"Are you going to keep ignoring me?"
Above the ruins of what had once been part of the residential district, two figures floated side by side in the night sky, gazing toward the horizon.
"I'm thinking about it."
"…"
"This was a complete disaster. You do know that, right?"
The one speaking was a man clad in a lightweight black armor and a hooded coat of the same color, covering him from head to toe, along with a mask that concealed his face. He blended into the night sky as he hovered over the city.
The dark figure crossed his arms, clearly annoyed by his companion's recent behavior.
"You say that every time."
His companion, much like him, wore armor as well, though his was thicker, and instead of a mask, he wore a helmet. Both pieces were a brilliant white, causing him to shine in the darkness—so much so that one might mistake his silhouette for one of the stars decorating the firmament.
Both were mid–advanced rank heroes, known respectively as Ghost Slash and Tempest Titan.
"Because every mission we go on together ends up becoming a disaster one way or another—but none like this. This was… too much."
Ghost Slash spoke as he looked down at the world beneath his feet. What he saw were the remains of what had once been a beautiful place, where superhumans used to walk freely, knowing they were in a city designed for them—a place where buildings would not crumble at their touch and glass would not shatter at the sound of their voices. There, they could truly be free. Now, everything was destroyed. Everything except the one responsible for it.
"We were supposed to face a category-three monster. That's why they sent us with rookies. But that serpent was at least category five."
They had defeated the serpent monster without suffering severe injuries, but by prioritizing their own survival and that of the rookies, the fight had dragged on far longer than it should have. Not to mention the final attack—one that erased more than ten kilometers of the city just to kill the monster.
"And we couldn't even break its scales…"
Ghost Slash's voice faltered. Thinking back on everything that had happened hurt. His companion in white armor felt the same.
"There was nothing else we could do."
Unlike him, however, Tempest Titan was more aware of their situation. They had done everything they could, and because of that, they stopped the monster before it could reach another sector.
"I know. But stop denying the obvious truth… something very strange is going on here, and you know it."
"….."
"The League detected the monster's arrival almost ten minutes after it entered the planet's orbit. The city's defenses never activated. They sent us in with rookies, and now they've placed the entire sector under quarantine, cutting off all communication with the outside. You can't deny that something is deeply suspicious about all of this. Literally everything that could go wrong during an invasion happened in this city on the same day."
Faced with Ghost Slash's words, the hero in white armor fell silent, processing everything his companion had just said.
"And worst of all, they order us to guard the monster's corpse instead of helping the wounded, and this…"
He stopped mid-sentence. He understood how serious the words he was about to say were—especially if his companion decided to report him to their superiors. Even though he trusted him not to, he knew the seed of distrust between them would only grow from now on.
"This is clearly the work of the high command…"
Those responsible for managing and directing every action carried out by heroes. To the public eye, they were nothing more than a group of intellectuals writing reports and sealing agreements. But to the heroes themselves, the high command of the Earth Defense League was an authority beyond question, rivaled only by noble houses and divine-rank heroes.
If even one of them caught wind of Ghost Slash's thoughts—or harbored the slightest suspicion—his life could be ruined with a single call. Or worse, he could be reassigned to the Terror Zone, where he might die fighting an almost infinite number of monsters.
"Damn it, Axel! Don't start with your conspiracy theories!"
Tempest Titan raised his voice and shoved Ghost Slash, who remained firm despite the outburst.
"Don't deny it. Accept it already. There's a power struggle within the League's leadership—the influence of the nobles and other external forces has finally reached us."
There were countless theories surrounding this, from favoritism toward certain noble houses to dealings with alien species.
Ghost Slash spoke calmly. He wasn't trying to accuse anyone—he only wanted his companion to understand and accept what he believed to be the truth.
"Axel, my friend… what you're saying is dangerous. If they catch you spreading that nonsense, you could suffer the worst death imaginable. And if those ideas spread to other squads—or reach a faction willing to believe them—it could spark a new civil war, in the middle of another war against the real enemy."
"And if we do nothing, we'll just be puppets who can't protect our own from that enemy."
"Tsk."
Titan clicked his tongue. He didn't know how to refute his companion's arguments. Deep down, he knew Ghost Slash wasn't entirely wrong—what happened today was far from normal. But he couldn't accept those ideas about the high command. To him, they were the foundation of the entire defense legion. Doubting them meant doubting the system itself—one that heroes like Tempest Titan relied on.
"Let's say you're right. That the high command is sabotaging itself for power. Then why do all this? The wrong-rank monster, the rookies, the quarantine—what do they gain from deliberate mismanagement?"
"I don't know yet. But in the worst-case scenario… we might face another threat tonight."
"…"
"I hope you're wrong."
After Ghost Slash's words, Titan felt a faint sense of unease about what might—or might not—happen.
"Yeah… I hope so too."
Ghost Slash felt the same.
"It would be better if we had all the rookies with us."
He also complained about the absence of a certain rookie who had run off at the first opportunity.
"Don't be so hard on Luck. For people like him, family should come first."
Titan replied with a more compassionate tone, defending his missing apprentice.
"I understand that his kind can be very close-knit, but when you're a hero, your priorities extend beyond your family."
Ghost Slash spoke with annoyance, though once again, he was simply stating what he believed to be the truth.
"Mmm… I can't deny that."
***
Meanwhile, down on the city streets, two of the three rookies carefully observed their superiors' every move.
"What do you think they're talking about?"
Spoke a short girl wearing a black outfit and a white cape with golden patterns along its edges. Her attire consisted of a black wool coat and a short skirt that exposed much of her thighs, partially covered by boots that rose above her knees.
"No idea… maybe they're talking about the orders the Defense League gave."
The one who answered was a blue-haired girl, taller than Lana. She wore a tight black suit that accentuated her impressive curves, with pieces of armor embedded across various parts of her body—shoulders, forearms, chest, abdomen, knees—without compromising her figure.
These suits, despite appearing light or impractical, played a vital role for their wearers. Individually, each weighed over ten tons. Their construction relied on magical techniques designed to amplify the hero's abilities. As for protection, it wasn't essential—there was no material across Earth's territory more durable than a superhuman's skin… at least, none had been discovered yet.
"Yeah… maybe that's it."
"Hmn."
An uncomfortable silence followed before the smaller heroine spoke again.
"Hey, Niha…"
"Hmn? What is it, Lara?"
"Are you okay?"
Lara was deeply concerned. Ever since that incident, Niha had been rubbing her gloves repeatedly, as if trying to clean off some stain—despite there being no trace left of the blood that had once covered them.
"Yeah… I'm… I'm fine."
They had only known each other for a couple of months, ever since being assigned to the same squad along with Luck. Based on what little Lara knew, Niha embodied everything a rookie heroine should be—strong, decisive, brave… or at least, that was how Lara saw her.
"Hey, Lara…"
"Oh! Yes—what is it?"
Lara was startled, not only because Niha spoke suddenly, but because she looked straight into her eyes.
"What do you think about humans?"
"Huh? Well… I don't really think anything."
"Hmm?"
"They don't mean anything to me. If I see one, I ignore them. But if I'm close, I'm careful with my movements and breathing. The usual."
By order of the Terran government, all superhumans were required to exercise extreme caution around humans or in areas they frequented. There had been incidents where "curious individuals" visited human settlements… and things ended badly. If discovered, they were heavily fined—an amount that increased if charges of "human elimination" were added.
"Most of the time I stay away, though sometimes, when I'm… you know, bored, I visit those places."
"I see…"
"What about you?"
Lara asked.
"Mmm… I think you already heard what I think earlier."
"Ah, right… yeah."
"But Luck."
"What about Luck?"
Lara was momentarily confused. Their absent teammate had left earlier with permission, saying he needed to meet someone. She didn't see how he fit into Niha's question.
"He… didn't look very well earlier, and maybe it's because of what I said, and well…"
Niha's voice faltered. She wasn't used to what she called "soft words." Neither her parents, nor school, nor even the academy had taught her how to speak that way. But they had taught her the importance of teamwork and squad synergy. So she forced herself, closed her eyes, and took a breath.
SLAP!
She struck herself across the face so hard the sound could have echoed through the streets.
"Eh—? W-wait—!"
Lara froze, her jaw dropping in shock.
"Why did you do that!?"
"Oh, that? It wasn't important…"
"You're clearly lying…"
While Lara remained stunned, Niha calmly steadied her breathing.
"What I wanted to say is that even if our ideas don't match, the three of us are teammates. I don't want to say or do anything that hurts our performance or our relationship. So please—if anything about me bothers you, tell me directly. I promise I won't get mad."
"…"
Lara fell silent. She realized something new about Niha—she wasn't good at communicating.
"Oh… that's what it was? You didn't need to hit yourself for that."
"Uh… sorry. I needed to clear my thoughts."
Moments ago, Niha had spoken with confidence, as if delivering a powerful speech. Now she looked embarrassed, her cheeks red against her blue hair. Seeing her like that, Lara couldn't help but think she looked adorable.
"... Wha— heh— PFFFT."
Lara burst out laughing.
"That really doesn't make it better, you know? What were you even trying to say?"
"H-Hey! Don't laugh. I meant it from the heart."
"Hahaha."
After hours of fighting and an oppressive silence, the two rookies finally shared a genuine moment of laughter, free from danger and grim decisions—if only for now.
Tap… tap.
"—!"
Footsteps.
Tap… tap.
A man approached—ordinary, unremarkable—accompanied only by the rhythmic sound of his steps.
Tap… tap.
He was dangerously close.
—How did I not sense him earlier?
With their enhanced senses, being surprised by someone who looked like an ordinary civilian was unthinkable.
Tap… tap.
"Hey, you—!"
Niha was about to step forward when a hand grabbed her arm. It was Ghost Slash. Tempest Titan stood beside him.
"Who are you?"
Titan's voice was cautious yet commanding, ready for combat.
Tap… tap.
No answer.
The man continued walking.
That's when they noticed the stabilizing mask.
"He's a human…"
Ghost Slash said.
The man stopped a few meters away. Middle-aged, unremarkable—except for the massive tattoo covering most of his forehead: a strange symbol, a vertical line intersected by an X at its center.
Beep.
[Isn't it funny how people fear death, yet no dead fear life?]
"What…?"
Everyone present was left confused by the human's words. They were projected by the hologram of his mask, and thanks to that, the heroes were able to read them over and over again—yet they always reached the same conclusion: what he was saying made no sense at all.
Click.
"W–! H–Hey, what are you doing?!"
Lara shouted, startled by the human's sudden action. He was taking off his mask.
"Friend, that's not a good idea."
Ghost Slash said. He was worried about the human's actions, but he also felt a certain curiosity about what he was trying to do.
"Haaaa… Ac… Aaaac."
When he finally removed it, exactly what everyone expected happened: the human was choking. But what he did next left the heroes even more confused. From his pocket, he pulled out a firearm—basically a relic manufactured more than a century ago, though it looked almost in perfect condition.
The human gripped the heavy pistol with one hand, raised it to head level, and rested the barrel against his own temple.
"That's enough."
Knowing what was about to happen, Ghost Slash moved toward the human with the intention of stopping him.
"Ma… ac… aacg."
The human choked as he tried to articulate a word with all his strength.
"Ark… maaak."
The hero was about to leap forward and knock the weapon away when, finally…
"..."
"Makratiz."
He said it.
BANG!
FIUUSH!
He fired, but before the bullet could hit him, the hero struck the weapon, destroying it along with the projectile, which didn't even manage to leave the barrel.
Tap.
After that, the human was thrown to the ground by a powerful blast of air.
"I've seen a lot of crazy things today, but I never thought I'd run into a suicidal maniac."
Ghost Slash said, exhausted—not from physical strain, but mental fatigue. Deep down, he was worn out by everything that had happened.
"Ha… ha."
The human, now on the ground, groaned in pain.
Seeing this, the hero thought those sounds were the gasps of someone choking on the toxic air, so he quickly moved toward the mask lying on the ground.
"Hahahahahaha."
"W–?!"
But as he did, a hysterical laugh echoed nearby. It was the human, who in an instant had completely changed his behavior.
"What the hell…?"
His appearance was different too. At first, he had looked like a normal human, with no remarkable traits—but now… now he didn't look human anymore. His smile stretched all the way to the edges of his face, tearing his skin in the process. His eyes, fixed on the hero, were a silvery color that seemed to glow in the darkness, and within each eyeball there were more than five pupils, all of them watching him.
"Haaa… Vael no'eth tor'kai."
"Haaa."
"Heh…"
...…
…..
…
..
.
No one moved a muscle until the human stopped moving.
"Is he dead? Already?"
On average, humans could last at least two hours breathing air filled with gravisoma particles, but this one died in less than a minute.
Ghost Slash cautiously approached the corpse.
"…"
He was still smiling as he stared at the sky, but what was strange was his mark: that X with a line crossing his forehead now had blood seeping from it.
"He doesn't have any visible wounds…"
"Axel, is everything okay?"
Titan said as he walked toward his companion.
"Yeah, everything's—"
THOOOM!!!
"W–What the hell?!"
"An earthquake?!"
The ground shook violently. It happened so suddenly that even the heroes lost their balance for a moment.
"..."
While the rookies panicked, Ghost Slash and Tempest Titan locked eyes.
It seemed they didn't even have to move to find a new threat within that city.