After the situation had been roughly settled, Kang You-jin surrendered himself and disappeared along with his group.
The remaining individuals reveled in the joy of victory.
「Power less than 5%」
Isiah felt uneasy upon seeing the warning message that appeared on her helmet’s HUD.
Since she wouldn’t be able to transform for a while after her power ran out, she needed to hurry.
“Dark Knight. May I have a word?”
‘Gareas,’ gesturing toward the A-rank heroes reveling in their victory, spoke.
It meant that this would be a private conversation.
‘Dark Knight’ nodded slightly.
They entered an alley together.
“Do you, by any chance, know someone named Shinnoda?”
After confirming there was no one around, ‘Gareas’ asked bluntly.
“Hmm…”
Shinnoda felt as if what was coming, had come.
He had expected that his identity might one day be uncovered.
‘There is no need to offer excuses unnecessarily,’ Shinnoda thought.
Moreover, he had just been pondering how her help would be beneficial for future activities.
Since there had been a harmonious rapport between his persona and her, he concluded that it would be fine.
“How did you find out?”
As he pulled off his hood, revealing his true identity, Shinnoda’s face became visible.
“Kyaa! It really is Shinnoda!”
Isiah was making a fuss.
Shinnoda looked down at her with eyes that had gone cold.
“How I found out? I scanned through all the CCTV footage and digital data with my skill! You did hide yourself well! Not getting caught by any digital equipment in this country for years is no small feat!”
“Haa. I’ll have to be more careful then. So, why did you call me out?”
He was slightly tired just imagining Isiah sitting in front of a computer all day looking for any footage of ‘Dark Knight’.
“Let me be your sidekick!”
Isiah, in the guise of ‘Gareas,’ grabbed Shinnoda’s shoulder and exclaimed.
The cheery demeanor she had while in the solemn ‘Gareas’ suit was jarringly off-balance.
“Alright, but with a condition: Stay out of direct confrontations and only provide information support.”
Shinnoda had been hoping Isiah would request something like this.
“Ugh. Still, even transformed, I’m S-rank…”
“Let’s be honest. There’s no way such a cheat item doesn’t come with penalties. What’s the limitation?”
Shinnoda thought that if Isiah’s penalty for using the ‘Transformation Belt’ was tolerable, utilizing her as a tank wouldn’t be such a bad idea.
“It’s, um… it takes a toll on your lifespan. ‘Gareas’ power source is innate vital energy先天眞氣.”
“Absolutely unacceptable. I insist you only provide support from behind.”
He couldn’t approve of such a cost. After all, Isiah could provide excellent cyber support from the back lines, more than covering her worth.
“Ah, but it’s not as drastic as it sounds; in cases like this, it only costs about thirty days’ worth.”
The maximum transformation time for the ‘Transformation Belt’ was thirty minutes, using up one day of her lifespan per minute.
Isiah genuinely believed this cost was worth it for a brief moment of S-rank power.
“Life’s short but sweet! I want to leave my mark on the world too, just like [some character]!”
In the special-effects shows Isiah watched, the transformation penalty was often a common plot device, and she even admired it.
‘Maybe I should give her the ‘Immortality’ skill?’
Shinnoda tapped away at an imaginary calculator in his mind. Among the hidden skills he planned to acquire was one with ‘Immortality’ effects.
“Anyway, the rest of them can just be revived by healers, so this might be the most efficient route for Isiah.”
Even without the ‘Immortality’ skill, healers could survive just fine thanks to their exclusive healing skills.
“For now, let’s put this aside. Once I take a closer look at the extent of that suit’s power and if I come up with an idea to offset the penalty, I’ll let you know.”
Still, it was out of the question for the time being.
Thirty minutes of transformation for a month’s worth of lifespan; if she fought only twelve times, she’d lose a whole year of life. He knew there would be many more battles to come.
“I should tell you the purpose for which I fight.”
Isiah’s eyes sparkled. Though it felt somewhat burdensome, he continued.
“Though it may come as a surprise, I have come from the future. In the near future, a Demon King will appear, and the world will end.”
“Regressionist?!”
A regressionist refers to someone who has regressed from the future due to some kind of fortune.
With an impressive breadth of knowledge in subcultures, Isiah regarded Shinnoda as that regressionist.
“The Sax we fought today is actually the Demon King’s vanguard. If we don’t eliminate these kinds of enemies in time, the Demon King will manifest.”
“So, the self-vigilant activities of Dark Knight are about protecting the world, huh!”
Shinnoda thought there seemed to be a stretch in the conclusion Isiah had drawn but figured good enough was good enough and nodded in agreement. The more Isiah remained loyal to him, the better for him.
‘This is truly incredible! I can’t believe I can be part of something so grand!’
Isiah’s heart raced. Even if no one recognized her, she was thrilled to secretly protect the world as a hero. That was what she had always admired.
“For your information, if you ever leak the fact that I am Dark Knight, I’ll kill you.”
Blinded by admiration, Isiah didn’t flinch at all, despite ‘Dark Knight’s’ chilly warning, and nodded enthusiastically.
‘Shinnoda being Dark Knight is somewhat shocking, but it doesn’t matter!’
Isiah was content just to be part of ‘Dark Knight’s’ journey.
*
At a shabby inn in Seoul,
the old building, which had seen no renovation, radiated a gloomy atmosphere.
The innkeeper was chatting idly with a friend on a phone at the ground floor.
“Honestly, some strange person moved in. Scared the daylights out of me… Why? It’s dangerous these days, you know~”
The topic of her conversation centered around an unusual person who had recently moved into room 304.
The person always wore a black robe, making it impossible to tell if they were male or female, their build, or anything else—truly Unknown.
No matter how she tried to peer inside the robes, she saw nothing.
Meanwhile, this black-robed person was in room 304 cleaning their sword.
The sword, engraved with elaborate alien text, looked anything but ordinary.
Just then, the TV was broadcasting news about a figure he knew.
“Dark Knight apprehends Kang You-jin.”
A subtitle flashed across the news.
“Dark Knight… Yes, this was the name he went by in this era.”
The robed figure muttered while cleaning their weapon.
“Mr. Kang You-jin explained his motives in the investigation as follows.”
The screen changed to a graphic resembling letter paper, and the TTS voice began reading.
“‘Because of the ‘K Pharmaceutical Villain’ incident, we were treated as potential criminals even though we did nothing wrong. Simply because we shared a skill category, we were ostracized and looked down upon by the general public and even our acquaintances. When I was fired from my job, I thought that the lawmakers who implemented poorly thought-out laws needed to pay the price.'”
Kang You-jin’s motive for the crime.
The news panelists wore grave expressions.
“This is nothing less than an act of defiance and challenge against democracy. Parliamentarians are representatives elected by the people, after all.”
An elderly professor with a few strands of white hair pushed his glasses up to open the discussion.
“Once again, it’s obvious that anti-social tendencies are inherent among users of necromancy. The law was correct.”
The panelists unanimously condemned Kang You-jin.
Those who were usually cautious when speaking about corruption or crime among politicians poured unmitigated criticism onto Kang You-jin, who was powerless.
“The prosecutor in today’s court proceedings asked for the death penalty for Kang You-jin. Meanwhile, the surviving lawmakers have announced plans to strengthen the punishment laws against criminals with powers, also known as villains.”
The news anchor said indifferently.
‘So they didn’t listen when the people asked for stricter punishment but now move to strengthen laws because it affects them.’
She inwardly sneered but outwardly maintained her professionalism.
…
The TV turned off. He had operated the remote control, having seen everything he needed.
“Looks like I’ve gone much further back in time than anticipated. Guess I’ll investigate further.”
The unknown individual pulled out a tablet from their bag and began reviewing online community forums, particularly ‘Hero Korea,’ which had the highest share in hero-related discussions.
——————————–
<The government finally acknowledges it lol "DarkKnight's assistance was crucial in stabilizing the situation">
The DarkKnight is being praised as the main player in solving the Yeouido incident, according to press releases.
Moreover, the police announced he aided in Kang You-jin’s arrest. Is the government recognizing him as a hero now?
Watching the leaked combat footage, it was truly impressive.
There’s nothing visible, just swish, swish, swish, swish.
It was like watching a Dragon Ball fight from an extra’s perspective.
From everything, it seems like DarkKnight is S-rank.
By the way, what was the mysterious hero who looked like something out of a special effects drama doing while tanking in front?
Seemed like DarkKnight took advantage of the confusion to kiss his sidekick. Is that true? Did I see that right?
Damn, why smooching on the battlefield?!
Recommend – 24197 Unrecommend – 339
(Comments)-7119
<This is what a real hero looks like! lol The government acknowledges it now~>
– <Really? Finally! DarkKnight haters should all shut up now lol If the government hates someone, does that make them a social outcast?>
<Finally, our country has a hero who resembles a tokusatsu series! Mask Rider had too much Korean sentiment, so this is great.>
<Where can I watch the leaked battle footage?>
– <It’s on Black Hub. Poor quality though since it was filmed on a phone inside a building.>
– <What does "poor quality" mean?>
– <The video quality is garbage.>
<All DarkKnight’s female fans are probably upset. Rumors about him kissing his sidekick during combat lol>
– <He really made fools of those haters though lol>
– <Forget the female rumors, anyway.>
– <Girls can like girls, too.>
– <Huh?>
<DarkKnight is the real deal. Talented and hardworking, unlike others who got wiped out by him like Invincible.>
– <The leaked video is grotesque.>
– <Is he even alive?>
– <Apparently survived. Maybe S-rank Awakened Ones have longer lifespans.>
…
…
…
——————————–
After combing through various media sources, he was certain that he had come upon a rare opportunity.
“So, Shax has just made a move on her. If I remove Shax carefully, she might end up on humanity’s side. This is an important turning point.”
He had arrived much further back in time than his original target period.
Now he felt he might have the chance to fundamentally alter history.
On a cluttered shelf that was filled with his belongings were two old, worn photographs.
One was of Shinnoda and the other of Park Hayeon.
“Thank you, Omega. By burning your last life, you’ve given me this opportunity. I will ensure that Shinnoda and Park Hayeon…”
He narrowed his eyes and vowed with determination.
