“Mr. Vigilante!”
As soon as I came out to the banquet hall, the first person to run to me was a familiar face.
“Lantern?”
"I never thought I'd see you here again. I'm so happy."
When we first met, Glow Lantern, wearing a latex suit that glowed with a fluorescent color that was slightly irritating to the eyes, approached me with a smile and held out his right hand.
“What is the lantern doing here?”
"Ahaha, even though it looks like this, I'm still a hero from a company affiliated with the association. I was invited here by chance, but my name recognition isn't that high, so I feel a bit insignificant compared to the others."
No, I think you should change the color of that suit first.
Watching him scratch the back of his head while wearing a fluorescent-colored mask that only covered his eyes, I held back the urge to point out the color of his suit and gently grabbed his outstretched right hand.
"Still, I'm glad I saw at least one familiar face. I was at a loss as to what to do."
"That's impossible. Top Hero Splendid is here too?"
“...”
At the name that suddenly popped out, I flinched without realizing it and quietly turned back to the lantern.
“Is that person here?”
“Huh? N, yes. Until just a moment ago, it was this way-”
It's ruined.
That guy's here? I lied last time, thinking I'd never see him again, saying he was a hero registered on the H app, but here he is.
"Come to think of it, it's only natural. I should have known a popular top hero would be there."
“Hero Number One.”
A familiar voice is heard from behind.
As I slowly turned my head at the sound of someone approaching me, I saw Splendid looking at me with sunglasses on.
“Haha, oh, it’s been a while, Mr. Splendid.”
“Yes. Since you weren’t registered with the H app and there was no way to contact you, I couldn’t confirm whether you were alive or dead.”
“Well, back then, I thought I’d never meet the top hero again.”
“I was worried.”
As his hand grabbed mine and he looked at me with a worried expression, I unconsciously grimaced inside my mask.
I really appreciated his honesty, but since she wasn't a woman, and a man holding onto a man's hand and clinging to him, it was bound to lead to many misunderstandings.
“Look at that. Mr. Splendid and the rumored Vigilante.”
“I know it’s unlikely, but maybe…”
The moment I came to my senses and looked to the side, I saw female fans looking at me from afar and whispering, so I hurriedly shook off Splendid's hand.
“Look, as you can see, there is no problem now and you don’t have to worry.”
"...Is that so?"
"Hahaha, splendid. When a grown man shows that much interest in another grown man, strange rumors start to spread."
A man in a red latex suit approached Splendid, who seemed slightly embarrassed by my response, put his arm around his shoulder, and snickered.
"You are Hero Number One, the rumored Vigilante. It's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Blaze Storm."
"Blaze Storm!"
After Splendid, I found myself blurting out his name when a famous person I knew appeared.
A former firefighter who, after his abilities blossomed, is a hero with a popularity comparable to Splendid for his track record of rushing to the scene of an accident to help people and solve cases.
If Splendid shows the symbolic side of a hero, he was evaluated as the person who showed the actions of a hero itself.
"nice to meet you."
"That was a wonderful arrival scene. Thanks to you, the media is already buzzing with just talking about you."
I twisted my body unconsciously at the strong grip that grabbed my slightly outstretched hand, but Blaze Storm, who seemed oblivious to it, shook me gently and pointed to the large screen placed in the center of the banquet hall.
The screen showed a replay of the moment I landed, and I just smiled awkwardly at it.
"It wasn't the way I thought it would be."
"Yeah. I don't know who thought of it, but it might be someone who's blatantly trying to hit you."
As I shook my right hand, free from his strong grip, to relieve the numbness, Blaze Storm's right arm wrapped around my shoulder and he spoke in a voice that only the four people gathered could hear.
"Because with this, you've become the center of attention of other heroes."
"yes?"
For a moment, I asked back, and soon, I felt a tingling sensation in my throat as I felt the gaze directed at me.
The hostility felt even more blatant than what was felt on the first floor.
In particular, the gazes of the heroes who were ranked lower than me were blatantly looking this way, and they were grimacing.
"I guess so."
"This is a big deal. I didn't expect to get this much attention before the first event. This is going to be quite a tough fight for you."
First event?
I looked at his expression, then turned to look at the lantern, and he adjusted his slightly disheveled glasses.
"The HDE event will feature a series of events over three days to showcase the company's heroes' abilities and what they are like. The first event scheduled for today is—"
"Then, let's start introducing the first event!"
As the host's voice rang out through the speakers on the banquet stage, Blaze Storm snickered.
"I see it's starting. Then we'll excuse ourselves."
"Oh, yes. Are you leaving already?"
"I've been told time and time again that the top heroes should avoid meeting right before the event if possible. Let's meet again later. Splendid."
"Yes. Then, Number One. Later."
At Blaze Storm's gesture, Splendid quietly bowed his head towards me and then left.
"I'm really nervous. With that rumored top hero right in front of me."
"If possible, I hope we never meet again."
"Even though you're a Vigilante, you still seem nervous."
Lantern gave me a playful haha at my reaction, but I just sighed.
It's just that if I, a fighter for an evil organization, become friendly with them, it will be difficult to fight them later.
People scattered throughout the banquet hall gathered one by one in front of the four-way screen in the center.
On the giant screen that was floating at the same height as the chandelier, the screen slowly began to change.
"The first is an event that demonstrates the heroes' endurance and ability to run to save someone or chase down a criminal, namely-"
[Hero Must Go]
Cheers were coming from below the building, along with the name of the event appearing on four screens.
"Hero Must Go. Commonly known as HMG!"
I was staring at the screen and grimaced behind my mask.
Is this an old TV show?
"In 30 minutes, all the top-ranking heroes in this banquet hall and the lower-ranking heroes on the first floor will begin a circuit of Seoul, starting from this Starline Building and following a predetermined route."
As the host progressed, a map containing the panoramic view of the new Seoul slowly appeared on the screen.
"This is a large-scale marathon event that starts at the Starline Tower located in the center of Seoul, crosses the Han River along a designated bridge, then crosses the river again along a designated course and returns to the Starline Building!"
The course was drawn on a map showing the entire view of Seoul, and one by one, the guides were given course guide maps that looked like pamphlets.
"You can use any ability without any problem, but instead, the abilities that are restricted for the event have been classified and designated in the H app. All heroes should check the list provided through the pamphlet to confirm whether or not they will participate in the event."
I was quietly looking over the course with the pamphlet in hand, and I raised my head slightly and opened the pamphlet here and there as instructed.
[Limited Abilities: Time control, warp, ability to control mechanical animals, etc.
Other highly lethal abilities of poisonous species]
At least they're trying to make sure we maintain sportsmanship.
If you are surprisingly conscientious, you can rub your chin for a moment at the conscientious list.
"And, to Vigilante, who is not registered in the H app-"
"huh?"
When my name was suddenly called, everyone's eyes turned towards me.
"If possible, I hope you'll have the opportunity to demonstrate your abilities to the public, so please participate. If that's too much for you, you can just watch."
Small laughter erupted here and there around me.
The host's tone of voice seemed to be blatantly ignoring me, and I quietly lowered my hand at the sound of laughter that erupted from time to time.
And then the hand holding the pamphlet clenched its fist in an instant, gripping the pamphlet tightly.
"Let's give it a try, okay?"