An Unfortunate Accident
"You motherfucker! I'm gonna kill you!" The massive man drew a knife and began marching forward with giant strides.
...I made a mistake. To think this guy was a villain too. Kang Hyuk raised his revolver, his eyes locked on the man's knife.
His original plan had been simple: kill the Witch of Seduction, then wait quietly for the three men to leave. Normally, if someone standing right next to you was suddenly sniped out of nowhere, any ordinary person would panic and flee. If he had used that chaos to secure the Witch of Seduction's corpse, he would have easily claimed another bounty...!
But his plan had completely gone up in smoke the moment one of the three men turned out to be a villain. Now, Kang Hyuk had no choice but to deal with both the Witch of Seduction and the hulking brute standing right in front of him.
The only saving grace is that the Witch of Seduction doesn't have any real combat skills...! I need to take this guy down first. Kang Hyuk aimed his gun at the man. Having made up his mind, there was nothing left to do but pull the trigger...!
Bang—!
"You bastard!" As Kang Hyuk fired, the massive man flinched in terror and hastily deployed his gravity field again. Though the shock made him drop his knife, he remained completely unharmed. Realizing the gravity field's durability was far greater than he had anticipated, Kang Hyuk waited for his revolver's cylinder to rotate.
"Now's our chance! Get him!" But the man had absolutely no intention of waiting around. Bellowing at the top of his lungs, the giant lunged at Kang Hyuk with ferocious speed. Kang Hyuk twisted his body in a desperate attempt to dodge, but the man's massive hand clamped down on his wrist in an instant.
"Got you! You little shit, do you have any idea who you're messing with?! What are you idiots doing?! Hurry up and grab his gun while I've got him pinned!"
"Y-Yes, boss!" At the giant's roar, the other two men snapped out of their daze and threw themselves at Kang Hyuk. Just like that, the four men became locked in a chaotic, violent scuffle...!
"I got it!" Amidst the struggle, the skinny man finally managed to wrench the revolver from Kang Hyuk's right hand. Having stripped him of his only weapon, triumphant smirks instantly spread across the three men's faces...!
Whoosh!
"Wait... what?" But in that exact moment, the revolver they had just stolen vanished into thin air. The three men stared blankly, their minds grinding to a halt.
Click!
The vanished revolver was already resting snugly in Kang Hyuk's left hand.
"You shouldn't touch things that don't belong to you."
"Y-You... is that a superpower—?!"
Bang!
Before the skinny man could finish his sentence, a bullet pierced the center of his forehead. He collapsed to the ground instantly, dropping like a doll with its strings cut.
"H-Hieeeek!" Witnessing the execution right in front of his eyes, the tall man turned and bolted in sheer terror. But Kang Hyuk had no intention of letting him escape.
Bang!
"Argh!" The tall man sprayed a trail of blood as he rolled violently across the ground.
"Whew..." Kang Hyuk took a deep breath and slowly stood up. Though he had killed two men in the blink of an eye, he felt no remorse. After all, weren't they accomplices to a villain? To be classified as a villain meant they had committed crimes far worse than average felons. There was absolutely no reason to feel guilty. They were nothing but parasites on society anyway.
"Y-You motherfucker! How dare you kill my brothers! Do you have any idea who you just messed with?!"
"Who did I mess with?"
"You messed with the Hero Association, you bastard!" As the massive man roared in grief and fury, Kang Hyuk tilted his head in confusion. Why on earth was the Hero Association being brought up now?
"You piece of shit...! How dare you kill the brothers of an E-class hero, G-Force Man...!"
"...An E-class hero? You're G-Force Man, the E-class hero...?" At the man's words, Kang Hyuk's eyes shook violently. He felt a sudden, throbbing headache coming on. This guy wasn't a villain, but a hero...? No, then why the hell had this bastard tried to kill him in the first place?
If he hadn't used his gun to stop the massive man marching toward him with a knife just moments ago, Kang Hyuk would have been the one lying dead. Given the circumstances, it was only natural for Kang Hyuk to assume the man was a villain. A real hero wouldn't have threatened him so recklessly without even asking questions.
"I'll never forgive you!"
"Hey, wait! There's been a massive misunderstanding. I wasn't targeting you guys, I was aiming for the Witch of Seduction from the very—"
"Aaaaargh!" The massive man clearly had no intention of listening. Letting out a feral roar, he charged at Kang Hyuk. Once again, the two men collided in a brutal grapple.
"Die, you bastard!"
Thud!
The giant swung a heavy fist at Kang Hyuk. However, his fist only struck the empty ground. Having already gained stat points in Agility and Strength from his two level-ups, Kang Hyuk was in a different league. If all three had rushed him at once, it might have been tricky, but against this giant alone, Kang Hyuk had the upper hand.
Smack!
"Gah!" Kang Hyuk's knee slammed hard into the man's ribs, forcing a painful gasp from his throat. Following up immediately, Kang Hyuk delivered a devastating uppercut that shattered the man's jaw, sending him crashing to the ground in a screaming heap.
Huff, huff. It seems his gravity field can only be used for long-range defense. Thank goodness. Kang Hyuk caught his breath and stood up. The massive man, G-Force Man, was clutching his shattered jaw, wheezing and groaning in agony. Kang Hyuk looked down at him with a complicated expression, but soon realized there was only one way this could end. He slowly pointed his gun at the hero.
"Urgh... P-Please, spare..."
Bang!
G-Force Man desperately tried to deploy his gravity field, but he was too slow. The bullet cut him off mid-plea, ending his life instantly. Kang Hyuk wore a bitter expression as he holstered his revolver.
It was born out of a misunderstanding, but I couldn't just let him walk away alive. Leaving him alive would only put me in danger. Kang Hyuk shook his head. This entire incident was a tragic comedy of errors. G-Force Man had mistaken the sniper shot meant for the Witch of Seduction as an attack on his own group, and Kang Hyuk had mistaken G-Force Man for a hostile villain when he saw him marching forward with a knife. With all these misunderstandings piling up, Kang Hyuk had ended up killing three men.
Level Up!
Agility stat has increased.
You may now select a new skill.
But his melancholy was short-lived. As the crisp, clear chime echoed in his mind, a wry smile played on Kang Hyuk's lips. An accident was an accident, but a reward was a reward, wasn't it? Soon, his consciousness was pulled into a vast, pure white void—the skill selection space.
Three cards floated gently in front of Kang Hyuk's eyes. The card on the far left depicted a 'Flaming Bullet,' the center card showed a 'Frozen Bullet,' and the card on the far right displayed a 'Shining Bullet.'
"Fire, ice... and light...!" Kang Hyuk stroked his chin, his mind racing. After a long moment of contemplation, he finally deduced what the three cards represented. "I see. It's a skill that allows me to create elemental bullets."
As a hardcore veteran of Hero of the World, Kang Hyuk knew the game's trait skill trees inside and out. Based on his extensive knowledge, this was the stage where he could imbue his ammunition with elemental properties.
In terms of raw destructive power, the Flaming Bullet would definitely outperform the Frozen Bullet. But what about utility and uniqueness? If you look around, incendiary ammunition already exists in the real world. For instance, Dragon's Breath rounds used in shotguns... (Dragon's Breath: A specialty type of shotgun shell containing zirconium and other metal powders. When fired, it temporarily turns a shotgun into a makeshift flamethrower with a range of about twenty meters.)
Kang Hyuk weighed his options carefully, agonizing over the two cards. He had ruled out the 'Shining Bullet' from the very beginning, as simple tracer rounds didn't seem particularly useful. Of course, choosing the path of light might eventually lead to something like a 'Healing Bullet' down the line. But healing wasn't what Kang Hyuk needed right now. He needed power. A raw, overwhelming power that would allow him to easily handle any unexpected situations, even if another accident like today's were to happen again.
"...Then my choice is made." Having finally reached a decision, Kang Hyuk reached out his hand.
5.56mm Frost Bullet Creation