Once, a hero who played my game said something quite amusing: "Your justice is nothing but selfish self-satisfaction." A fascinating remark—because in some ways, it wasn’t wrong. Though my critics rarely live long…

Atop Nameless Tower, wind howling around him, Mirror October delivered this less-than-funny joke.

Indeed, his critics rarely lived long—not because Mirror October held grudges. He simply wondered: could those who preached righteousness with such moral certainty truly embody the virtue they proclaimed? Or were they merely loudmouths?

Sadly, the louder the public moralizers, the more pitiful their performance in his game.

Mirror October was furious. Deeply furious.

"Every time I look down at this world, it seems smaller. And I grow taller. Perhaps that *is* self-satisfaction." He finally tore his gaze from the skyline, tilting his head slightly with a wicked grin. His eyes lingered on Lu Xiu, now stripped of all power. "Lu Xiu. How does it feel to fall from the peak of the hero pyramid to the bottom? I imagine it’s dreadful. I’ve been there myself."

Not everyone possessed steel wills or serene detachment. Climbing up wasn’t hard for Superheroes—they chased greater power once they had it. But falling from the pinnacle? That crushing drop could shatter anyone’s spirit.

"Honestly? It’s awful." Lu Xiu’s fingers undid her windbreaker buttons, her face pale but wearing an oddly carefree smile. "But plummeting from S-Class to E-Class like taking a nosedive… surviving at all is already a stroke of luck."

*Staying alive was the real fortune. What more could she ask?*

Her mortal body had been flung by a speeding train, crushed again and again. She knew Mirror October had secretly spared her. Without that, she’d be long dead.

*Mortals… heh.*

Cowering. Gaping. Worshipping. Such was their nature. Always.

Mirror October returned his gaze to the earth. Nothing in this world deserved his reverence—not even the transcendent beings dwelling in the starry abyss. *Hmph.* This wasn’t something to admire. Gain demanded equal sacrifice. That was the unchanging truth. What he’d lost far outweighed what he’d gained. So much so, it left him… wistful.

"I’m going to die."

"I know. In about ten minutes, the power I lent you will vanish. The moment it fades, every inch of your flesh and bone will rupture under the strain. You’ll burst like an overripe watermelon. Don’t thank me for describing your death—it’s the reward you earned." They discussed life and death with eerie calm. After all, Superhero careers were paved with too many corpses.

Just a handful of dust. A single tear.

"Lu Xiu. I’ve lost my power too." *For an ideal.* "I’ve lost my life as well. But I’m glad those who betrayed me back then… didn’t include you." So he didn’t regret sacrificing his life for that ideal.

Mirror October straightened abruptly. From the horizon’s edge, thunderheads churned violently.

"The guilty you will perish."

"The virtuous you will be reborn!"

"Your future is yours to choose: remain the Central Bureau’s lapdog, or become a true hero? Decide, Lu Xiu!"

**BOOM!!**

A muffled thunderclap rolled from the distant sky, like fury erupting underwater. Lu Xiu’s proud eyes narrowed slightly. She stared at Mirror October’s slender, fragile-looking back. The corner of her mouth lifted in its usual faint smile. *Predictable invitation.*

"Tch. You’ve gotten smoother with words. Though I don’t dislike it…" Her tone hardened. "You want me to become a shadow-dwelling Super-criminal like you? Even with my life as leverage, I won’t yield. Emotion and principle are separate. I may despair of the Superhero Administration—but that doesn’t mean I’ll become a criminal!"

"What makes a criminal? One who uses power for evil? Then the maggots in the Central Bureau deserve that title far more than I." Mirror October chuckled. "Lu Xiu, you cling too tightly to labels. After being betrayed, discarded, nearly dissected as research material by the Bureau… haven’t you seen through it yet? Heh heh…" He glanced back at her clenched fist, satisfied. He understood human nature too well. He knew what Lu Xiu truly craved—and only he could show her how to change this barren, cruel world.

"…I do hate some people. But one thing still puzzles me: if you hadn’t died back then… what exactly is sealed beneath the South Pole *now*?"

Official Central Bureau records stated he’d died fighting a Dire Calamity, sealing it in Antarctica’s frozen heart. If Mirror October lived… what was that seal? What other secrets lay buried in the past?

"The Bureau didn’t lie entirely. A Dire Calamity *is* sealed at the pole. The few sane ones there knew this: if a catastrophe requiring my death to stop wasn’t destroyed, it meant apocalypse for humanity. So they reinforced the seal." His laugh turned bitter. "That’s why they’ve spent years glorifying my legend—trying to replicate another invincible hero like me."

And they nearly succeeded. Waves of new Superheroes emerged under relentless propaganda, dazzling the world. Among them were true powerhouses—like Mirror October’s sister, Ruosui Jing. Her abilities were unprecedented. In his eyes, she was the only Valkyrie worthy of standing beside him.

*This was the dawn of a magnificent era.*

"Lu Xiu, that seal was *my* doing." Mirror October’s voice cut through the wind. "Did you really think the Superhero Administration could maintain it all these years… without me? Heh heh…"