"C-COME?! I CAN COME WITH YOU?!"
Shijun could barely form a sentence. His entire body was buzzing with excitement…A elite 5 hero, himself,was asking him to follow him.
But Phantomblade, arms folded, stared at him coldly—unmoved.
"Tch… surprised to see me?" he muttered, voice low and clipped.
"I was sent to handle that Devil—but you did the job for me. And made it a flashy-ass show while you were at it…" His glare sharpened slightly. "Not that I couldn't have ended it faster."he smirked.
Before Shijun could even react with pride, his smile dropped as panic gripped him.
"WAIT—MINUS!! HOW DO I UNTRANSFORM?! AM I STUCK IN YOUR BODY FOREVER?! WHAT DO I DO?!"
Minus groaned in his mind like an exhausted older brother.
"… calm your dumbass down. Breathe. Just think about untransforming. That's all it takes."
Following Minus's instruction,
Shijun immediately closed his eyes and took a deep breath—
WHOOSH!
A glowing blue light enveloped his body as the alien form dissolved, fading seamlessly into thin air. In a flash, he was human again.
"Phew…" he exhaled. "Thought I was gonna be stuck forever."
Phantomblade narrowed his eyes.
"…Who were you talking to?"
"OH—Uh! N-No one! Hehe!" Shijun straightened up awkwardly.
"…Are you coming or not?"
You could hear the pure annoyance leaking from Phantomblade's voice.
"OH—YEAH! COMING!" Shijun stumbled after him,before muttering under his breath, "Okay wait, so like… how did I even transform just now? And what was that silver wristband thing?"
Minus sighed like he was explaining math to a squirrel.
"That's called the Entheon Motor, dumbass. Alien device. It lets you transform into the alien body fused inside you—in your case,my body."
"OHHHHH! That's so sick bro!"
"When you need to transform again, just raise your hand and shout my name,and the Motor'll appear."
Shijun practically fist-pumped.
"I love this!"
"Hurry the hell up," Phantomblade growled from ahead.
"AH—MY BAD!"
He ran to catch up—completely forgetting one thing.
"DUMBASS. Do you even know where he's taking you?!
"And if he finds out I'm inside you?!"
Shijun froze mid-step.
"…Oh.shit.."
Welp.
Too late.
Without warning, Phantomblade grabbed him by the arm and launched into the sky at full speed—dragging a flailing Shijun through the air like a backpack with limbs.
—
CRASH!!
They landed hard in the middle of nowhere, creating a crater in the rocky earth below.
"YO, MAN—CAN YOU CHILL?!" Shijun cried, stumbling out of the impact zone. "I felt like I was gonna get launched into the orbit!"
Phantomblade didn't respond. He just turned and gave Shijun a soul-cutting glare.The type of glare that shuts someone up.
Shijun shut up instantly.
As they trekked across a old tunnel path, Shijun finally worked up the courage to ask:
"Ehh… so where are we going…?"
"Hero HQ." Phantomblade replied coldly.
"W-WAIT. THE Hero HQ?! Like… the actual Hero Headquarters?!"
"No shit."
"WAIT SO—ARE YOU GONNA HIRE ME?! AM I GONNA BE A REAL HERO?!"
No reply.
Shijun excitement dimmed down.
"…Man. You could at least tell me if you don't wanna talk…"
They continued through the long dim tunnel that eventually opened into a massive steel stronghold—sleek black and grey walls, reinforced gates, glowing neon panels embedded in the architecture like veins of light.
Towering above them, the central spire stretched toward the clouds.
—HERO HQ—
"Hurry up, slowpoke." Phantomblade snapped, yanking Shijun by the wrist and dragging him through the gates like a sack of potatoes.
Shijun stumbled after him, thoughts racing.
"Man..Why is this guy even ruder than I expected? Isn't he supposed to be a hero?"
Minus, of course, chimed in like a professional heckler:
"Maybe it's because nobody likes you. Just like me."
"BRO—!" Shijun nearly shouted aloud, then clamped his hands over his mouth.
Phantomblade turned, suspicious.
"…What?"
"U-Uh—nothing! Sorry!" Shijun laughed awkwardly.
"Weirdo.."
As they entered the inner base, Shijun was nearly blinded by the sci-fi overload—floating screens, robotic sentries, holographic battle simulations, and doors that slid open as if reacting to their presence alone.
It was like walking into a futuristic war bunker.
Eventually, they stopped at a steel-plated door labeled:
—HERO CORP MANAGEMENT—
Phantomblade shoved it open.
Inside stood a middle age man behind a chrome desk—wearing a blood-red suit, tie crisp, hair slicked back so precisely it looked painted on.
His expression was unreadable. Every movement was calculated. Even the air around him felt… controlled.
He didn't look powerful.
He felt powerful.
"Ah… Phantomblade. Welcome back," the man said, voice smooth and disturbingly polite.
"I see you've brought someone with you?"
"Tch. Yeah." Phantomblade gestured lazily toward Shijun. "This guy dealt with the Devil I was sent to eliminate. He's got some odd abilities.Still inferior to mine, of course." A smug chuckle followed.
Inside Shijun's head?
"INFERIOR?! EXCUSE ME?! TRANSFORM. RIGHT. NOW. LET'S BEAT HIS ASS."
Minus was already losing it.
"NOT NOW, MINUS—WE ARE IN THE SAME ROOM AS THE GUY WHO RUNS HERO CORP. DO NOT RUIN THIS."
Shijun greeted his teeth.
"FINE. But the next time he says anything, we're throwing hands."
The man in red eyed Shijun calmly.
"…You alright over there?"
"Y-Yeah! Totally fine!" Shijun straightened up like a malfunctioning robot.
"Is he always like this?"
The man asked.
Phantomblade muttered under his breath, "Talks to himself sometimes. Don't ask."
He then gestured casually toward the desk.
"Anyway, newbie—meet…the Hero Corp Manager. The top of the chain. Everything runs through him. Missions, intel, recruitment. And yeah—you're standing in his presence… and mine too."
Shijun gulped.
"T-The Hero Corp Manager…?"
The man barely glanced up from his glowing holo-tablet.
"Name?"
"SHIJUN! UH—YES, SIR! NICE TO MEET YOU, SIR!" Shijun nearly shouted, snapping into full intern mode and thrusting his hand out for a handshake.
The manager didn't even blink.not even a glance.
Shijun awkwardly pulled his hand back down.
The Manager finally spoke:
"With powers like yours, you're going to be a hero."
"W-Wait—just like that?! No tests? No training? No paperwork?"
"Do you want to be a hero or not?"
"Well… yeah, but—"
"Good….. Not that you had a choice. Once you showed power, we were going to draft you either way."
"EH—UH—YEAH! YES, SIR! THANK YOU!"
Phantomblade snorted.
"Don't get too excited, rookie. You're still a nobody. Regular hero status. Not elite. Don't act like you're hot shit yet."
He turned to the manager.
"I've got more pressing matters than babysitting him. I'll be taking my leave."
As the door shut behind him, Shijun muttered,
"He's got your exact asshole attitude, Minus."
Minus huffed.
"Honestly? Kind of makes me like him more.Makes up for what he said before."
"Minus I swear.."
Shijun mumbled out.
The manager stood.
"anyways,I'll run your info through the system. Once processed, you'll be officially registered. Wait here."
Before exiting, he turned one last time.
"One more thing. Your identity as a hero must remain a secret to the public. Only other heroes may know who you are. IS THAT Understood?"the voice warned sternly.
Shijun nodded quickly.
"Yes, sir!"
—One Hour Later—
The doors slid open again.
"Well, kid. Congrats. You're officially a Hero."
"LET'S GOOOOOO! OH MY GOD, THAT'S ALL IT TAKES?! SO—?"
But the manager cut him off,
"Don't get too excited yet kid."
"Sorry.."
"Anyways,one last thing I will need from you..What is your..Hero name."
"H-hero name…."
"ITS MINUS"
Minus shouted.
"Eh no.Definitely not that"
"YOUR LITERALLY USING MY BODY."
"Yeah but..I'm still you know?the guy doing the fighting too sooo….I need some credit right?"
"Tch.."minus groaned.
"So?What is it?Or do u want me to decide for you?"
The mananger demanded.
"Oh uh,s-sorry…um…my hero name..Is..Beyond."
"Beyond?really?"
Both the minus and the manager spoke at the same time.
"Y-yeah..that's it..Beyond."
"Ok…"the Manager raised a brow but wrote down the name."
"beyond really?"
Minus mocked.
"Oh cmon!is a cool name you have to admit that!"Shijun argued.
"A-anyways,since I'm a hero now,when does my traininh start?OH!or do I get a mentor-"
The manager blinked.
Then,he burst out laughing.
"…Training?"
"Y-Yeah?"
"BAHAHAHA!"
He leaned back, hands in his pockets.
"You think the Elite 5 were trained? You think our strongest heroes got lessons? No. You either survive… or you die. That's the system."
Shijun's grin died instantly.
His soul left the chat.
"…Wait, hold on—what?!"
"Don't worry,You'll have plenty of socializing. …On the battlefield."
Shijun's jaw dropped.
"…WHAT DO YOU MEA-…"
—Moments Later—
Shijun was kicked out into the lobby like trash after checkout.
He slumped onto a bench inside the Corp, groaning.
"Man… do they hate me? Why's everyone so rude in here?"
"Tch. Don't blame them," Minus said. "You are pretty easy to hate."
"BRO—"
"Relax. I'll spare you… for now."
Shijun sighed and leaned back.
"I just wanted a cool life… less boring,not a generic deadbeat school life.And just when I thought I made it—bam. Back to square one. Nobody even respects me… not even my own parasite."
"Correction—I'm a guest."
Minus said casually while
Shijun just sighed.
But minus added on,
His voice actually softened for once.
"But hey… as much of a dumbass as you are, I can't deny credit when credit is due."
Shijun raised an eyebrow.
"Huh? What is it now?"
Minus's tone shifted slightly—almost… impressed.
"That fight with the Devil just now? You have shown to have potential no human does,u adapted fast into my body. Not just the basic functions—you learned how to fly, fight, and use my abilities like they were second nature. That shit doesn't happen, even for these so called heroes,I can bet that they won't know how to utilize such a foreign body,as a matter of fact most likely, they had to at least take a decent amount of time to master their own powers."
"So… what exactly are u trying to say here?"
"I'm saying you're not as worthless as I originally thought."
"…Which, from me, is basically a compliment."minus chuckles.
"Tch."
Shijun smiled faintly.Actually glad to hear it from the alien.
"Nicest thing you've said to me by far."
Then suddenly he realized—
"OH SHIT—I'M LATE FOR SCHOOL!"
He bolted up and sprinted toward the doors.
"Hold up," Minus smirked in his tone. "Who said you gotta run?"
"…Huh?OHHHH…"
Shijun's lips curled into a grin.
BOOM!
A blue burst of energy exploded around him as he transforms again—he launched into the sky like a streak of light, cutting across the skyline.
"WOOO! YOU'RE A GENIUS, MINUS!"
"I know. Unlike you."
—Back at Hero HQ—
Cherl looked at the wall clock. Her eyes widened.
"OH MY GOD—SCHOOL! I FORGOT!"
She leapt from her chair, bolting out.
"See y'all!" she shouted.
"See ya," the hero sipping lemonade replied lazily.
WHOOSH!
Cherl blasted into the air, shifting into her Cupid suit mid-flight—then spun into her school uniform mid-landing, bolting through the front gates—
—But crashed right into someone.
BAM.
"Shijun?"
"Cherl?"
Both froze.
Staring.
Wide-eyed.
Then—at the exact same time:
"Why are you so late?"
"Why are you so late?"