Its dusk and the sun is slowly setting.
A man with dark circles waves from the restaurant.
Hey, Stardus. Over here.
Kim Ja-hyun.
Kim Ja-hyun, Shadow Walker.
A plainclothes woman with blonde hair walked into the room he was in.
Her name was Shin Haru and her hero name was Stardus.
Early at night, the two heroes met for the first time in a long time at a bar.
Wheres Seola?
Oh. She couldnt make it.
Well, okay.
Shin Haru replied casually, taking a seat, and Shadow Walker shook his head, but accepted.
Todays meeting was organized by Stardus.
Shadow Walker had only come at Stardus request to catch up with him.
But really, its been a while.
I know.
Shin Haru nodded at Shadow Walkers words.
They were both heroes, but their paths had crossed quite rarely.
For one thing, Shadow Walker is invulnerable at night, so hes only active after dark, while Stardus is almost exclusively active during the day and rests at night.
Shadow Walker, in particular, sleeps during the day, so their encounters were even less frequent.
Anyway, I heard youre getting married, so congratulations.
Shadow Walker was grateful for Stardus simple congratulations.
His face was tired, with dark circles, but a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.
Lets get you something to eat.
And with that, they ordered food.
Shadow Walker, Kim Ja-hyun, glanced at Stardus face.
You look fine, dont you?
His attention was on Stardus condition.
He had been secretly worried that Stardus condition seemed to be unstable when he heard the news and people from the Association lately, but she looked better than he thought.
But why did you ask to meet after so long?
Was there something troubling her?
Shadow Walker thought to himself quietly.
He had agreed to meet with her today for one reason.
Hed heard that Stardus had been going through a lot lately, and he wanted to talk to her about whatever was bothering her, to help her heal.
Perhaps thats why she called him.
Actually, his guess was spot on.
Its just that the problem is relationship counseling
Yeah. Stardus was thinking to herself.
If hes getting married, he might be able to give her some advice from a mans perspective.
How to, um, get back together with Egostic
Anyway, after such a long time, they caught up.
So, its been a bit of a rough time overseas lately
Uh, the number of villains keeps increasing, and the number of heroes is decreasing. The head of the association said that the Korean association is upset. They want to borrow us.
Really?
Yep. Honestly, with our power, were pretty strong now. I know I shouldnt say this, but I still play a bit at night. Youre an S-class, so it goes without saying. Arent you at the top of the World Hero Rankings now?
AhSo what happened?
Nothing much. We can barely defend Korea, let alone go anywhere. Honestly, we havent had another A-class hero since our generation.
Hmph
Talking about world affairs.
Hmm. My love story? I dont know why youre curious about that, but um. How did Sook-hee and I meet?
Shadow Walkers love life.
He didnt know why Stardus, who had never been interested in such things, would suddenly be so curious, but Shadow Walker explained it anyway.
How, on his way back from a nighttime raid, hed met a woman on the roof of his company who was smoking a cigarette while leaning over the railing.
Shadow Walkers girlfriend was a regular late-night worker at the company.
Out of spontaneous curiosity, he talked to her and listened to her whine about the stresses of her job without paying much attention to his hero status From then on, whenever there was a terrorist attack in the area, he would always go to that rooftop, and she would always be there
Its a long story, but its a story nonetheless.
As they ate, Stardus listened intently as Shadow Walker went on at length.
occasionally asking questions about how his girlfriend approached him, or something like that.
Anyway, the conversation went on like that.
Finally, at Stardus prompting.
Oh, yeah, and that S-class villain, Egostic, retired, right?
The topic naturally turned to Egostic.
Oops.
Sipping her drink, Stardus silently thought to herself.
So now shes gotten the conversation going about Egostic, shell tell him that he doesnt seem as bad as he thought, and if his reaction is positive, shell confess that shes interested in him, ask for his advice, and
Her canned response, having painted such a big picture, is.
Uh Egostic.
Shadow Walkers sigh at the mention of the word, and her mouth fell open for a moment.
Egostic. Thats right, S-class villain. He was your arch nemesis, wasnt he?
Uh.
And with that, she sliced the steak with her knife.
Shadow Walker spoke quietly, in a matter-of-fact, truthful tone.
Hes on a time limit.
..
The moment he spoke the words, Stardus hand holding the goblet remained still.
Shadow Walker, looking down at his stake, didnt notice.
Honestly, I dont know what youll think, but I dont think Egostic is a bad guy. I cant say much more than that, as its a mans duty, but its a shame. Its a shame, I guess hes nearing the end of his life this time. HahaWhy does the heavens always take people like this?
After saying that, Shadow Walker raised his head with a sigh.
Hmm?
He looked at Stardus, who remained still, and frowned.
Come on, shouldnt Stardus, whos been with him for years, have noticed it already? Even I, whos only known him for a few days, noticed it right away.
Convinced of the truth of his own conjecture, Shadow Walker rather wondered at Stardus for not noticing that Egostic was dying.
Well. Some things can only be recognized from a distance, and I suppose theres some resentment involved. Still, Stardus is known for her coldness toward villains in this world, if not more.
Maybe she doesnt like the idea of him disappearing without his capture.
As Shadow Walker pondered such idle thoughts, Stardus stared at him with blank eyes and unable to hide the tremor in her voice, she asked.
What do you mean?
Huh?
DeadlineEgostic?
Stardus asked with a pale face.
Shadow Walker, who had covered his face with his hands and was once again in his own world, thinking of Egostic, who was nowhere to be seen.
What do you meanStardus, dont you know, he coughs up blood every day.
Wait Ah.
Stardus gaze went blank, as if realizing something.
Without rationale, logic, or anything else, Shadow Walker began to speak, completely absorbed.
The darkness It must be hard for him to be so active when hes dying. He may be a villain, Stardus, but when I think of all hes done for the world with that body, I weep. Im in tears.
No No, no, no, that cant be
I cant even tell you why, but He said it was a secret. Alas What a noble sacrifice.
Stardus was beginning to panic, unaware that tears were welling up in her eyes.
Shadow Walker muttered the words in a gravelly voice.
There was literally no basis, no logic, no reasoning behind what he was saying. It was literally just his speculation.
But there was something deeply appealing about the way he spoke, his voice tinged with bitterness and sadness as he spoke of the fact that, with all that triviality, the only thing that mattered was the fact that Egostic was dying.
It was enough that even if he heard it next to him, hed think to himself, What, Im dead? for a moment.
Anyway I guess what Im trying to say is that Egostic retired because he didnt have long to live Wait. Stardus?
Shadow Walker looked up with a sigh, and only then did it dawn on him that Stardus was in a strange state.
Nothat cant be that cant be Ah Aah
She sobbed silently.
Leaning forward slightly, she looks down, trembling slightly.
Stardus?
What have I done, what have I done Ah
And with that, Stardus burst into tears.
Hmph!
Kwaaahhhh.
And then, almost smashing the desk, she jumped up, sobbing, and took off running through the window.
.?
Shadow Walker was left alone.
Blinking, he finished chewing the steak in his mouth.
Then, just in time, a call came in from Lee Seola.
Hello.
[Hello. Uh, its Kim Ja-hyun. How did it go? Are you still seeing her?]
Um, no Shin Haru left first.
[Oh yeah? So, how did it go? Did you listen to her troubles and give her a mental boost?]
Um
At her question, Shadow Walker thought back to Stardus, who had smashed the window while crying, and had flown away.
In a quiet, calm voice, he told her.
Well, I think were screwed.
[huh?]
***
Ever since Stardus had heard of Egostic condition from Shadow Walker three months had passed and in all that time, Egostic has never been seen.