"Officer, I'm begging you. Could you please go and save her?"
Pressed for a decision, the oldest man in the group of five stepped forward.
"I know full well that I'm asking something dangerous. But please, I beg of you—won’t you save that girl?"
"No, but..."
Going to rescue her meant I would have to leave them behind.
We were in a danger zone where enemies could be lurking anywhere and the structure could collapse at any moment. Letting them move on their own was a massive risk.
"We’ll be all right. We might not look it, but we’ve survived our fair share of life-and-death situations."
"So please, I’m begging you! Help Senpai!"
I was filled with anxiety about letting them go alone, but if I stood here arguing, it would soon be too late for everyone.
"...All right. Please, be extremely careful."
I parted ways with the group as they headed for the emergency stairs and went after the captive.
There was no point in running blindly through such a sprawling floor. Just as I had before, I focused on my hearing. From amidst the roaring flames and crumbling rubble, I managed to pick up the faint sound of a human voice.
I didn't know if it belonged to the girl or a combatant, but either way, it would lead me to my goal.
I ran toward the main hall of the party venue. Cracking the door open to check inside, I saw a girl with her hands and feet bound in the center of the hall, and a man who looked like a combatant standing over her with a gun.
"What is your goal!? Why are you doing this!?"
The man ignored her, rummaging through a bag he’d placed on the floor.
"Say something!"
"Shut up. It’s not like I wanted to be doing this, either..."
Grumbling, the man pulled a mechanical syringe filled with a red liquid from the bag.
"The Kaijin Genome...! Why do you have that!?"
"Hah! I don’t even want to touch this crap. But hey, no matter how it happens, getting revenge on you doesn't feel half bad."
"Are you... going to kill me?"
"In a very special way."
The man pointed the syringe not at himself, but at the girl.
"You don't mean... at me?"
"A burning hotel. A Kaijin found dead in the heart of the fire. And that Kaijin’s true identity? You. A pretty shitty way to go, wouldn't you say? Who would’ve thought you’d end up like that?"
"You think anyone will be fooled by such a thing!?"
"You should know better than anyone. The scars we left behind are far too deep. A Kaijin is a symbol of fear and hatred, the very incarnation of power! Even if they don't believe it at first, a single sliver of doubt is enough to make the world turn on you."
The scars left by Dark Matter and the Kaijin ran deep indeed. Fear and hatred still swirled in the hearts of the people.
And why wouldn't they? The Syndicate had come within an inch of world conquest. The evil power that had broken the world—the Kaijin, those symbols of the Syndicate—remained as a profound trauma, a jagged wound in the collective psyche.
The existence of a Kaijin was etched into their souls as something to be loathed.
And yet, that same power that had nearly brought the world to its knees was now easily obtainable.
Precisely because they feared it, precisely because they knew the sheer scale of that power, people reached out for it. They convinced themselves that they, too, could wield that immense strength.
"Once you're dead, I’m going to make full use of you. You can spend the afterlife regretting it."
Slowly, the needle drew closer to the girl.
That sharp point would easily pierce her soft skin, and the red liquid would rewrite her body into that of a monster.
"Factor Release: Superstrength Kaijin Muscular...!"
With my right arm enhanced, I threw a knife with swift, lethal precision.
Slicing through the thick smoke like a gust of wind, the knife struck like a meteor, burying itself in the man’s arm.
"Gah!?"
The searing pain and the force of the impact sent the syringe flying from his hand.
"Who’s there!?"
Faced with an unexpected interloper, the man tried to aim his gun with his good arm. Before he could find his mark, I hurled a chair that was rolling on the floor straight at his face.
The flying chair blocked his line of sight.
"Tch!"
As he lurched to the side to avoid it, I slid in low and drove my fist upward.
The momentum-backed strike sank deep into his abdomen, sending him flying several meters back.
"Are you okay?"
"Y-Yeah."
I rushed to the girl's side. She didn't appear to have any external injuries, but her complexion was ghastly. She’d likely inhaled too much smoke. We had to get out of here, fast.
"W-Wait...!"
Behind us, the man I’d blown back staggered to his feet.
His gun was gone, and one arm was useless with a knife buried deep in it. He should have been incapable of fighting, and yet, his hand gripped the syringe he’d snatched up from the floor.
"Like hell I’m letting you take me...! We’ve got nowhere left to go!"
He jammed the needle into his thigh and plunged the plunger home. The injected Kaijin Genome ravaged his cells, rewriting his fundamental form from the inside out.
Skin turned a burning red. Armor like machinery encased him, and his right arm transformed into a cannon. It was the very incarnation of power—a monstrosity.
The avatar of evil that had once plunged the world into chaos. Even if this was a degraded imitation, the girl recognized it. She knew the name of this Kaijin.
"Kaijin Hellflame...!"
The master of flames had returned.
"Never mind me! Just run, quickly!"
"I can't do that. I gave my word."
I’d been asked to save her.
That selfless desire to put others before oneself was something that looked incredibly beautiful to someone like me, who had nothing. I couldn't bring myself to abandon her.
"I’m going to save you. No matter what."
"Don't you look down on a Kaijin!"
The Kaijin leveled its cannon-arm at me.
I couldn't exactly flaunt my own Kaijin abilities while the girl was watching. Still, I figured that would make for a decent handicap.
"Die!"
Flames erupted. Since the Kaijin needed the girl for his plan, he focused his fire entirely on me. That gave me plenty of options.
The physical reinforcement from the Superstrength Kaijin Muscular factor was still active. Reacting to the monster's flames was effortless.
I closed the distance as I dodged, drawing the baton my company had issued me. I swung it with everything I had.
"Man, you're sturdy!"
"You think something like that will work on me!?"
The baton bounced off his hide; his body was as solid as iron. Ignoring my attack completely, he swung a flame-wreathed fist down at me.
I had no intention of letting such a telegraphed blow land, but the Kaijin’s strike was far sharper than I’d anticipated. I barely managed to evade it by leaping backward.
The hardness of his body, the speed of his strikes, the searing heat, and the brilliant crimson flames—he was in a different league than the one I’d fought yesterday.
I see. The performance of the Kaijin Genome scales with the user. A body that had already been modified by the Syndicate was capable of reaching levels very close to the original.
"Die, die, die!"
He unleashed a three-hit volley of fire from his right arm. His attacks were driven by pure rage, making them erratic and easy to evade.
The power granted by the Kaijin Genome was being wasted, swung around by a temper as volatile as magma. His movements were messy and lacked finesse, but at this rate, he was going to bring the whole floor down.
"Ngh!"
"Have you finally given up!?"
Instead of backing away, I sprinted straight toward him.
I wove through the continuous bursts of fire, clearing them all by a hair’s breadth, and thrust the baton into the Kaijin’s torso.
"I told you it won't work!"
As his fist came down to crush my skull, I awakened a factor sleeping within my blood, making sure to keep my body positioned so the girl couldn't see.
"Factor Release: Electric Kaijin Denking...!"
The issued baton was equipped with a stun feature for riot control. It was meant for humans and wouldn't normally affect a Kaijin—but that just meant I had to boost it.
I layered my own supernatural discharge over the baton's electrical shock. With a violent crack!, a massive surge of electricity tore through the Kaijin's body.
"Gah...!?"
The shock created a massive opening. The Kaijin’s body was paralyzed, frozen in place.
I tossed aside the baton, which had shattered from the output, and leveled the monster with a heavy right hook.
"You really made me work for that..."
I’d landed a solid hit, but it was only a temporary stun. He’d be back up in no time.
Still, it was the opening I needed to get her out of here.
I rushed back to her side, ready to make our escape.
Boom!
A wall shattered, and a fresh wave of fire surged into the room.
"Kyaah!"
A girl in charred pink clothing tumbled out from the flames.
What kind of twisted fate was this? First a Kaijin, and now a reunion with the Magical Girl.
"Heart!"
"Sen... pai...!"
The Magical Girl was in bad shape. She was battered and bruised, struggling just to stand.
"Tch, what the hell is going on now?"
"Whoa, you’ve gotta be kidding me..."
A second Kaijin stepped through the hole in the wall.
The situation had officially taken a turn for the worst.
"Senpai... where is your wand?"
"I’m sorry... cough... I don't have it right now...!"
Hearing Senpai’s words, the Magical Girl stood up, her face set with grim determination.
"I’ll hold them here. Please, take Senpai and run."
"No! You have to come too!"
"I can't. If I run, there’s no one left to stop them."
The two Kaijin recovered from the shock and stood their ground.
"Dammit, if that's how it is..."
Just as I was considering going all out with my abilities, I heard a thud behind me.
I looked back to see that the girl had collapsed. She’d inhaled too much smoke. If I didn't get her out immediately, her life was forfeit.
"Go! Quickly!"
The girl intercepted the flames from both Kaijin with a pink barrier. It was cracked, misshapen, and flickering. But her sheer stubbornness wouldn't allow a single spark to pass her.
"Please! Just go...!"
Two combatants-turned-Kaijin. If I fought for real here... no, this building wouldn't survive it. More importantly, the girls would be caught in the crossfire. If I held back, it would take too long, and the girl in my arms would die.
As a Kaijin, I could think of plenty of ways to destroy my enemies, but I couldn't think of a single way to save everyone.
"It's okay. It’ll be fine. Because... I’m a hero."
"Ngh...!"
What powerful words. She was tattered, on the verge of collapse, and almost certainly weaker than me. And yet, the sight of her back as she stood before a giant foe—the words she spoke—had a weight that demanded belief.
I scooped up the unconscious girl and bolted.
It might have been the wrong choice. But I couldn't let her resolve go to waste.
I ran to save the girl's life. I flew down the stairs, using every ounce of my physical enhancement to clear the distance in seconds.
Outside, the street was packed with fire trucks and ambulances.
"Someone help her! Please!"
"Over here!"
A paramedic spotted me and rushed over.
I went to hand the girl over, only to realize her hand was clutching my sleeve.
Her grip failed as they moved her into the ambulance. I watched her go, then looked down at my wrinkled sleeve.
"Hey! Where are you going!?"
Before I knew it, my feet were already moving back toward the inferno.
"The heroes will be here any minute! Don't be a fool!"
The heroes would probably arrive and fix everything. I wasn't a hero. I was just a part-timer. I’d done my job. Anything more was unpaid overtime—a complete waste of effort.
“Because... I’m a hero.”
My feet didn't stop. I kept walking toward the building.
Those words were stuck in my head.
"Hey! What do you think you’re doing!?"
"I’m going to save a hero."
Because I thought she looked cool.