Chapter 2: Glorious Act

Kuon glared at the amused officer with visible hatred. However, a dangerous glint flickered in his eyes. A calculating look appeared on his face.

He needs to escape.

His pursuer was a Superhuman, an ability user. His ribs were reduced to mere shards and he could not move.

So what?

That wasn't going to stop him from returning home to his beloved sister. She was the only person in this world whom he cared about, the only family he had. He would not be able to die in peace if he failed to return.

Even after receiving that terrible blow and having his ribcage shattered, he had not loosened his grip on the book even for a second.

'Think! Think! Think! How does a mundane human escape from an ability user without getting caught?'

With How dangerously fast the officer was moving and what little time it took for him to easily catch up to Kuon, his ability had to be super speed or an ability related to speed.

The officer abruptly stopped laughing and his expression went cold. In a commanding voice, he gestured towards the book in his hands and calmly said,

"Because I am a such a merciful human being, I would kindly ask you to surrender to the force and hand over the item you have stolen."

"This...this was bought. Not stolen. But retards like you don't seem to possess eyes or ears...or even brains."

The officer again, asked calmly,

"Surrender to the force and hand over the item."

It seemed as though time froze for the both of them. Both officer and criminal were silent, neither of them showing even a hint of a reaction. The tension was so real that you could almost cut it with a knife.

' Wait, Knife...'

The thought came into Kuon's head like a light bulb being turned on. He remembered that he had a knife strapped to his arm. The fear of the realisation that his pursuer was a Superhuman had made him completely forget that fact entirely.

'Am I actually stupid? Wait,no...How is a knife supposed to damage a Superhuman?'

The first one to break the silence was Kuon.

He sighed heavily, wincing slightly as the little action moved his broken ribs. Then...

"Fine..."

With that said, Kuon dropped the book and slid it across the rough pavement towards the young officer.

The officer's expression went blank for a second. But then, he smiled.

"Good job, filthy Ruined."

Sparing Kuon a quick glance, the man walked forward and bent down to retrieve the book.

At that moment, Kuon suddenly winced terribly and started vomiting blood. The crimson liquid fell on the pavement painting it red as he began breathing heavily.

With an amused expression, the officer closed his eyes for a good moment, then placed his palm on the object.

However, right as he did, a knife whistled as it cut through the air towards him. 

Caught off guard, the Superhuman barely managed to side step out of the way, the knife grazing his hair as it landed and pierced the pavement behind him.

With a startled expression, the officer turned his head to where the knife had come from. What he saw made his eyes widen in quiet fury.

The Godforsaken sewer rat was gone from his previous pathetic position. 

"You little-"

An intense feeling of rage overtook the young man as his eyes flickered around the complex building in search of the brat.

Hearing the sound of scraping stone behind him, the officer instinctively turned around only to be blinded by a hail of dust thrown at him. 

The officer yelped and vigorously rubbed his eyelids in an attempt to clear the dust from his sockets while simultaneously cursing under his breath.

"Now whose cursing a lot, huh?"

Kuon grinned, a dangerous look illuminated on his face as he stared at the almost comedic scene before him, suppressing an urge to laugh out loud.

Furiously turning his body in the direction of the voice, the officer gritted teeth and managed to open one eye.

"You f*cking R-"

Kuon was already in his face however and before the officer could react, the pointed edge of the knife was brutally jabbed into his open eye with calculated precision.

With an almost animalistic shreak, the officer stumbled back clumsily, nearly falling on his ass as he pulled the knife out of his socket without thinking which only caused it bleed more and more.

The once arrogant look on the bastards face had completely disappeared and what replaced it was an expression of pain and agony.

Kuon tried his hardest not to laugh at the young man who was trying every way possible to stop the bleeding. 

'It seems I was correct. Maybe I am not an idiot after all.'

Indeed, Kuon had figured out how the Superhuman's ability worked. It was not a normal speed enhancement ability which he had thought before. Instead, it was a lesser version of speed enhancement which completely failed if used in specific circumstances. 

The officer's ability was rather simple. The more he observed a target, the faster his ability allowed him to go. By simply having the targeted area or person in his line of sight, the man could enhance his speed according to how long that area or person was in his line of sight.

Kuon had noticed this because he had paid close attention to every move the officer made which pursuing him. He realised that the officer's speed seemed to be inconsistent. The speed he displayed while chasing after him through the maze of alleyways was much slower than what he had displayed in order to catch him inside the dilapidated building.

Kuon also managed to notice a huge flaw in his ability. It seemed that closing his eyes for too long in between blinks reset the process. This was great news of Kuon. No matter how powerful that ability sounded, mainly due to the fact that it did not seem to have a limit, a Superhuman with the ability to camouflage or one with an ability that allowed them to be invisible or simply one with an illusion type ability could easily beat him to a pulp without much effort.

That is why Kuon targeted his eyes. If the bastard could not see, then he was no better than a Mundane human.

Meanwhile, the officer managed to rip a cloth off his uniform and cruedly tied it around his head to stop the bleeding which still refused to slow down.

After a few moments catching his breath, a look of pained fury rippled across his face as he stared at Kuon.

"How...how in the hell did you know? Heck, how are you even standing, let alone moving around. Your ribs should be reduced to paste."

The damned Ruined just stared at the young officer for a few seconds, a blank expression on his face with fresh crimson blood still trickling down his mouth, painting his lips bright red.

Then, he grinned. It was not a normal grin. It was a vicious grin. It was an exaggerated grin. It was a ridiculous grin.

He bent down with purpose and picked up the book. Putting it neatly inside his hood, his grin grew even more ridiculous.

Then,

As he slowly opened his hood, revealing the reinforced armored vest hidden beneath, he chuckled and replied with a somewhat sinister tone,

"Oh, It was nothing special really. Just a glorious act."