On all planets, the same news was playing on every TV and digital broadcast board hanging from buildings.
A woman in a suit appeared on screen, her tone serious.
"Today's headline: the biggest bank in Solari-5 city, on Planet Mercury, was robbed by a gang of space bandits. They killed three innocent civilians and are now on the run. The Interplanetary Security Force (ISF) is pursuing them."
A little girl sat beside her father, eyes wide with fear.
He quickly turned off the TV.
"Those Earthlings… killing people like it's nothing. The ISF should just wipe their damn planet out," he muttered.
---
The bandits, on the other hand, were racing through the city on bikes.
One of them, carrying a bag full of money, laughed.
"Haha! That old man tried to fight me—just to end up dead!"
The others laughed with him.
People on the streets were running in fear, but the bandits kept swerving their bikes toward them just to scare them.
Far behind, the ISF was in pursuit.
In one of the cars, an officer wore a white cap with a star symbol. His hair and eyes were both dark blue, and his face looked aged.
"Tch. Why are those damn bikes so fast?" he muttered.
Far ahead, a group of kids was playing in the street.
The bandits saw them. But instead of lifting their bikes into the sky to escape, they aimed straight for the children.
"Haha! Kids, this is your last playtime!"
Behind them, the ISF officers realized what they were planning. A warning blared through the car's speaker:
"Don't hurt those kids, or you'll pay a far bigger price! Leave the kids alone—I repeat, leave them alone!"
But the bandits didn't listen.
They sped toward the kids.
The children couldn't protect themselves. They dropped to the ground, crying in fear.
Their parents screamed helplessly.
Just as the bikes reached the children, a thick smoke spread through the area.
The parents dropped to their knees, helpless.
The ISF officers charged in, this time ready to eliminate the bandits on the spot—but then they saw something that made them freeze.
The kids were safe.
The bikes had stopped...
Blocked by a person?
A man stood in front of the bandits.
He had striking silver hair and icy blue eyes. He wore a black trench coat with blood-red lining.
On his chest was a device casting a glowing barrier, stopping the bikes from moving any closer. Strapped to his back was a sword—an ancient blade, modified with modern technology. He wore a cocky smirk on his face.
"How cool of you, trying to hurt mere kids?" the man said, then glanced over his shoulder at the children. "Kiddos, go to your parents, or their tears might cause a tsunami." The kids quickly ran back, and their parents hugged them tightly, overwhelmed with relief.
Turning his gaze back to the bandits, the man's expression shifted slightly. "So, bandits... where were you going?" he asked calmly, as if nothing had happened.
One of the bandits, the smartest among them, spoke up in a hurry, clearly nervous with the ISF catching up behind them. "We'll give you money! How much do you want?!"
The man raised an eyebrow at the offer. "You think you can buy me?" he asked with a slight tone of amusement.
The bandit gritted his teeth, thoughts boiling with anger. These Bounty Hunters always come in our way when we're just trying to help our people... I'll kill all of th—
"If you give me sixty percent of the money, I'll let you go. Do you accept?" the man interrupted suddenly, voice sharp.
"What?! Sixty percent? That's cheating!" the bandit shouted, completely thrown off.
The man's smirk widened. "And stealing money that others earned through hard work isn't?" he said coldly, then drew the sword from his back and deactivated the barrier.
The bandits jumped off their bikes and charged straight at the man.
At the same time, the ISF cars screeched to a halt. The sudden stop came from an order given by a female senior officer.
One of the officers, the one wearing the white cap, looked at her and asked, "Why did we stop, ma'am?"
The senior officer, dressed in a sharp white ISF uniform with multiple stars on her shoulder, watched the scene calmly.
"We don't have to fight now," she replied, brushing her black hair away from her face. "That guy will handle everything."
The officer kept watching the man as he faced the charging bandits.
"But he's just a regular bounty hunter. How will he handle them all?"
The senior officer smirked without looking back.
"He's anything but regular..."
---
One of the bandits swung a metal rod at the man's head. The man tilted his head slightly, dodging it with ease, then slammed his elbow into the bandit's face. The bandit dropped like a stone.
Another came from the side with a knife. The man blocked it using the flat side of his sword's handle, then kicked the attacker in the stomach, sending him crashing into a wall.
The last and smartest bandit yelled and charged wildly. The man finally drew his sword. A flash of blue energy lit up as the blade hummed. He swung once—clean, fast, and controlled.
The bandit's weapon shattered. He froze in place, unable to move as the man pointed the sword at his throat.
"Try that again, and next time I won't stop at your weapon," the man said calmly.
The man kicked the last bandit, sending him flying back. Then, without saying a word, he picked up the money bag from the ground.
Seeing the opening, the ISF officers rushed in, quickly cuffing all the downed bandits and securing the area.
The senior officer turned to the one who had called him a regular bounty hunter earlier. "Does he look regular to you?" she asked with a sharp look. "That man...is Arka. An earthling."
The officer's eyes widened. "An earthling?! But... aren't all earthlings known as bandits? Then how did he become a bounty hunter?"
She smiled, clearly amused by his shock.
"He's a bounty hunter… with a bounty of ten thousand stellar on his own head."
The officer's eyes grew even wider.
With that much money, I could buy a mansion and live peacefully with my family without working for ten straight years...
The senior officer crossed her arms.
"Most people don't even use his name. They just call him...The Harbinger. Or Revolutionary."
---
Arka slowly walked toward the senior officer, holding the bag in one hand. He raised it slightly and said,
"I'll give you this… if you give me twenty percent of it."
The senior officer looked at him, then winked.
"Alright, handsome. Consider it your reward for the help."
The nearby officer's jaw dropped.
I-Is she really our senior officer? Miss Anya? That cool-minded and sharp woman?!
She fidgeted with the edge of her uniform skirt, her cheeks slightly red.
"A-As you know, I-I'm divorced… s-so will you mar-marry me—"
Arka shot her an annoyed look.
"Shut the fuck up."
Her expression changed immediately. She yelled at him, clearly frustrated.
"What's with that attitude of yours?! Here I am, trying my hardest to propose, and you're just rejecting me! Why are you so stubborn?!"
Arka's eye twitched in irritation.
"Stubborn? Me?" He pointed directly at her. "You're the one who's stubborn! This is the 26th time I've rejected you, and you still don't stop proposing!"
Anya crossed her arms and pouted like a scolded kid.
"Tch. So what if it's the 26th time? One of these days, you'll say yes. I'm just being consistent."
Arka rubbed his forehead.
"Consistent? This isn't a job interview! Stop proposing to me like it's on your daily to-do list!"
She smirked and pulled out a tiny notebook from her pocket.
"Actually, it is on my to-do list. See? 'Confess to Arka – (FAILED)'... again."
He stared at her blankly.
"...You have issues."
"And you have commitment problems!" she shot back, proudly flipping the page.
The other officer standing nearby slowly backed away.
I should transfer to Pluto... this drama is above my pay grade.
[ARKA, WHY DID YOU CREATE THAT BARRIER IN FRONT OF THOSE BANDITS' BIKES?! YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE MONEY TO REPAIR ME, AND YOU'RE USING ME AT FULL POWER?!]
A voice echoed from the device on Arka's chest.
Arka looked down at it with an irritated expression and whispered,
"Why do you always try to ruin my respect?"
Anya glanced at the device, instantly grinning.
"Really, Lisa? He doesn't even have money?"
She turned to Arka with a smug look, eyes full of mockery.
"Wow. A broke Harbinger. That's new."
[NOT ONLY THAT, BUT HE'S PLANNING TO BECOME THE HIGHEST BOUNTY HUNTER AND DOMINATE ALL THE PL—]
Before the voice could finish, Arka quickly pressed the shut-off button on the device. The voice cut off instantly.
He sighed.
"This AI system is really nonsense."
Arka clicked a button on his watch. A bike came flying toward him and stopped right by his side. He hopped on and looked back.
"I'm leaving… Anya."
Anya reached out quickly.
"Wait! What about your twenty percent?!"
But Arka was already in the air, speeding away.
"I don't need it!" he shouted. "Give it back to the people who really own it!"
Anya dropped to her knees, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
Ohh... it's the first time he called my name... I got too excited.
---
Meanwhile, Arka flew off toward an unknown direction. While riding his bike, he pulled out two small earbuds from the device on his chest and placed them into his ears. Then, he tapped the power button on the same device.
[HELLO. THIS IS YOUR PERSONAL AI, LISA. WHY DID YOU SHUT ME OFF LAST TIME, ARKA?]
"Lisa, switch on the AR glasses."
[AS YOU WISH, ARKA.]
From the ends of his earbuds, a sleek glass visor began forming in front of his eyes, locking into place. It was a pair of futuristic, cyberpunk-styled AR sunglasses. Then, a glowing system screen appeared in front of him.
[I HAVE SWITCHED THE VOICE FROM SPEAKER TO EARBUDS. NOW ONLY YOU CAN HEAR ME.]
"Show me the map of Solari-2. We're going there to repair you first. You complain too much."
A detailed map lit up on the screen before his eyes. He smirked.
Whatever you say, Lisa. I'm going to become the richest bounty hunter, with the highest bounty on my own head… and I'll dominate every planet. I'll make them all fear Earthlings.