Starfield Aftermath (4)
After completing the mission, Ida-in dragged her exhausted body back home and collapsed onto the bed. It was a small one-room apartment near the Hero Association—her home. True to any typical studio in Seoul, it was incredibly cramped, but the rent was murderously high, as expected.
Through the window, neon signs from the towering buildings beyond lit up her rundown one-room apartment.
[The Hero Association: Your Guardians]
Staring blankly at the Hero Association's distinctive logo and mascot flashing repeatedly on the signs outside, Ida-in sank into thought.
"You did exceptionally well this time. You'll be able to shed your apprentice badge soon."
The new operator, announcing that she was now Ida-in's dedicated handler, delivered the message in a businesslike tone over comms.
"Will you be operating under the hero name Paladin? If you'd like to change it, let us know now."
"Ah. Yeah, Paladin is fine."
Shieldgirl had appealed to her, but after overhearing civilians and even villains calling the name lame, she passed.
"Got it. There'll be a badge ceremony soon, and you'll start at D-Rank. Good luck out there."
With that, the comms cut off.
Did I finally escape apprenticeship...?
Maybe her self-esteem had taken a hit lately from all angles, but she'd assumed the apprentice period would drag on much longer. She hadn't expected promotion this quickly.
It's thanks to Yohan.
If she hadn't gotten advice on her powers from Han Yohan at that convenience store, the Starfield op would've been a total disaster.
The Starfield incident. The event that changed Ida-in's life.
Blank... who the hell is that guy?
A mysterious villain who suddenly appeared and helped hunt down Crusher. Running into the same villain from the abandoned factory last time felt strangely fateful. He was the unsung hero behind the mission's zero-casualty record.
Not only did he take out Crusher before that gravity field could crush the terrace, but he escaped without sacrificing a single soul in the process. She'd been wary at first, thinking the smoke bomb was poison gas, but it turned out to just be an electromagnetic jammer.
"...Dark hero. Something like that concept, huh."
As a avid reader of hero comics, Ida-in knew the trope. Heroes who executed private justice by killing villains outright or beating them to a pulp. Plenty of characters fit that mold.
No. That's not a hero.
A true hero made sure villains faced legal judgment. Blank was breaking the law to brutally slaughter them. That wasn't justice in Ida-in's book.
And the guy's a former bank robber. His methods are rotten.
From the perspective of someone with a strong sense of justice like Ida-in, she couldn't approve of Blank at all.
Still, his contribution was huge.
Trapped in the barrier with nothing but holding out, Blank had risked his own body to create an opening. He was a villain with some real resolve, no doubt.
Flash seemed really fixated on that guy.
Word from the Association was that he'd gotten into a heated argument with Midas Girl over assigning him as the lead hero.
Flash...
Thinking of Flash darkened Ida-in's expression. Back when she was full of hero dreams and grinding through academy life, guest lecturer Seo Ha-yoon had looked her in the eye and said:
"You should quit."
Seo Ha-yoon's cold words were still lodged deep in Ida-in's chest. It wasn't malice—just the flat tone of a doctor stating a patient's condition. That made it hurt even more. Flash himself had shown no reaction toward her, so he might've even forgotten he'd said it.
Pathetic, me.
She'd gritted her teeth and pushed on, wanting to shove it in Seo Ha-yoon's face, but the apathy from the source left her drained. Ida-in flopped back onto the bed, unable to shake the helplessness.
Opening her phone in a funk, she checked her contacts and suddenly smiled.
[My First Fan]
[Han Yohan]
The eye-catching, out-of-place entry in her contacts lifted her spirits a bit. Despite the complicated feelings bubbling up now and then, Ida-in resolved to push forward.
After Dr. Sugar dramatically healed my body and the big event from volume 1 of the original wrapped up, I could've taken a break. Unfortunately, a villain's life was way harsher than I'd imagined.
Becoming a villain meant turning into an untamed beast outside the law's protection. I was learning that the hard way.
Crusher was locked up, but the bastard had recruited a ton of goons. Some of Crusher's remnants were gunning for revenge against me.
Not all out of some noble "avenge Crusher-nim!" bullshit. With Crusher gone, nabbing his arch-nemesis Blank would boost their rep, legitimize them, and let them swallow the organization whole. Villain loyalty? What a shitty joke.
The periodic ambushes were wearing me down, so I was using my newly acquired competent informant to wipe out the remnants one by one.
"Honey, this is the last one. If any other organization members pop up, I'll let you know later~"
Snake's coquettish voice flowed through my in-ear piece. It was a new one I'd picked up recently. After smashing Crusher's org warehouse, I sold some of the weapons for cash. Figured it'd be handy, and damn if it wasn't. Can't exactly pause mid-fight to politely answer your phone.
Owing Snake another favor... is that okay?
I'd racked up quite the debt. She brushed it off as a freebie for this job and told me not to sweat it, but could I trust that?
"Blank... you traitor!!!"
One holdout charged from the side, swinging a jungle knife. Body enhancement type, but his speed wasn't beyond what I could track with my eyes.
KABOOOOOM!!!!
I twisted away fast and swung the iron pipe-caliber that had shone in the Crusher fight, unleashing a shockwave. The pipe smashed into him, his body exploding satisfyingly and splattering the brick wall.
Crunch.
And with that, my beloved iron pipe-caliber met its end. The frame was totally wrecked. We'd been through a lot together. Time to let it go with a tearless farewell—real men don't cry at goodbyes.
Tossing the wreckage aside, I surveyed the warehouse and plotted my next moves.
I got dragged into volume 1 no matter what.
I'd planned to live quietly, but I'd intervened way more than necessary. No sticking to the old plan now.
And it's all over the news...
Footage of Terrace, me, Ida-in, and Seo Ha-yoon fighting Crusher together was plastered everywhere. Hiding in seclusion wasn't an option anymore. And there was another reason.
Thanks to me, things hadn't gone as bleakly as in the original. Seo Ha-yoon and Ida-in avoided trauma from the Starfield terror. They were happier now than their original selves. As a fan of the comic, that gave me real satisfaction.
That reported number stirred a strange sense of responsibility in me. My actions had saved lives. The fulfillment from wielding positive influence was undeniable.
...
Honestly, every guy dreams of being a hero deep down. Kinda funny coming from a villain like me, but whatever. I decided to follow my heart.
This far in, I'd change the world for the better.
I made that vow while crushing the eyeball of the corpse I'd just burst open with my shoe heel.
To do that, I'd maximize the original knowledge and handle the dogshit events from volume 2 myself.
Volume 2's to-do: one thing.
'Raising Ida-in'.
The keyword popped into my head like the first line of a pitch document.
Ida-in was volume 2's lead. As the opening hinted, her arc dominated the story. She hits peak despair in volume 2. I wanted to steer that toward something better.
First up: eliminate those two asshole villains.
One tied to Seo Ha-yoon, one to Ida-in. Perfect fodder for their power-ups? Nah—these fuckers brought nothing but misery. Better off removed.
"Honey~ Your bounty went up. Shoulders getting heavy yet? If it's too much, you can come whine to me~"
Lost in thought, Snake's excited tone buzzed through the in-ear.
"Yeah. It did."
At first, bounty hikes stressed me out, but now? Whatever.
Villains hyping a bounty hike like it's some grand milestone. My head's spinning. Feels like my brain's getting polluted.
Anyway, wrap up today's work and kick off the plan tomorrow.
Bzzzzt.
Then my phone vibrated. Not a call—a text.
From Ida-in.
Speak of the devil—even tigers come when called. A text from Ida-in, this late at night. What could it be?