Chapter 1883: Lightspeed
“Hey.”
“Sir Valen, what the hell happened?” Blake’s voice was tense. “I’m hearing reports that you have killed the billionaire Forgath.”
“That’s correct.”
“Are you fucking se—” There was a pause. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I… why would you do that?”
“He was a bad dude,” Ning said. “So I killed him. Don’t worry, the situation isn’t as bad as you think. I was prepared for this.”
“You were prepared to kill a billionaire?” Blake asked in an exasperated tone.
“No, just the bastard that had tried to kill me twice. How could I be blamed for him being a billionaire.”
Blake didn’t answer immediately. It was a few long seconds before a reply came from the other side.
“I see.”
Ning felt bad for the angel, having to deal with the aftermath of his impulsive actions. “Is it bad right now?”
“Bad,” Blake admitted. “News of you leaving the party and going after Forgath is already spreading. A lot of people saw you chase that limo. Heroes are being mobilized to come get you. You need to stay put and cooperate when they arrive.”
“Understood.”
Blake hung up, and Ning pocketed the phone. He sat down, silent. Frostveil and Vanisher didn’t speak either. All they could do now was wait for the others to come.
Time passed slowly. Ning could already hear sirens in the distance, getting closer. The crowd on the road nearby was growing, people gathering to see what was happening in the woods.
Thankfully, no one was stupid enough to come check. They probably were only staying away because it was dark.
A white streak shot through the air, past the crowd and entered the woods. It first traveled straight to where Forgath was dead, staying there for a few seconds before coming toward the three heroes in a rush.
The figure stopped a few feet away from them, revealing a white and red suit that covered him from head to toe. His entire face was covered as well, including his two eyes which were covered in some sort of black mesh.
“Hello, Light,” the minotaur said in an unenthusiastic tone.
Frostveil didn’t even bother turning to look at him.
Ning looked at the man who had arrived, now recognizing who he was based on the suit and what the minotaur called him.
He was Lightspeed. The hero ranked second in the entire city.
He looked at the scene, his gaze moving from Ning to Frostveil to Vanisher, and finally to the body of Forgath lying nearby.
“Please don’t tell me that’s the billionaire laying dead over there,” Lightspeed said, his tone carrying a hint of bafflement.
Ning stood up. “That’s him. I killed the man. I’m waiting for the cops to arrive.”
Lightspeed stared at him. “You are Blackfang, right?”
“Yes.”
“I watched your press conference earlier,” Lightspeed said. “Did you really murder someone on your very first day?”
Ning shrugged. “He had it coming.”
If Lightspeed showed any emotion, Ning couldn’t see it just then. “And you’re just… waiting for the cops to arrive.”
Ning nodded.
Lightspeed shook his head lightly. He turned to look at Frostveil and Vanisher. “What about you two? You weren’t in the report I got. Did you help him kill him too?”
Vanisher spoke up. “We came as guards to Forgath. We were hired by him to protect him.”
Lightspeed nodded absentmindedly at first, but then paused. “What? You were protecting him?”
“Yes.”
“And you let him kill him?”
Vanisher and Frostveil exchanged glances, neither choosing to answer immediately. As much as they hated Forgath for what he had done, they hadn’t hated him in the moment. They were ready to help Forgath with their lives itself. And yet, Ning effortlessly discarded both of their various attempts and killed the Imp all by himself.
Lightspeed frowned. He could smell some sort of conspiracy here. Had three heroes come together to kill a billionaire? What could the reason be?
“I asked you a question. You were both here. You’re both heroes. Why weren’t you doing anything? Why are you just standing around even now?”
Frostveil finally spoke. “He overpowered us.”
Vanisher let out a mirthless laugh. “I was going to ask you to word it better, but I honestly can’t do it myself. He really did overpower us.”
Lightspeed seemed shocked. Especially because it was coming from two heroes that were right next to him in terms of strength and popularity. “You both failed?”
She nodded and turned toward Ning. “It’s no surprise anymore that he is strong. Very strong. Honestly, it would be embarrassing if he had a Rank 9 awakening and still failed to take on us two.”
Lightspeed had no words. He turned toward Ning, wanting to press further to know what it was that made him this strong, but he stopped himself. In the end, he didn’t want to meddle in a situation where nothing else was left to do.
“If you don’t mind, I’ll wait around for the cops to arrive,” he said, leaning against a tree. “Can’t have you leave so easily.”
Ning smiled. “I had no plans to. Wait away.”
The cops arrived not a minute later. Cop cars filled the road soon, their lights flashing against the night. Officers emerged and began pushing the crowds back away from the road, setting up a perimeter around the small woods. Yellow tapes covered the area soon enough, covering from where the limo went off course, to the woods.
They came into the woods with flashlights and stopped when they saw four heroes sitting together. They hardly knew what they were to do here.
Ning pointed to the distance. “There is a corpse there, belonging to the billionaire Forgath. I killed him.”
The cops were unsure what they were supposed to do with Ning’s sudden confession. They began bringing out handcuffs, and one of them was courageous enough to arrest him.
The other three heroes were asked to come along as well, and they agreed. Heroes they may be, they still had to follow the law in the end.