Chapter 11

1.

Why did I choose to become a hero?

Honestly, there wasn’t any particularly special reason or turning point. It was just a weak motive of doing what I wanted to do, using this reincarnation as an opportunity to change the existing story.

That was all there was to it.

But.

As I continued my hero activities, there were occasional thoughts that crossed my mind.

For example, when I rescued citizens and received their gratitude, or when people cheered upon seeing me emerge amidst chaos.

Each time, a deep sense of accomplishment and exhilaration would well up within me, like the first time I received the citizens’ cheers after toppling Kaiser PMC. Every moment I transformed from simply being a student into a ‘hero,’ I felt the worth of my choices.

And so I believed I had made the right decision to start this work.

That’s why I was able to answer unexpectedly easily when questioned later.

“What is your purpose?”

Why do you engage in hero activities?

Why do you appear in these times and run around the city solely for the sake of good, with no real reward or compensation, only responsibility and duty?

“I cannot believe that you act solely out of goodwill and responsibility. Therefore, I shall prove it myself.”

She – the girl known as Calamity – ‘Kosaka Wakamo’ glared at me and shouted loudly.

“To show that you’re not some noble hero after all!”

The question she threw at me.

At the same time, it was the question I asked myself.

Am I truly a hero, or merely someone imitating one?

The answer to that had been decided long ago.

Perhaps this was the very reason I fell into this world.

But.

Let’s start the story a little further back.

First, there’s an earlier story to examine.

2.

It all began at a munitions warehouse.

KWAANG─!!

In the dead of night, while most of Kiburatos slept, a powerful explosion shook the city.

Soaring flames. Scattered screams.

Continuous explosions followed.

The scene that met me when I arrived was pure chaos.

“The hell.”

The situation was as follows:

A sudden explosion and fire broke out at a munitions warehouse owned by a subsidiary of Kaiser Corporation. Inside, about four or five employees were still unable to evacuate.

Soon after, Valkyrie and the fire department arrived to begin extinguishing the fire, but the flames refused to die down easily. Fierce flames spreading across the entire building were violently blazing as if to burn everything that approached.

Attempting entry would be certain disaster, given the uncertainty about what hazardous materials might be inside.

But at that moment,

“Help! There are people in here!”

The cries for help coming from inside the warehouse deepened the firefighters’ anguish.

“We must enter immediately! If we don’t…”

“Don’t act rashly! Rushing in will kill not just those citizens but us too!”

“Then are we just going to stay here?! We need to find a way to save these people-”

The firefighters argued among themselves.

Their duty was to extinguish fires and save lives. However, the ‘saving’ part included their own lives as well.

This is why they needed to make the coldest and most detached judgments.

But at this moment, everyone here felt burning frustration and helplessness.

Requesting information from Kaiser’s side only yielded claims of confidentiality – neither proper information nor even details about the building’s structure were available.

In this situation, where one couldn’t see a step ahead, could one truly fulfill the role of a firefighter?

While they were grappling with this dilemma,

“I will go.”

A familiar yet somehow strange feminine voice echoed behind them.

The firefighters, who had hung their heads in grim expressions, one by one looked up to see who had spoken. The masked girl said nothing more, simply approaching the building and firing a web.

Pshiiik-!

And then.

The girl soared into the sky and reached the location of the citizen in mere moments. The entire rescue process – warning the citizen to stay back, breaking the window, and entering to save the person – took only an instant.

The firefighter trainees stood in awe, then called out the name of the hero heading in for the next citizen.

“Silk?”

“To come all the way here at this late hour…”

Impressed by Silk’s presence, the students regained their focus and gripped their hoses tightly.

“All of you, grip the hoses tightly! Let’s put out this fire quickly!”

“Understood!”

We trust Silk. We believe that she will save the citizens.

With that trust in her, these other heroes of Kiburatos focused their strength on their own duties.

3.

[This is the result of investigating the actions of Kosaka Wakamo known so far.]

A few days prior, I had asked Himari-senpai to look into Wakamo’s actions. Through the investigation, I discovered that all the terrorist incidents by recent escapees from the correctional facilities were at Wakamo’s instigation.

Furthermore, she specifically targeted only ‘my operational area,’ always involving citizens in ways that forced me to take risks to rescue them, leading ultimately to pain and injury.

[As expected, it’s her, isn’t it? Hehe, how about it, junior? Can you feel my genius? The amazing intellect of the Millennium Academy’s top genius frail hacker girl-]

“…”

[Uh, are you listening? Hey?]

Ignoring Himari’s self-praise, I continued my thoughts. Through the findings and peculiarities of the investigation, I realized her intention was targeting me – ‘Silk.’

But questions remained.

Why? Why was she targeting me? Why did she act with the purpose of only tormenting me without confronting me directly?

“…Is it not time yet?”

“Huh.”

A hollow laugh escaped me, accompanied by surging anger. My teeth ground together and my eyebrows furrowed.

‘Is she treating people as toys?’

[Gulp.]

That’s right. Honestly, I don’t care if she attacks me directly. As a hero, I know that making enemies is inevitable.

However.

“Using citizens as tools and committing terrorism across the city?”

That, I cannot forgive. Whether she’s a student of Blue Archive or not, I can’t allow such behavior in the world where I exist. It’s my belief, my duty.

While I knew I would eventually have to fight Wakamo,

I thought it would be best to prepare from now on.

“Himari-senpai.”

“Y-Yes…? What is it, junior?”

“I have a favor to ask.”

[Um… Yes?]

What is it? Why did Himari suddenly become so meek?

While tilting my head, I continued speaking.

The request to Himari was simple.

“Could you seek assistance from Veritas?”

[Veritas? Why those children…?]

“It might be a reckless challenge, but I don’t want to keep getting manipulated by Wakamo.”

I had asked Himari the following:

To use her hacking skills to gather ‘all’ information about Wakamo.

Using this, I planned to ‘reverse’ track Wakamo.

This was directly connected to the ‘assistance for hero activities’ we discussed when Himari previously offered me membership.

Thus, Himari consented, but the problem lay with the other collaborators I was asking for help from.

[Um… I doubt those kids will help.]

“Will it be difficult?”

[Sigh, alright. Your cute junior’s request is worth assisting with, even if I have to get my hands dirty.]

“Thank you, Himari-senpai.”

[Hmph. If you appreciate it so much, you could at least call me ‘onee-san’…]

I ignored Himari’s last statement.

The result, as expected, was acceptance.

…

…

…

And this is when the accident at the munitions warehouse fire happened while I was reverse tracing Wakamo.

Fortunately, the outcome was satisfactory.

After rescuing citizens inside the building, I successfully extinguished the fire together with the firefighter trainees. Thanks to everyone’s efforts, there were no casualties, and trust was built with the firefighting academy.

But I felt deep anger within this situation, directed toward Wakamo, the arsonist of this fire.

‘Whatever you desire, let’s see you try.’

Overlooking the city where neon signs faintly shimmered as Sentum Tower stood still, I reflected in the early morning hours when everyone slept.

I clenched my fist against the rising anger, adjusted my mask, and declared,

“It seems we’re fated to clash.”

“Wait for me, Kosaka Wakamo.”

There, the hero resolved to punish the villain.

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