Today was destined to be extraordinary for City C. No one could deny it—not the live-streaming media crews, not the sanctimonious judicial officials, nor the Superheroes awaiting their long-awaited relief. After all, the nearly year-long judicial proceedings against the Superheroes were finally ending.
What a rare spectacle! Over a dozen helicopters buzzed in the sky for aerial shots. On the ground, cameras and microphones were countless. Even the relentless drizzle couldn’t stop the crowds drawn by the drama. Before the courthouse—a symbol of justice and sanctity—the area was jammed solid.
"It’s finally ending, huh? Though the outcome was clear from the start..." The female reporter, who’d covered this case for a whole year, felt a pang of melancholy. Unlike colleagues who’d lost all conscience, she couldn’t help the innocent. Worse, to avoid trouble, she couldn’t even report the truth.
But there was no helping it. Public opinion and media were controlled by the families behind the accused Superheroes. Even judicial high-ups were family members, with shady ties to criminal groups. No lawyer could be found for the accusers.
"Ending? Shouldn’t we say it’s just beginning?" Nearby, Mirror October—clad in a red-lined black coat with a hood—murmured in a magnetic, low voice, as if savoring the words. His face hidden under the hood was a blur people instinctively overlooked.
"Beginning...? Impossible. Today’s just a formality. Everyone knows the result," the reporter retorted under her breath, indignation rising. Yet her gaze drifted to Mirror October. His outfit seemed familiar, but she couldn’t recall where.
A faint smile curved Mirror October’s pale lips. Beneath his bangs’ shadow, a tangible crimson glow seemed to emanate.
"Miss Reporter, report well. Don’t miss a single detail. The game hasn’t truly begun yet." Though they’d never met, his magnetic voice made her cheeks flush slightly. It held a mysterious allure, stirring an urge to uncover the truth beneath his slender frame.
Feeling her heartbeat quicken abnormally, the reporter took a deep breath to calm herself. But when she refocused on Mirror October, he’d vanished into the crowd. A sense of inexplicable loss washed over her, and she sighed—a sigh she didn’t notice.
Unseen by her, someone nearby to the right—hidden by the throng—tightened his grip on a double-barreled shotgun concealed under his trench coat. His eyes, burning with hatred and sorrow, glared at the group emerging from the courthouse gates. He longed to charge forward and tear their flesh with his teeth!
He was a ghost named Revenge! On this anniversary of mourning, the ghost would exact vengeance on the hero!!
"Superheroes... things are getting interesting. It’s been ages since I’ve seen such scum. Heh heh heh~~" Mirror October’s crimson eyes glowed unnaturally. He felt the faint chill of fine raindrops landing on his nose.
At the towering courthouse gates stood Huang Lei, a B-Class Superhero and scion of a high-ranking official. Arrogance etched his features as he chatted and laughed casually with his mother. A year of judicial entanglements had brought him much criticism. So what if he’d toyed with a commoner’s life to death? The fool didn’t know his place!
All this was finally over.
After today, even if that reckless commoner kept fighting, it wouldn’t affect him as a Superhero. Though all tactics failed to make the accuser withdraw, today’s verdict granted him freedom. He had plenty of time to "play" with that commoner later.
Seeing the group exit, the hidden man took a deep breath. He tightened his grip on the shotgun, hunched like a cornered beast, and slowly pushed forward.
Huang Lei’s sixth sense jolted. Instinctively, he glanced toward a patch of rain mist. The next instant, a man burst out, leveled the double-barreled shotgun, and fired straight at him!!
BOOM!!
The deafening blast roared like thunder, heralding the storm. In that moment, crowd chatter, vehicle noises, and pattering rain seemed to vanish. Many froze with expressions of terror or confusion, staring at the man aiming at the Superhero.
All shotgun pellets hung frozen mid-air, halted by an invisible force!
Huang Lei stood with one hand outstretched, smirking at the disheveled, snarling man. He recognized that face—the same commoner who’d refused favors. How dare he attack now? Without a lesson, did he think Huang Lei was easy prey?!
At blinding speed, Huang Lei swept his hand. His Superhero power sent all pellets flying back!
The gunman’s body erupted in sprays of blood. His tightly gripped shotgun fell limply. With eyes burning with hatred and regret, he glared at Huang Lei’s unscathed figure. As lifeblood seeped away, so did his life force. He collapsed slowly, lips moving silently.
"Commoners are commoners. Did you think I didn’t anticipate your desperate move? No self-awareness at all. A lowly nobody daring to fight me, my family? You’re simply... asking for death!" In a hidden corner beyond camera view, Huang Lei stomped viciously on the man’s mangled hand. Hadn’t he just played with this scum’s daughter’s life? Such shameless persistence—once a lowlife, always a lowlife!
Even at the end, this fool came to stage a comedy where the Superhero counters a gunman. Stupid commoners are stupid; they don’t know how to fight. Huang Lei could already envision his glorious reputation. The mindless masses would forget his past deeds and keep adoring him.
As if hearing Huang Lei’s smug whisper, the dying man’s dimming eyes suddenly brightened. Summoning his last strength, he looked up at the towering Huang Lei and spat out a hate-filled whisper, laced with satisfaction: "The game... begins...!"
"The game begins?"
Huang Lei didn’t grasp the meaning at first. But the next moment, not just him, all media personnel gasped as their signals were hijacked! Every display! Every projector! Every nearby screen! Simultaneously erupted in a harsh static buzz, like a devil’s whisper!
At the center of the fuzzy screens, a doll with a pale, eerie face and crimson eyes—dressed in a tiny suit—slowly turned its head. With stiff, unnatural movements, a hoarse, deep male voice boomed across the sacred courthouse plaza!
"Hello, Huang Lei. I want to play a game with you..."
SS-Class supercriminal Saw!
Like a god gazing upon its ignorant lambs, the entire crowd fell into a deathly, speechless silence...
