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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: A World in Chaos
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Breaking News: Brazil has fallen! It appears the President, Vice President, and all high-ranking government officials are dead. The Brazilian Association and its heroes have been neutralized, and the capital and major cities are completely destroyed.
Further reports indicate a massive fire has erupted in Brazil's Amazonian forest, showing no signs of abating. Neighboring South American countries have all declared states of emergency, and survivors are currently fleeing as refugees.
A nation had fallen, brought down by super-powered individuals.
This event sent shockwaves throughout the international community.
Governments worldwide have declared states of emergency, and tension is mounting in the international arena. The Republic of Korea has also declared a state of emergency...
The United Nations and the International Hero Association's General Council have issued a joint statement, condemning the Brazil incident as 'a shocking and horrific crime against humanity,' and announcing their commitment to 'take all necessary measures to resolve the situation.' They further added that they would dedicate all their resources, in cooperation with Association heroes, to uncover the truth and eliminate the villains responsible.
The United States has also described the incident as a 'Horrible Disaster,' expressing regret for its inability to assist as a member of the international community, and immediately announced it would dispatch its national hero association's heroes to contribute to resolving the situation. Currently, tens of thousands of refugees are still evacuating Brazil, and the Amazon continues to burn fiercely.
The initial findings from the International General Hero Association and the United States' investigation into the incident have been released. According to a report published by UHN, Brazil's collapse was orchestrated by S-rank villains from other countries, who seemingly planned the attack out of resentment after the Brazilian government refused their threats.
These individuals were assessed to possess abilities among the very top tier of S-rank villains. Brazil, being a hero-weak nation with only one A-rank hero as its strongest, had a low number of high-powered heroes relative to its population.
The United States' national association has confirmed the deployment of two S-rank and five A-rank heroes to identify the culprits, resolve the incident, and provide aid. This represents a significant expenditure and is considered unprecedented for the American Association, which is typically extremely reluctant to send its heroes abroad. This suggests that North America views this incident with considerable gravity...
Local media reported this morning that three of the four adversaries responsible for Brazil's destruction have been successfully eliminated. One individual is currently at large.
The Amazon fires have finally been extinguished! Local media reports that America's S-rank hero, Watermel, put them out.
Citizens worldwide have initiated the #pray4brazil movement. News of support messages, relief supplies, and donations, accompanied by the hashtag, are spreading... In our country, Yoosung Corporation is reportedly participating in this effort.
Twenty-seven national branches of hero associations worldwide have convened to release a statement condemning the American Hero Association. The core of the statement reads: 'Despite possessing an overwhelming force of super-powered individuals globally, the United States of America showed no intention of aiding its direct neighbor, Brazil, ultimately leading to Brazil's destruction. The U.S. must take responsibility for this.'
In response to the emergence of a theory of responsibility, suggesting that America's usual defensive stance regarding the deployment of its heroes abroad caused it to miss the opportunity to prevent Brazil's demise, thereby enabling its destruction, the American Association has vehemently countered, calling it 'absurd.'
***
It was a chaotic era.
An event on the other side of the globe could now profoundly impact even a small Eastern nation like ours.
The stock market continues to plummet daily. The international community is frozen, and it's predicted to be an incredibly difficult period. Our government is doing its utmost, immediately lowering interest rates and signing currency swap agreements with various countries.
The Korean Hero Association is entering a 24-hour emergency meeting. This meeting, attended by the Association President, three A-rank heroes, and all B-rank heroes, was convened due to the recent surge in terror incidents fueled by rising anxiety...
Legislation for regulating super-powered individuals is gaining traction, particularly in South America. Unlike before, this proposes forcibly identifying all super-powered individuals through comprehensive citizen investigations, with extreme proposals even suggesting imprisonment for non-compliance.
"Seriously, how can a whole country just fall apart like that...?"
Choi Se-hee muttered, bewildered, as she watched the news.
These days, if you turn on the TV, it's nothing but news, breaking reports, and the like, every single day. And the internet? It's no different. Brazil, impossible territorial recovery, etcetera, etcetera.
The reason for such an uproar was simple: it was the first time in international history that villains had overthrown an entire nation.
So, it wasn't strange for the internet to be in chaos.
If even our country, so far from Brazil, was consumed by this story all day, imagine the other South American countries or the United States, which are right next door. They were completely turned upside down.
"Oppa, there's so much information right now, I can't make sense of it. What exactly happened?"
Seo-eun, who had been staring at her laptop, asked me, looking confused.
"Hmm, to put it simply: incredibly powerful villains destroyed all the government heroes, burned down the forests, and shattered the cities."
"No... is that even possible? Just a few villains?"
"....I guess not."
To be honest, I don't know the full details either.
In the original story, it was only briefly mentioned—something like, 'While Stardust was wandering, this is what happened in the world.'
What's certain, though, is that this incident marks the point where not just South Korea, but the entire international community, starts to go to hell.
From now on, the power balance begins to shatter, and absurdly powerful villains start to emerge.
Well, anyway, even if Brazil's territory was ruined, the people are still alive, so they'll somehow manage to rebuild a government and keep things going.
The important thing, though, is this.
From this incident onward, international-scale terror attacks will become increasingly frequent.
Until now, national heroes only had to deal with their own country's villains, but from now on, they'll also have to stop villains invading from other countries. In a way, you could see it as a downside of globalization.
"So, from now on, I expect international-scale terror attacks to gradually increase."
And we'll have to stop them.
I swallowed the rest of my words.
I'm still hesitant to say this much. I've never openly shared my plans with others before, and I don't want them to feel unnecessarily burdened with responsibility.
Honestly, it's a bit funny how the Villain Alliance is acting. Discipline might slacken. Though, it's already pretty slack, but still.
Still, seeing everyone watching the TV with worried eyes, I felt I had to stop it, at least to some extent.
...Honestly, I can't let it become a 'gloomy despair' story like the original. Besides, if things continue this way, our country is also guaranteed to be destroyed, just like Brazil.
In other words, among the countless international villain alliances that will soon begin to rise and vie for power, Ego Stream's role will become even greater.
The world will grow chaotic, and ultimately, power and information will be paramount.
The international political landscape could significantly shift depending on which country possesses how many powerful espers, and the intertwined interests of different villain alliances.
The simultaneous global ocean attack by the underwater terror organization called Latis—that's what it was, I think.
Incidentally, the reason they're called an 'underwater terror organization' isn't just a name; their actual headquarters are located somewhere deep beneath the ocean.
Ha, I'll have to start preparing for that, slowly.
And so, I began to ponder, taking my time.
How should I approach this...?
As I delved into these thoughts,
time, quite literally, flew by.
***
A provisional government has been established in Brazil. This interim government, making territorial recovery its primary objective, has declared its aspiration to rebuild the nation from scratch. People worldwide are offering words of encouragement...
"Whew... It seems the situation has finally settled."
The Association President wiped the sweat from his brow and murmured.
Weeks of turmoil caused by the Brazil incident.
Finally, the last villain responsible for Brazil's collapse was eliminated by American hands, and a new Brazilian government was established.
The situation had, to some extent, entered a period of calm.
"That's a relief. Now I can finally get some sleep. But Icicle... what are you doing?"
"Just a moment. I need to buy at least one more before the stock market crash ends."
"....You certainly live a busy life."
As the head of a massive corporation, Lee Seol-ah had earned credit for connecting various countries, companies, and governments, so Shadow Walker had decided to simply nod and understand whatever she did.
Ignoring Lee Seol-ah, whose eyes were fixated on the overseas corporate fire sale next to him, Shadow Walker turned to Stardust.
"Stardust, why don't you get some shut-eye now? You've barely slept lately."
"Oh? Oh... I should."
Shin Haru, sitting with tired eyes, quietly nodded.
Due to the Brazil incident, a wave of fear swept across the nation, severely destabilizing public order, which forced Stardust and countless other heroes to work through the night.
However, with the situation now officially stabilizing to some extent, and prices and public safety gradually returning to normal, it was only natural for this emergency standby to begin its demobilization process.
The Association President, shedding tears of joy at the return to normalcy; Lee Seol-ah, murmuring with a laugh that she'd buy everything; and Shadow Walker, already peacefully asleep in his chair with his eyes closed.
In the midst of the relaxed Hero Association meeting room, only Stardust, Shin Haru, felt a sense of unease.
...Something bigger feels like it's coming.
She wasn't sure what it was, but something that would directly impact them.