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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: Meteiel's Arrival
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The Korean Supernatural Abilities Association, also known as the Hero Association.
Its headquarters, located in the heart of Seoul.
"What? An S-class hero is coming? What in the world is that supposed to mean?"
—was currently in an uproar.
"It's exactly as it sounds. America decided to send an S-class hero, out of the blue, to capture Egotistic."
The Association President explained, wiping sweat from his brow.
At his words, Lee Seol-ah frowned, looking utterly bewildered, and spoke.
"No... putting everything else aside, why are they suddenly coming? Egotistic hasn't even caused any terror attacks for months now."
"...I don't know either. The International Committee just made that decision, what can we do?"
"Haa..."
Lee Seol-ah pressed her fingers against her forehead, as if nursing a headache.
...Egotistic, Da-in. The crisis facing her colleague, with whom she shared a boat, was also her own crisis, leaving her feeling profoundly troubled.
And beside her,
"...This is incomprehensible."
Shadow Walker, Kim Ja-hyun, muttered.
He had been dragged out of bed for this sudden turn of events.
Though he looked tired because of it, as it concerned Egotistic, a man he respected, his eyes gleamed with sharp focus.
"Egotistic and Latiss, the North Atlantic organization... it seems plausible that this is due to their collaboration... but even so, why now?"
"Exactly."
Lee Seol-ah nodded, agreeing with his words.
The two had already met previously and had a deep discussion about Egotistic, who secretly protected South Korea.
In other words, they couldn't help but react negatively to an American S-class hero coming to capture Egotistic.
And they weren't the only ones reacting negatively.
"...."
Stardus. Shin Ha-ru.
Her expression had been frozen ever since she heard the news.
More precisely, she felt annoyed. Why America? Why Egotistic, all of a sudden?
Even as she frowned, she felt a contradiction within herself. It was as if her righteous hero persona was screaming inside her. *What's the problem?*
When she thought about it... an S-class hero coming all the way from America to catch a villain in South Korea wasn't something to be annoyed about, but rather something to be grateful for. Furthermore, since the International Association sent them on their own initiative, there wouldn't be any charges to Korea, which was another advantage.
In other words, from a logical standpoint, an allied nation helping to capture a terrorist from another country should be commended.
So why did she feel so annoyed?
As Stardus felt this confusion,
Lee Seol-ah, sitting opposite, slammed her hand on the table and challenged the President.
"This is definitely a problem. No, when did we ever ask for help? Stardus and we are perfectly capable of handling this ourselves, so for them to act like this is a blatant disregard for South Korea."
"Right. And to give us such short notice, on the very day of their arrival... that's a diplomatic breach, if you think about it."
Shadow Walker nodded beside her, in agreement.
"Oh, come on, you two. Why are you taking it out on me...?"
As the two heroes' gazes bore down on him, the Association President wiped his sweat with a handkerchief again, looking as if he had a splitting headache.
Listening to the two, Stardus found herself nodding instinctively.
...Right. It's natural to feel annoyed. I wasn't being strange.
This was Stardus's conclusion, seeing Icicle and Shadow Walker, who looked as mildly angered as she felt. Right. Why would those two be angry? They're angry because it's an infuriating situation. They're not even on Egotistic's side. Anyone would be angry in this situation.
Even as Stardus rationalized, she found herself thinking further.
...Putting everything else aside. Egotistic was *her* responsibility. She was the only hero Egotistic considered his rival, and vice versa. Who dared to interfere between the two of them?
She was the Egotistic expert, after all.
As Stardus's eyes darkened further, and Lee Seol-ah, turning to look at her, finally noticed Stardus's state and felt a flicker of worry, that's when...
The meeting room door burst open, and an Association employee rushed in, breathless.
"H-Hero Meteiel has arrived from America!"
"Oh, really? Did they just arrive at the airport?"
"What? No. She's arrived at our building right now."
"?"
As the group and the Association President momentarily froze in surprise,
From the corridor, the distinct click-clack of high heels echoed.
Soon after, the meeting room door swung open.
"Greetings, heroes of Korea."
A woman strode confidently into the meeting room.
America's S-class hero, Meteiel.
She had arrived at the Korean Association.
***
Long, grey hair.
Pristine white skin.
Sharp-looking eyes.
Her jacket slung casually over her shoulders, arms confidently crossed.
America's S-class hero.
Meteiel.
She was currently leaning back on the sofa in the Association President's office, legs crossed, sipping tea.
"....You arrived quite quickly, didn't you?"
"Indeed. I flew."
Meteiel's tone was unmistakably rude, even though she was speaking English.
Well, the Association President, having dealt with numerous S-class heroes from abroad and knowing how unpleasant some of them could be, simply let it slide.
"The reason I'm here is to capture this... Egotistic, or whatever he is."
"...Is that your only reason for coming?"
"Yes. The higher-ups ordered it. So, I figured I'd come and stretch my legs."
She said, letting out a small laugh.
"...After all, isn't he just an A-class villain? I thoroughly reviewed his terror records, and there's nothing special there. A clown who's all talk? I can easily handle him alone. In fact, it's strange that he hasn't been caught yet."
Lee Seol-ah bristled at the blatant disrespect towards Egotistic, but knowing that defending him here would only complicate matters, she bit her lip and remained silent for now.
Instead, she observed Meteiel.
Long, grey hair, and a uniform-like outfit in a darker shade of grey, resembling an officer's attire.
Her face had a venomous look, making her seem more like a villain than a hero. Her ability was said to be rock, wasn't it?
Added to that was a unique arrogance in her speech and demeanor. As an S-class hero, especially one of America's so-called 'Celestial Dragons,' her pride seemed immensely strong.
The Association President, seated at his desk, seemed unconcerned, but Lee Seol-ah, facing her, quickly realized. This S-class hero was not going to be easy. If a somewhat kinder one had come, Lee Seol-ah might have been able to handle her, but with someone so clearly formidable, her head began to throb.
As if her headache wasn't enough, Ha-ru's continued silence beside her only heightened her unease.
Just then,
Meteiel, who had taken another sip of the tea poured by an employee, let out a small laugh and muttered almost as an afterthought.
"And... honestly. To think you haven't caught that clown, who's all talk, for two or three years. What exactly has this Association been doing all this time? Well, I suppose I understand, given that this country only has A-class heroes. Haha."
Meteiel was now openly provoking them.
At her words, Lee Seol-ah decided she couldn't hold back any longer and spoke up.
"Excuse me."
"Hmm? Something?"
"...So, you're aware that there have been zero casualties from that villain's terror attacks, right? Internationally, do you have any idea how difficult it is to maintain such a record, with not a single hostage sacrificed in any of his terror incidents?"
Lee Seol-ah's voice was laced with sarcasm by the end.
...She hadn't actually intended to be so aggressive, but somehow, the words came out too forcefully.
Of course, she had also spoken after assessing her own backing and Meteiel herself.
And as expected,
Meteiel, hearing her words, glanced at Lee Seol-ah, let out a small laugh, then ran a hand through her hair and spoke.
"Haha... Yes. Hostages, you say. Indeed, there have been no casualties."
After saying that much, she looked at Lee Seol-ah.
More precisely, she looked at Shin Ha-ru and opened her mouth.
"...Still, sometimes. It's necessary to sacrifice the few for the many. For the greater good, as they say... Don't you know that? Then again, if you did, you wouldn't have let a wretch like him, less than a bug, run wild for so long."
With that, she rose from her seat and looked down as she spoke.
"Sometimes, for the greater good, you have to decisively abandon hostages. Even if a few people die in the process, wouldn't simply capturing the villain ultimately lead to a better outcome?"
After saying that, Meteiel's high heels click-clacked as she moved towards the door.
She opened the door, paused briefly, and turned back to the Association President.
"President, thanks for the tea. And next time Egotistic causes a terror attack, I'll be handling it, so don't bother interfering. That insignificant pest is more than enough for me to handle alone, so just watch from here as I beat him half to death. I'll take care of it. Now, bye."
With those words, she coolly click-clacked her high heels and exited.
Once the sound of her high heels faded into the distance, only then did Lee Seol-ah finally erupt in frustration.
"Seriously, what is with that woman? Is this her own living room or something? I'm absolutely speechless."
Even as Lee Seol-ah spoke, she cast a glance at Shin Ha-ru, who was sitting beside her.
She hadn't uttered a single word since earlier.
After Meteiel left, Ha-ru rested her arms on the table in front of the sofa, her face cold and rigid, seemingly deep in thought.
Then, in a slightly subdued voice, Ha-ru muttered softly.
"....Indeed. Should I bury her?"
"W-What did you say?"
"...."
Seeing Ha-ru's dark expression, Lee Seol-ah broke out in a cold sweat.
Right, let's just pretend I didn't hear that.
***
Egobase.
After Lee Seol-ah's call, I looked over the record of Meteiel, the S-class hero who had personally come all the way from America to Korea to capture me.
Her dazzling career unfolded before my eyes.
"Oppa. What do you think?"
To Seo-eun, who asked me, looking anxious, I gave a brief reply.
"This won't do. I guess I'll just have to bury her."
"...Huh?"
Seo-eun looked bewildered by my conclusion.
Regardless of her reaction, I had already made up my mind.
Yes. Even better. After long consideration, it's clear the right course of action is to physically bury her.
With those words, I set about my plans.
And so, under the same sky,
both hero and villain, unbeknownst to themselves, were thinking the exact same thing.