“That’s a pretty boring joke, Director Ji Chang-hyun.”
Lee Hye-ryeong, standing next to Chairman Baek Joong-man, who had his mouth tightly shut, covered her mouth and, unlike before, wiped her smile away, stared at him intently. Without avoiding her gaze, Ji Chang-hyun chuckled and spoke.
“Chairman Baek Joong-man, I have a favor to ask of you.”
“What is it?”
“Could you please stop your ‘interference’ with Vigilante now?”
At Ji Chang-hyun's words, the two CEOs on the left and right of Baek Joong-man's gaze changed.
"I don't understand what you mean, Director Ji Chang-hyun. Interference? It sounds like the Chairman is trying to manipulate something."
"Interference is a bit harsh. I hope you 'consider' various aspects, such as rule revisions and unreasonable measures."
Jang Do-jun, the chairman of Cheonryong, who was quietly watching from Baek Joong-man's left, asked with a strong look in his eyes, but despite his threat, Ji Chang-hyun looked into Baek Joong-man's eyes and spoke.
Baek Jung-man looked at him with his mouth tightly shut, then opened his mouth with a smile.
“Can I ask why?”
“There’s no need to pressure Vigilante, because he doesn’t belong in the Association.”
“Aren’t you the type of person who belongs to the association?”
When Baek Joong-man asked again, Ji Chang-hyun nodded and looked back at Splendid, who was approaching him.
“That’s what Splendid, who met him in person, said.”
At Ji Chang-hyun's introduction, Splendid quietly bowed his head and opened his mouth.
"He's not someone who moves for the purpose of financial support. Furthermore, he's not the type of person who would be swayed by interference… excuse me. He's not the type of person who would break his will just because of interference."
"Why are you so sure about him? You've only actually met him once."
“It’s something that can be easily guessed just by his actions so far.”
After briefly answering Lee Hye-ryeong's words, he approached Baek Jung-man, looked at him, and spoke quietly.
"At least he's not someone who would interfere with the Hero Association's work. However, if this event leads to direct hostility, the Hero Association's image will inevitably suffer."
“...”
From Baek Joong-man's perspective, of course, he couldn't not know that.
But so what?
The opponent had been unofficially engaging in hero activities under the guise of vigilante activity. His abilities were already vaguely known from the video inspector's comments.
If I had to rank his abilities, I would say he was a D. His physical ability was just slightly better than that of an athlete.
This was the conclusion reached by Star Line Industries' AI computer based on Star Line's database, based on scenes such as catching pickpockets and fighting clowns who had been threatening people in the Seoul University district the other day.
"Yeah. All he has is name recognition. He's just a hero who doesn't ask for compensation."
So, even though Baek Joong-man felt it was too much for him, he promised to support Starline Industries.
If it has that level of public awareness, it could be a great product if it's polished.
But, it was he who kicked away the good fortune that had rolled in first.
"Today's match was intended to provide a platform for both the Association's new heroes and the established, popular civilian heroes to showcase their abilities. It's a bit of a stretch to say there was any unfairness to any one player. Indeed, some of them failed to break through."
"but-"
The moment Splendid was about to raise his voice, Ji Chang-hyun's hand came up on his shoulder.
Tae-ju frowned at his gaze. However, Ji Chang-hyun ignored the glare and walked towards him with a smile.
"As the Chairman said, this place is truly a place where heroes can showcase their abilities and reveal themselves. Thanks to this, some might not be able to demonstrate their abilities, while others might be able to show abilities they hadn't previously revealed."
Oh-
A burst of exclamation erupted from one side of the banquet hall.
While Baek Joong-man and the other presidents looked around, Ji Chang-hyun looked at his cell phone screen.
“This might be something more than I thought.”
A personal activity camera that checks Bless's actions.
When she first set out, she secretly asked the staff to install a camera, just in case.
Originally, the purpose was to collect data on the equally leading candidates, Snow Bell and Jet Blade, but now, an even greater disaster was being captured on his cell phone and relay camera.
**
Relay center in front of Starline Tower.
Cha Se-ri, who was in charge of the broadcast, was quietly looking at the screen that appeared before her eyes.
She sighed, relaxing and putting down the microphone as it was a commercial break.
"This match has a lot of problems in many ways."
"That's right. I thought Polaris would take first place for the first time in a long time, but I never thought they'd deviate from the course."
From the broadcaster's perspective, today's game was a day with many problems.
Bless, who was leading the race and drawing viewers' attention, went off course.
And even Vigilante's uncooperativeness with filming.
It was fortunate that she was able to pass it off as a lie during the live broadcast, but if it had been a recorded broadcast, it would have been an incident that would have been overturned and re-filmed.
"Did you give me the right pamphlet?"
"What if I got excited and sped up and ended up flying out of the drone's range? Seriously, I should hire a cameraman or something next time."
The PD's annoyed voice coming from the earphones made me frown, feeling a little irritated, but I took a deep breath and calmed down when I saw the people around me.
Seriously, next time I'd feel more comfortable with an exclusive interview.
"Vigilante, Bless's location has been confirmed."
"Where are you!" "Where are you!"
The PD and Cha Se-ri raised their voices at the same time at the staff's voice heard through the earphones.
"In the second half, we're running fast in the A course area... Huh?"
The voice of the staff member who was controlling the drone stopped for a moment.
"Hey, what's wrong? What is it?"
"Hey, hey, please take a look at this."
"huh?"
As the staff's trembling voice and the PD's incomprehensible voice were heard, and soon the two became quiet, Cha Se-ri grimaced.
"What is it? What's going on?"
"Hey, hey hey. Look, look at this! Look at this!"
Suddenly, a screen appeared on Cha Se-ri's monitor along with the PD's voice that seemed flustered.
It was a fast-moving black and blue silhouette. Cha Se-ri stared silently at the screen, watching the two silhouettes cross Mapo Bridge and move quickly along the riverbank.
Bless and Vigilante, even just a fleeting glance at them made it easy to recognize their features.
Because there is no way to tell the difference between the number 1 on the chest and the noticeable chest.
But, there is another problem.
It was the appearance of Vigilante.
Cha Se-ri, who had spent a long time researching, interviewing, and reporting on the hero, recognized him. No, there was no way she wouldn't have recognized him.
That posture, that movement. The silhouette blurred in Vigilante's movements...
"Hero Splendid?"
*
I quickly kick off the ground and my body jumps forward, bending forward as if it were about to fall, and the sound of the wind blowing past my ears.
“Hahaha! It’s pretty good, isn’t it?”
“Don’t… talk to me!”
I gritted my teeth and ran with all my might, listening to Bless, who was leisurely running alongside me.
Splendid Dash, which I tried to save as much as possible.
Although it wasn't as fast as his original self, thanks to Black Bone, at least his entire body's movements were light and strong, and he started to gain speed with each step he took, kicking off the ground.
“If you knew how to run at that speed, wouldn’t you have been able to break through that swarm of robots a long time ago?”
“It’s like a skill I’ve been saving up! I’m out of breath! Don’t talk to me!”
There are still two-thirds of the course left.
Even if I don't make it to the top, I need to close the distance as much as possible to at least finish the race.
If that's the case, then let's go a little further!
bang-!
The soles of my feet rolled on the floor, and my body started to run at a faster pace with the momentum once again.
Unlike when he was fighting the robots earlier, his breathing was rough.
The sound of a heart beating so loud and fast that it seems like it can be heard right in your ear.
And the blood vessels in his eyes burst as he watched the things passing by at a rapid pace.
It felt like my body was going to explode at any moment, but my speed was only about half of Splendid's, and I was once again feeling my incompetence to the bone.
One by one, relay drones began to appear overhead as they ran quickly.
[Can you see? Vigilante, Bless's appearance has finally been confirmed. But, Vigilante's movements, that posture...! Hero Splendid's running posture! It's as if modeled after Hero Splendid, and it looks exactly like him, and it quickly begins to run, aiming to pass the mid-to-late rankings and reach the leading area!]
The announcer's commentary was echoing from large screens broadcasting from various buildings in Seoul.
I squinted at her voice, which echoed in my already noisy ears due to the vibrations.
"I told you to be quiet!"
"Don't be so angry. Vigilante, Smile Smile!"
I'm dying from exhaustion, so don't talk to me!