Chapter 48

EP.48 Salvation

Yes, I have to admit it.

I'm not a superhero.

[Stardust!] was my favorite manga, and I had memorized all the lines after reading it dozens of times, but that's all.

I can't claim to know everything about this world.

"Damn it..."

I quickly grabbed my mask and cloak.

Oh, right, the guns too.

There's no other way. It's now or never.

I hurriedly went outside.

Hmm... where did it all go wrong?

The biggest issue is that I couldn't pinpoint the exact timing.

I knew the year and season when Xcent's younger brother would die, but not the exact date.

So, I made a rough guess and planned accordingly.

It seems... I got the timing wrong.

The event where the thugs kill Xcent's younger brother, causing her to turn dark.

I thought it would happen about a month from now, but why is it happening today?

But it's too late to whine. If I don't act now, there's no hope.

I quickly changed my outfit and headed to where the incident was taking place.

I hope it's not too late.

***

Xcent.

She was currently going through the worst time of her life.

"Oh, what should I do with these brats?"

"Uh! Uh!"

Inside her small shack.

Though small and shabby, it was the only home she and her younger brother had.

Their precious home was filled with unwelcome intruders.

Without even taking off their shoes, they burst in and tied up Xcent and her younger brother with ropes before they could resist.

They even taped their mouths shut, completely restraining them.

A muscular man with a shaved head and a face full of scars spoke.

"Boss, is this the brat who tried to steal your wallet?"

"Yeah... that's right..."

The man called "Boss" had his blonde hair styled with wax and wore sunglasses, looking like a typical thug. He squatted down and looked at Xcent.

"This brat... tried to steal my wallet without any fear?"

"Uh! Uh!"

Her arms and legs were tied, and her mouth was taped shut. Though she couldn't do anything, she desperately tried to shield her younger brother with her body.

Even in the worst moment, she was determined to protect her younger brother.

The thugs could sense her resolve.

Ah.

This girl, she values the boy behind her, doesn't she?

"Hey, hey. Get rid of this girl and bring out the boy behind her."

"Yes, sir."

"Ugh! Ugh!"

Ignoring her desperate resistance, the thug pulled out the boy behind her.

He held the young boy, who was trembling and crying, by the arm.

"Ugh... Ugh..."

The boy, tied with ropes and his mouth taped shut, looked to be around elementary school age. The thugs smiled wickedly at the sight of the trembling boy.

Among them, the one called "Boss" spoke again.

"Hey, take the tape off this kid's mouth."

"Yes, sir!"

The bald man called "Junior" and another thug tore off the tape.

Rip.

The tape was removed, and the boy could speak.

With a tearful voice, he stammered.

"P-P-Please... save me... save me..."

The thugs around him laughed.

"Hahaha!! Look at this little guy talking."

"Hmm... Should I save him? Or not?"

"Boss, let's just take them both out."

Another thug made a gesture of slicing his throat.

The boy's face turned pale, and Xcent went berserk.

"Ugh! Ugh!"

"Hmm... Hey, grab this girl."

"Yes, sir."

"Yes, sir!"

Two other thugs grabbed the berserk Xcent.

The man called "Boss" smiled sinisterly and spoke.

"Hey, hey, girl... It seems this boy is very important to you, doesn't it?"

Saying that, he pulled out a knife and pressed it against the boy's neck.

"Since you committed a crime... you have to pay for it, right? Is this your younger brother?"

"Ugh! Ugh!"

"Oh, it seems I'm right, doesn't it?"

"Ugh... P-Please... save me..."

"Sure, I might save you."

The "Boss" grinned and raised the knife high.

"I'll save your sister. But you will die for her sins. This boy is dying because of you. Got it?"

"Ugh! Ugh! Ugh!"

"Ah... Ah..."

"Goodbye."

The man's knife was about to strike the boy.

At the same moment.

BOOM.

"Aaaah!"

"What the hell!"

The door of the house was shattered, and a loud noise echoed.

"....?"

The man who was about to stab the boy with his knife, startled by the sudden situation, pushed Xcent's brother to the side and stood up.

"What the hell, who's messing with us?"

"Boss, I'll go check it out!"

The thug who had just threatened Xcent's brother went to the door.

"What the hell are you doing?"

Shouting loudly, the thug stepped outside.

As if he had no fear in the world, he took a few steps.

Bang.

Suddenly, a bullet hit his head, and he collapsed on the spot.

"Damn!!!"

"Everyone, draw your guns! Junior's been hit!"

Suddenly, in the small room, they hurriedly pulled out their guns from their pockets.

As they prepared for battle, aiming their guns at the door, the light in the room started to flicker.

"Damn... what's happening..."

The flickering light finally went out, and the room was enveloped in pitch-black darkness.

Suddenly, they couldn't see a thing.

Swallowing hard, they aimed their guns at the door.

The house was eerily quiet. The only sound was the sobbing of Xcent's brother in the back.

As they tensed their bodies, ready for the battle that could happen at any moment, footsteps began to approach from the door.

"Fire!!!"

Suddenly, the leader of the thugs shouted hysterically.

At the same time, everyone fired their guns at the door.

Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang.

The room was instantly filled with gunshots.

The sound of gunfire was as loud as the earlier explosion.

The door was almost completely destroyed, covered in thick dust and smoke.

"Hmm... Did we get him?"

One of the thugs in the back muttered.

As he said that, the light in the room flickered back on for a moment.

Flash.

With the light, they saw.

A man dressed in black, from head to toe, wearing a black wizard's hat and a mask that covered half his face, standing there with a smile.

They recognized the man from the brief glimpse.

This was definitely the villain who always appeared in the news.

The light went out again instantly.

Despite firing so many bullets, the man in the strange outfit was still standing.

Seeing this, the leader shouted hysterically.

"Fire!!!"

Again, the room was filled with gunfire in the dark.

In the pitch-black darkness where they couldn't see anything, even to the side.

"Ugh."

One of the men firing the guns screamed and fell.

"Damn it! Damn it...!"

The leader, gritting his teeth, fired his gun even more furiously.

However, his subordinates, one by one, fell with their final screams.

Finally, the last subordinate fell.

In the quiet room, the only sound of gunfire came from the gun he held.

"Ugh... Damn!!!"

Gritting his teeth, he fired his gun desperately.

Click. Click.

No matter how much he had modified his gun to hold more bullets.

Eventually, the bullets ran out.

"Damn..."

He picked up the knife he had dropped earlier and stumbled backward.

"Damn it. Get lost, you bastard!! Get lost!!"

As he shouted like a madman, the light flickered on again.

The room, now a bloodbath.

The thugs who had been standing there, threatening to kill the siblings, were now dead bodies scattered around the room.

In the center of this carnage, a man stood quietly.

He patted the blood on his black clothes with one hand and held a single pistol in the other.

"Damn. Don't come any closer, you bastard!"

The leader, who was shouting and waving his knife, stumbled backward and noticed something.

He quickly picked it up.

"Stay still! If you move, I'll kill this kid!"

He had picked up Xcent's younger brother, who was tied up and lying on the ground.

Holding a knife to the boy's neck, he threatened.

The man, who had been slowly approaching, stopped.

"Stay there! Drop your gun on the ground, now!"

As he shouted, the man, Egoistic, quietly dropped his gun on the ground.

When Egoistic stood up after dropping his gun, the leader's face lit up.

"Damn, that's right! Now get out..."

Before he could finish his sentence.

A gun, seemingly out of nowhere, floated up behind Egoistic.

Before the leader could react, it fired instantly.

"Die..."

A hole appeared in the leader's forehead, and he fell to the ground, still holding the boy.

"...."

Thus, all the thugs who had invaded Xcent's house were dead.

The only ones left were Xcent, tied up and gagged, her brother sitting on the ground, and the man in black standing quietly.

Behind him, the house was a bloody mess.

"...."

A terrifying silence filled the room, with no one speaking.

Just as the girl on the ground was about to do something.

Her brother, who had been sitting on the ground, suddenly spoke.

"M-Mango Stick...?"

And that was a completely out-of-place comment in this situation.

***

'Huh...?'

I suddenly doubted my ears.

I had burst in suddenly, turning the house into a bloody mess.

Xcent, lying on the ground, was looking at me with fear, as if I were a serial killer.

This can't be right...!!

As I was trying to figure out how to handle this awkward situation.

To my surprise, Xcent's younger brother, who was lying on the ground, spoke.

'He just said "Mango Stick" here?'

Wondering what he meant, I looked at Xcent's younger brother.

Despite the bloodbath around us, he was looking at me with sparkling eyes.

Hmm?

'Maybe...?'