of the lab interior.
Bzzz—
At that moment, the CCTV nodded back. Someone monitoring it had signaled her.
"You, go inside and inform Dr. Cruemora. I'll handle everyone here."
"Got it."
As the guard headed to the doctor, Stephanie stepped in front of the crowd.
"Everyone, apologies, but the demo ends here. Follow me outside now."
"What's happening, Vice President?"
The shareholders, unaware of the villain alert, looked baffled. No time for full explanations.
"I'll explain la—"
Boom!
"Kyaaah!"
"Wh-What?! A bomb?!"
The lab door exploded, and a man in full black tightsuit strolled in slowly. Fallen Sanctuary Corp guards littered the ground behind him.
"...Impossible. Already breached?"
"..."
Stephanie couldn't hide her shock at how fast it'd happened.