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"So, that video! It's said to have been uploaded by someone involved with the factory, but no one knows for sure."
"The quality isn’t great, but that makes it feel even more real! I mean, those abilities—are they for real?"
Watanabe played the video on his smartphone.
The footage, a compilation of security camera clips from within the factory, showed a masked man rescuing people one after another. There was no audio.
"Look here! There's no way a normal person could do this! He pries open a door that was mangled by the explosion and wouldn’t budge even with three people trying!"
Indeed, it was inhuman. Watching it from a third-party perspective really hammered home how absurd it looked. He opened that door with a single hand, something three people together couldn’t manage.
"And here! Where is he pulling that water from?"
Oh no...
This clip showed him conjuring water out of thin air to extinguish flames. It looked like a scene straight out of a movie with computer-generated effects.
"And don't forget, he busted through the ceiling to get in. He must have flown, right?"
...I didn’t fly. I used wind magic to create footholds in the air and walked.
But that wasn’t the issue. The real problem was how vividly everything had been caught on camera. Thankfully, the video quality wasn’t good enough to show the use of healing or hypnosis magic clearly—it just looked like a masked man waving his hand over unconscious people.
At least they didn’t capture the teleportation magic. That was one small mercy.
I seriously underestimated this. If I hadn’t made that disguise suit, my identity would’ve been blown, and this school would probably be swarming with reporters by now.
"...Do you think this video is real?" I asked.
"It's sketchy, but yeah, I think it's real. I mean, why would someone bother uploading a fake?"
"Hmm, I can't say for sure either. But it's only been three days since the earthquake, so creating a convincing fake would’ve been tough."
Exactly. There’d be no point in faking this.
"But it's totally superpowers, right? Like psychokinesis?"
"Yeah! Or like hydrokinesis, but for water instead of fire."
...Now that I think about it, the line between magic and superpowers feels pretty thin. They’re both supernatural phenomena. If I’d been wearing a robe instead of this suit and cape, maybe they’d have called it magic.
"Still, if this video is real, why is this guy dressed like that?"
"Huh? Isn’t it just to hide his identity?"
That’s exactly why, but is there a problem with that?
"No, it’s just... If he only wanted to hide his identity, wouldn’t he wear something less conspicuous?"
Urk!!
"Yeah, like a long, heavy coat that hides his figure. That’d be way more practical than what he's wearing."
Gah!!
"And who even wears capes nowadays? Wouldn’t it just get caught on stuff and be a total nuisance?"
Ugh!!
...Okay, stop. My life points are at zero. Have mercy.
I watched the video more closely. There, in all its glory, was a man in a blue suit with a black mask, a billowing cape, and a flair for the dramatic.
...Wait, how did this happen? I clearly remember starting with the intention of making a subtle, nondescript suit to hide my school uniform.
But somehow, somewhere along the way, I started thinking, "Wouldn’t this look cooler?" and "A cape would really complete the look!" until I ended up with this.
Abe was right. If all I wanted was to hide my identity, a plain, monochrome coat would’ve done the job perfectly. What was I thinking?! This is the stuff of future regrets!
"Alright, let’s begin the morning homeroom," the teacher announced.
The bell had rung, signaling the start of the day. A distraction was exactly what I needed to regain my composure.
During homeroom, I managed to calm down. I decided to accept the situation with the disguise suit. Even if I redesigned it now, the footage was already out there. Any new outfit would still scream, "Hey, it’s that guy!"
...If I could go back, I’d slap my past self for getting carried away. This is textbook cringe history in the making.
The footage likely wouldn’t lead to my personal identification. The video’s resolution was poor, and plenty of guys out there shared my build. Plus, I’d used teleportation to leave from a relay point, so even if someone tracked my movements, they’d be led to an abandoned building, not the school.
Still... Should I alter my voice? I vaguely recall reading in a mystery novel that voiceprints can identify people. If so, I’d better look into buying a voice modulator. Sure, it’ll make me look even more like a sketchy character, but what choice do I have now?
Once classes ended, I planned to go home and review the footage carefully.
"...And that’s all for announcements."
Oh, right, I almost forgot. Time to cast a little "diarrhea curse" on the teacher to cover my tracks. Take that!
"Ugh...! Not again! Homeroom dismissed."
Clutching his stomach, the teacher quickly left the classroom. A few more times of this, and no one would find it odd that he’d suddenly gotten sick last Friday.
...And no, this isn’t personal. Definitely not.