Chapter 5
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: The Mayor and the Threat
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Good.
Very good.
Sheer bliss.
Adding joy upon joy, multiplying pleasure upon pleasure.
Is there a more fitting idiom to express my current feelings? No, there isn't. I declare it with certainty: none.
[#LeeGaram_Impeachment_Prayer_Day1]
Even the crude internet hashtag looked like a beautiful lyric poem.
The itchy epithets like "latent dragon" or "radiant Garam" from yesterday had vanished like a mirage overnight.
Back to the true essence of Lee Garam. In other words, a glorious return as the icon of the public enemy and incompetent corrupt official.
[Emergency Debate: From Sage King to Tyrant. How to View Mayor Lee Garam's Actions.]
On the television screen, some political commentator appearing on a current affairs program was flushing red-faced, spouting fervently.
"This is a clear overreach of authority and an insult to heroes! A mayor who treats citizens' heroes as potential criminals is unqualified! He must be impeached immediately!"
Well said!
I slapped my knee without thinking.
That's exactly what I wanted to say!
As expected of an educated man. To articulate my feelings so clearly.
Reclining almost flat on the premium leather sofa, I savored the roars of the furious crowd echoing from outside the window.
"Lee Garam, step down! Lee Garam, step down!"
This was a symphony of rage, a fanfare celebrating my success.
Yes, I will step down. Reluctantly, compelled by the citizens' fiery support.
Perfect.
It couldn't be more perfect.
Everything was rolling along in the palm of my hand.
Meticulous planning, flawless execution, and impeccable results.
The omnipotence of having the world's affairs dance in my palm.
This must be why blacks like Seria manipulate the world.
Of course, my goal isn't world conquest but a safe escape. But the joy of the process is independent of the outcome.
Am I a genius after all? A genius of ruin. An artist of downfall.
But.
Why is this?
In this moment of triumph, something feels off in a corner of my heart.
The unease of heading out for a sunny weekend but forgetting if you turned off the gas valve.
I had calculated every variable.
The flow of public opinion, political repercussions, even Seria's patterns of vicious rhetoric.
There were no errors in my calculations. My success plan for my own failure was perfect.
But I forgot something.
Something very important and fatal.
What could it be?
Crash!
My train of thought shattered like breaking glass.
The floor-to-ceiling window of the mayor's office—which Seria had boasted could withstand even moderate explosions with its shatterproof features—shattered like a sugar cookie.
I tumbled off the sofa without even time to scream.
"Eek! W-what is it! Terrorism?!"
I crawled forward and peeked my head up.
And I saw it.
Amid the rain of shattered glass shards, a red silhouette gracefully stepping through the broken window frame.
This was the 15th floor.
A space governed by the universal law of gravity.
But the woman with the backlight behind her seemed to care nothing for such laws.
"You."
She walked toward me, barefoot crushing the scattered glass on the floor.
One step.
Sizzle.
The air conditioning's chill evaporated in an instant. The room temperature felt at least 5 degrees higher.
Two steps.
Crack...
Spiderweb cracks spread across the marble floor where she stood. The pen holder on my desk wobbled precariously before crashing to the floor.
Three steps.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?"
Finally reaching me, she looked down.
Flaming red hair like roaring fire. Golden eyes that looked down on all creation.
Korea's strongest S-Rank hero.
A living disaster. A walking deterrent.
Hero Association President, Jin Yeonhwa.
She was so absolute that there were even citizens who sincerely argued for removing the MacArthur statue in Freedom Park and erecting hers in its place.
And considering the number of disasters and villains she had actually repelled, such claims weren't exaggerated at all.
Ah.
That's when I realized what I'd forgotten.
I was in a comic book world right now.
And in this world, fists—no, superpowers—came before laws or procedures.
This wasn't an impeachment crisis... it was an incineration crisis?
I swallowed dryly. My throat felt parched, scraped raw like sandpaper.
Terror. Primal fear of death crawled up my spine.
But at the same time, the calculator in my head spun wildly.
This is it.
This is the real opportunity.
Citizens' protests? Worsening public opinion? Those were just indirect pressures.
But the calamity before my eyes was different. If she willed it, she could dismiss a mayor like me in an instant.
"President. It's troubling when you visit without notice like this. There are procedures, you know. If you have business, please go through the secretary's office formally..."
As brazenly as possible. As infuriatingly as possible. Not to survive, but to die just right.
"Procedures?"
Jin Yeonhwa scoffed.
"I'm Jin Yeonhwa. I make the procedures."
It wasn't arrogance. Just stating plain reality.
Her golden eyes pierced through me. The gaze of a predator facing prey.
"That press conference—was that talk from a sane mind?"
"Of course. I'm the mayor of Neo Incheon, after all. I'm always in my right mind."
I shrugged in response. Inside, I was desperately calming my trembling legs.
"You've got guts, huh? Confidence you can handle the price of flapping that mouth."
"If you're asking if I'm confident, this isn't a matter of confidence."
"Then what is it?"
"A matter of principle."
Principle.
Yes, principle.
A word politicians love. A magic word that covers everything.
I stood up and met her eyes. I had to look up due to the height difference, but I tried not to lose in momentum.
"That sounds like turning the Association—and me—into enemies. Can you handle that?"
"Oh, come on. How could I dare make an enemy of you, President?"
Handle it? Of course not!
That's why I want you to destroy me!
I flashed the most infuriating smile, as if I'd been waiting for this.
"Quite the opposite. I'm so grateful to you, President, and all the heroes that I've decided on this audit instead."
"What?"
Jin Yeonhwa's brow furrowed. The heat rising from her body made the surrounding air shimmer.
A pun. Yes, a pun.
I can manipulate an S-Rank hero's emotions with words!
"Heroes are shining beings. But to shine even brighter, sometimes you need to dust them off, right? This audit is just that process. A trial to become greater."
Even I thought it was a lame excuse.
Jin Yeonhwa's eyebrow twitched. The heat haze around her sharpened.
"Don't talk about heroes with that filthy mouth."
"Why not? I'm the mayor of Neo Incheon. Doesn't the mayor have the right to discuss heroes on behalf of the citizens?"
Good. Perfect.
Grab me by the collar. Come on.
"I know full well how rational and logical you are, President. The reason Korea's heroes are the world's best is because of great heroes like you. Someone like you wouldn't let personal feelings show over a mere administrative procedure. I trust you, President."
Pretending to praise while subtly scratching her pride.
Packing in the message: 'If you lose it here, you're just an emotional lunatic.'
Jin Yeonhwa was silent for a while. Just staring at me with burning eyes.
The mayor's office felt like a sauna. Sweat—cold or hot, I couldn't tell—trickled down my forehead.
"...Hmm."
A strange sound leaked from between Jin Yeonhwa's lips.
Not anger. Not contempt.
Laughter?
"You're an amusing one."
She scanned me up and down like observing a novel insect.
"Fine. I'll acknowledge that much guts."
Huh?
Suddenly, the surrounding heat vanished.
"It's the path you chose. Go ahead and try. Just don't regret it later, kid."
She turned away without lingering.
Then leaped out through the shattered window the way she came.
The red afterimage vanished from sight in an instant.
Huh?
This isn't right.
Why'd she just leave?
She should hit me at least once. Or at least throw more threats on her way out.
Beyond the shattered floor-to-ceiling window, Neo Incheon's skyline of buildings stretched out.
A cool breeze rushed in.
The sauna-like heat in the mayor's office cooled as if it were a lie. Scattered papers fluttered across the floor.
A moment of reflection.
I had set the stage for my downfall. Baited the hook.
And I thought the ultimate predator had finally bitten...
No. Don't focus on the tree—look at the forest.
What if Jin Yeonhwa had exploded emotionally? What if she had actually hit me?
The story would have gone in a completely different direction.
'No matter how wrong the mayor was, violence isn't right, is it?'
'A hero hitting a civilian? Does that even make sense?'
Public opinion would swing to sympathy in an instant, and I'd end up with the horrific title of 'the courageous mayor who doesn't bow to the strong.'
That's why.
That's why Jin Yeonhwa decided to use the Association's power to politically finish me off instead of handling it personally.
"Good. My plan is still proceeding smoothly."
Could there be a more perfect scenario?
'I won.'
Physically, she overwhelmingly dominated, but psychologically, I held the initiative.
She came seeing me as a mere incompetent mayor, got thrown off by my unexpected response, and had to revise her original plan.
This is the power of eloquence.
The magic of words.
The victory of rhetoric.
I could stand toe-to-toe with an S-Rank hero without a gun or a knife.
No, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say I even had the upper hand.
Because in the end, she'll move exactly as I want.
She'll mobilize the full might of the Association to attack me politically and bury me socially.
And the result?
My approval ratings plummet. Citizens' distrust. And the impeachment I've dreamed of.
In other words, exactly the ending I desire.
"Heh heh heh..."
Laughter leaked out.
How ironic is this situation?
My enemy stepping up to do exactly what I want.
What to do, President?
I'm like a cancer cell that feeds on your rage.
Dishonorable resignation.
No, "resignation" is too polite.
Flight. Just running away.
Tucking tail and fleeing.
And that's the very liberation I've been waiting for.