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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: Metel's Miscalculation
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"Hah, he's squirming away like a rat!"
Metel, an S-class hero from America.
She was currently busy catching a villain in an Eastern country far from her homeland.
On a wide, deserted main road.
In that open space, with collapsed buildings spread out behind her like a backdrop, she was struggling to catch Egostic, who was flying in the sky.
Her ash-grey hair whipped in the wind, and her hands moved in sync with it.
In response, numerous sharp rock fragments continuously appeared in the vast sky in the distance.
And these would rush en masse whenever the man in the black hat, mask, and black cloak appeared in the sky.
The rock masses rushed towards him, making a ripping sound as they cut through the wind.
Formed precisely where he teleported, they pressed him hard.
"Oh, a villain in distress!"
The guy just kept running his mouth even as he fled.
Watching him from afar, Metel managed a sardonic smile.
Right. As expected, even a hotshot who was supposedly big here was no match for her.
For her, an S-class hero who had been through the wringer in America, the mecca of super-powered individuals, dealing with him was just a piece of cake.
"Aargh!"
He let out cries of feigned agony, barely dodging her attacks.
But no matter how much he teleported, there was nowhere to escape.
Countless rock fragments floated against the backdrop of the vast sky.
These, laid out by her with great effort, were scattered all over the sky, so they could pursue him no matter where he teleported to escape nearby.
Although it took a bit too much power, seeing Egostic running away with his tail between his legs, the outcome was more than satisfactory.
So Metel stood on the ground, continuously waving her hands like a conductor, sending rock fragments incessantly towards Egostic.
And as she did so, she found herself letting out a low, vulgar laugh.
'....Yes. This is it.'
Metel. The sight of herself effortlessly pressuring a villain who supposedly dominated South Korea, as if swatting a pestering fly, filled her with exhilaration. Even without her ultimate move, the giant rock drop—which she couldn't use in the middle of a city anyway—to pressure an opponent like this.
Yes, this was her true power.
How much unfair criticism had she endured in America until now? They called her a "one-trick meteor pony," claiming her only use was summoning that big fat rock, and that she always just assisted other heroes from behind, never stepping out alone...
In a situation where stress had unknowingly accumulated, a stage had been set for her to shine alone like this. To be toying with a villain who supposedly dominated an entire country, Metel found herself feeling an unconscious thrill.
If she captured Egostic here, her standing would rise even further.
Her mind already consumed with the thought of capturing Egostic today, she was unconsciously pouring all her focus into him.
...Moreover, since those hostages had been sacrificed, if she failed to capture him this time, more unfair criticism might arise. Though the sacrifice felt unsettling, it was unavoidable to catch him. She never entertained the trashy thought that it was fine since they weren't her own citizens.
Of course, she was also continuing the battle after various calculations of her own. Provoking him the moment she met him was a tactic to exploit villains' strong pride. By doing so, she prevented him from escaping due to his pride, and then continued to pressure him.
Furthermore, as is typical of such small villainous alliances, even though that self-proclaimed leader was facing such a crisis, none of his supposed comrades appeared.
Well, betrayal and cutting ties were common among villains, so she merely scoffed inwardly that he was just a nobody with no leadership.
Metel, thus, focused on the battle with overflowing confidence.
Moreover, Egostic's appearance, barely dodging her attacks with each teleportation, made Metel think she could catch him with 'just a little more' effort.
Thus, Metel fixed her gaze on the sky and continuously moved her hands, concentrating all her focus on sending rocks at Egostic.
Naturally, her guard against her surroundings dropped.
Furthermore, Egostic's appearance, doing nothing but fleeing, and his self-proclaimed comrades were nowhere in sight.
All these factors caused her to unconsciously disregard him and fight with less than full effort.
A little time passed like that.
Metel was starting to get annoyed by Egostic's constant appearance of being on the verge of capture yet never actually getting caught.
Operating hundreds of rocks suspended in mid-air was gradually draining her strength and giving her a headache, so she decided not to drag it out any longer and to finish it.
"Hup!"
Soon, she moved the boulders floating in the distance, forming something like a giant hand.
Up in the sky, at the very moment Egostic had just teleported and was looking around.
The pre-prepared rock hands folded over to crush him.
And Egostic, seemingly unaware, perhaps because he had just moved. Seeing him stand still as the rocks approached, Metel smiled ferociously.
"I've finally got you, you scoundrel!"
At the very moment she moved her arms, folding her hands as if to clap.
In front of Egostic, who had clearly seemed about to foolishly fall victim.
A gigantic black greatsword suddenly materialized.
*Schwing!*
It instantly cleaved through the rock masses approaching him.
What on earth had happened? Metel was still startled, her hands folded, at that moment.
*Ding. Ding.*
"....Wait."
Her survival instinct, honed through many long battles, rang an alarm bell.
In that brief moment when Metel instinctively felt something was wrong.
*Piiiiiiiiiiing-*
*Kwagwagwagwagwagwagwagwang!*
From one side of the collapsed building, a destructive beam of immense heat and energy was fired at her.
"Aaaaargh!"
A sudden, unannounced, surprise attack of immense power.
Thankfully, as her instincts warned, Metel had managed to create a barrier of rock in front of her just before the beam was fired.
And so, with her hands on the rock wall, suddenly pulling all her strength, bracing her legs against the ground, clenching her teeth, and glaring, she tried to block the beam, but—
*Flash!*
*Kawaaaang!*
Just as Metel was holding on, lightning struck from the sky.
Directly at Metel.
"Aaaaah!"
With this double-whammy attack, Metel finally lost her strength for a moment.
As a result, all the rock fragments that had been blocking the beam were torn apart like paper, and she was ultimately hit directly by the massive beam and sent flying.
*Thud. Thud. Thud.*
She was sent flying almost into the sky, then hit the ground and rolled several times.
Soon, she slammed against a wall of the building with a crash, and finally, Metel's body came to a stop.
The wall was completely shattered due to the rocks she had wrapped around her body for protection.
In that half-ruined place, covered head to toe in dust, she—
"Cough."
—spat blood to the side.
Her entire body ached as if shattered, her head reeled, and her ears rang with tinnitus.
While a high-pitched ringing echoed in her ears, Metel struggled to maintain her composure, but her head throbbed too much.
What on earth just happened?
Surely, she had been on the verge of catching him.
First, she had to protect her body.
With great difficulty, she managed to raise her barely moving hand and somehow summoned rocks.
"Haa... haa..."
Even then, she had so little strength that she could only manage to wrap rocks around herself, barely forming a kind of cocoon.
"What the, *cough*, hell..."
In the dark confines of the rock, just as Metel muttered that in a fractured voice.
*CRACK!*
A massive black sword plunged into the shield she had erected in front of her.
Soon, the rocks shielding her crumbled, and bright light streamed in.
She instinctively squinted, and as she painstakingly opened her eyes, she saw:
To her left, an armored knight holding a massive black sword.
To her right, a girl in white miko attire.
And in the center, the man in the black hat and mask, looking down at her with a faint smile.
It was Egostic.
"Oh dear... oh dear..."
He shook his head, clucking his tongue.
Smiling, yet looking down at her askance as if with profound pity, he—
"You... you bastard..."
—Looking down at the battered Metel, who glared up at him with a fractured voice and bloodshot eyes, growling.
He let out a snicker, as if finding the situation utterly amusing, and muttered:
"Well, I heard you were S-class and all sorts of big talk, so I thought you were incredibly strong."
"Well... honestly..."
Then he snickered, as if driving in the final nail. With his lips still curved in a sneer, he said mockingly:
"You're just... *pfft*, much weaker than my hero, Stardus, aren't you?"
Beside him, as he spoke with a smile.
A camera floated in mid-air, diligently live-streaming the entire scene.