Chapter: 39
The news that Sten had awakened a new ability quickly spread throughout the entire evil organization. His displayed strength was far too impressive to be that of a mere former E-rank hero.
Though Sten had initially been suspected of being a spy from the Hero Association, those accusations dissipated rapidly. A one-on-one interview with Regalia revealed that there was no such secret behind him.
“Wait, this ability just suddenly appeared after you joined our organization?”
“Yes, that’s right!”
“Hmm… If you want, I could support you in becoming a hero again right now. I can even ensure that your record of joining our organization remains absent.”
“Thanks for the offer, but I prefer being part of an evil organization. Living in constant worry as a hero, who knows when popularity might drop, doesn’t appeal to me. I’d rather count my steady paycheck.”
“I see. Got it.”
After discovering that Sten had no accusations against him, Regalia promptly promoted him to the top administrator and quasi-executive of City Z. It would have been normal for people to be jealous of a newcomer landing a position comparable to an executive, but surprisingly, that wasn’t the case.
The reason was simple. Galm, now that Sten was a quasi-executive, approached him daily and took him to the training grounds to directly test his abilities, allowing every combat member to personally experience how phenomenal those abilities were.
“Wahahahaha! Planning to just block, huh!?”
“Grrr!”
Every time Galm swung his fist, the space around them trembled thud. It was as if he was breaking space itself with his punches. It was literally earth-shattering power!
However, facing such force, Sten didn’t even blink, and instead, he even showed the ability to push Galm back. The combatants in the organization accepted it as natural that Sten was treated as a quasi-executive.
“With that level of ability, he should absolutely be an executive.”
“Hey, if I had abilities like that, I’d have instantly become an A-rank hero.”
“Hero? Were you a spy for the Association?”
Of course, Sten had his reasons for not wanting to become a hero and for remaining in the evil organization. The salary and welfare benefits of being a member were secondary reasons; the real reason he didn’t leave the organization was…
Sten knew it. That his current achievements weren’t solely due to his own talents, but rather due to the massive help from the scientist.
“Those candies provided back then, what on earth were they…?”
Only now did he realize that they were items meant to awaken and evolve his abilities. Because he had eaten that candy, he survived in City Z and was able to reawaken superpowers far surpassing his previous strength.
Normally, one wouldn’t boast about wanting to become a hero knowing such truths. When one receives a favor, one should repay it. That was the way of being human.
“Thank you, scientist.”
Now, he was determined to commit himself to this evil organization. And if someone were to obstruct the scientist’s path, he would step forward without hesitation, risking his own life to protect him.
“Ah—Sten?”
“─Scientist.”
Just then, the scientist appeared in front of him. Sten looked at him with eyes full of loyalty. The scientist, casually dismissing that gaze, chuckled and began to speak.
“I heard you’ve awakened a new ability? Congratulations!”
“It’s nothing special. More than anything, without your help…”
“Hahaha—What did I do? It’s all thanks to your hard work, Sten.”
After exchanging pleasantries and congratulations, they got right into the matter. The scientist said,
“─By the way, Sten. I want to experiment with your new ability.”
“Experiment?”
“Yes. It’s not particularly dangerous. Just close your eyes for a moment and activate your ability.”
Upon hearing the scientist’s words, Sten gulped nervously. This was the scientist who had granted him such incredible power.
He had previously said ‘it’s nothing special’ when handing him candy. Assuming this was the same situation as before, what kind of experiment did he want to conduct?
Just thinking about it made cold sweat trickle down his back. But.
“If it’s a request from the scientist…”
“Great! Let’s head to the lab right away—!”
Sten had no right to refuse. Truly, it was quite regrettable.
*
Strange rumors circulated within the organization. One of the newly recruited combatants was said to have awakened a new superpower.
Upon hearing this, I immediately realized that Sten had figured out the true identity of his ability.
“Looks like he’s caught on.”
I had sensed from the moment we first met that his ability was not simply about solidifying his body. Why could he harden his body by metalizing it? And why did his arms feel so heavy that he couldn’t move properly?
Gravity doesn’t work that way. Do you think the four fundamental forces of the universe are a joke? He could have easily rolled around rather than being fixed in mid-air, right?
When Sten first demonstrated his ability, claiming he couldn’t move at all, he had still managed to stay suspended in the air, which led me to guess what sort of powers he possessed. That’s why I had given him one of the genetic spheres.
“Thankfully, it seems the evolution went well.”
The original genetic code extracted from Levitan. This means that the existing genetic sphere had the quality of allowing its consumer to evolve into the strongest form they had imagined. I was worried that if he ingested that, he might turn into a mess of metal, so I deliberately modified part of the genetic code.
To draw out the person’s potential as much as possible. Since Sten misunderstood his ability as metalization, he wasn’t able to make another choice. It had been rather frustrating to see him merely flit around with his wings.
“Now then, Sten. It’s a simple experiment, so there’s no need to be too scared.”
“Yes, yes…”
As soon as I heard that Sten had grasped the true nature of his powers, I promptly approached him to propose an experiment. Luckily, Sten agreed cheerfully.
It really was a simple experiment. His ability—how much pressure it could withstand and whether his spatial fixation could go beyond mere fixation and interfere with space.
These were experiments to determine if he had the true power to transcend space and time, rather than just having teleportation. Truly, after conducting some simple experiments, we gathered a rough understanding of his abilities.
“Wow, that’s amazing. Just looking at your defensive capabilities, you’re even more impressive than Vira.”
“…Do you really need to say that in front of me?”
“Wow—looks like Vira might have to retire now. I personally prefer being guarded by a man.”
“You jerk.”
“…Just a joke, don’t cry, okay?”
“I wasn’t crying!”
Sten’s spatial fixation was, quite literally, the ability to fix space itself. The fixed space could not be traversed by any means other than relying on his abilities. Unless there was energy that could overcome his powers, or powers capable of destroying space itself…
It goes without saying that a single individual wouldn’t be able to produce that much energy, meaning it was safe to say that no enemy could penetrate through Sten’s abilities to attack him.
Then, what happened when Sten attacked an opponent? Just by gradually reducing the fixed space, that was enough. With a shield that couldn’t be broken, simply pressing down on them would leave the opponent unable to resist.
“Truly an invincible shield and an invincible spear… But if I were to point out a flaw.”
The energy consumption was possibly higher than Vira’s barrier, so it couldn’t last very long. The actual offensive power wasn’t particularly high. The effectiveness depended greatly on the user’s application.
Well, since it was an ability awakened to protect oneself, it wouldn’t be a huge issue if solved through instruction.
“That’s still awfully disappointing…”
A being who can directly interfere with space. I had hoped, considering he was similar to a teleportation user, that he’d be able to figure out a way to return to Earth—but sadly, that proved impossible.
He could only interfere with the small space around him, and he was incapable of interfering across planets and worlds. The lack of any point of connection with Earth was also a problem.
I couldn’t even tell if the Earth from where I came was somewhere in this universe or if it truly existed in another world. It seemed returning to Earth still remained a distant dream.
“The experiment is complete. Thank you, Sten, for your cooperation.”
“…That was really nothing special.”
“What? Didn’t I say from the beginning it was no big deal?”
After wrapping up the experiment, I walked through the corridor with Sten, chatting about various things. The headquarters, now deserted after the ordinary combatants had left, was truly quiet.
The noise generated by the combatants during training was nice, but this calmness wasn’t so bad either. During these times, I enjoyed aimlessly sitting in the lobby.
As I was doing just that today, the elevator doors opened, and a woman I had never seen before strolled in, dragging a suitcase behind her.
Long hair and flashy makeup. She always seemed to have a smile on her face. Her chest seemed unusually small, but she was undeniably a breathtaking beauty.
“…Who are you?”
“Hmm? Ah—new face.”
“Not just anyone is allowed to come in here.”
“Hahaha—Since I’m not just anyone, it’s fine.”
The woman said that as she lightly extended her hand. When she snapped her fingers, a rose poofed into bloom right in her palm.
Startled, I could only watch the spectacle in silence as she handed me the rose and asked,
“A gift for the handsome young man★.”
“Thank you…?”
“So, who are you?”
“I’m Eight. A member of the evil organization.”
“Ah-ha—so you’re the scientist…”
Surprisingly, it seemed this woman was aware of my name. That meant she was likely connected to the evil organization. Was she one of the executives I had never encountered before…?
While pondering that, Vira returned from the restroom a moment later. She saw the woman in front of her and cheerfully shouted.
“Arima! Did you finish your performance already?”
“Vira. You’ve really☆ grown your arms and legs back, huh?”
“Absolutely!”
When I shot a glance at Vira, hoping she could introduce us, she pointed at the woman called Arima as if to say she had completely forgotten.
“Eight? This is our seventh executive. Arima. A magician.”
“More like a sorcerer♠.”
“Either way, it’s the same.”
After hearing Vira’s explanation and finally learning her name, I cleared my throat and stood up, lightly extending my hand.
“I’m Eight. The eighth executive and the scientist of the evil organization.”
“Scientist★. Hmm, we should get along well then.”
“Who would have guessed someone as beautiful as you was in our organization?”
“…Huh? Sorry. Was that your type?”
“Eh? What do you mean…”
As Arima’s expression grew serious and hesitant, Vira burst out laughing as if realizing something.
“Eight, don’t tell me you’ve fallen for her?”
“Fallen for her? It was merely a pure compliment.”
“Sorry, but Arima is a guy. Not a girl.”
“…What?”
“Hahaha! Sorry, sorry♣. Guess I do look a bit feminine, huh?”
After hearing that, I looked at Arima again.
Hair that reached down to her lower back. Heavy makeup around her eyes. And a height that was quite tall for a woman.
Realizing Arima’s true identity, I subtly stiffened my expression and retracted my hand.
Damn, she’s actually a trap.
…I fell in love.
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