Volume 1 — Chapter 2: The First Avenger

The next morning, the city was still talking about the mysterious incident.

News channels showed the same footage again and again.

A twelve-year-old girl named Yuna Mizuhara had somehow awakened a supernatural ability.

Witnesses claimed that a strange black butterfly had appeared before her.

Then, moments later, Yuna had defeated the bullies who had been attacking her and her friend.

Nobody understood what had happened.

The police had no explanation.

The heroes had no explanation.

Even the scientists were confused.

But one person knew the truth.

Miyu Kurohana.

The mysterious twelve-year-old girl sat alone on the roof of an abandoned building.

She watched the news on a small phone she had found the previous day.

"Looks like my power really works."

She looked at her hand.

A tiny black butterfly landed on her finger.

Miyu smiled.

"You're the one who gave her the power, aren't you?"

The butterfly slowly moved its wings.

Miyu still didn't understand exactly what these creatures were.

Were they part of her power?

Were they living creatures?

Or were they something created by the comic itself?

She had no idea.

But she had discovered something important.

The butterflies appeared whenever strong negative emotions were present.

Fear.

Anger.

Jealousy.

Desperation.

Pain.

Those emotions attracted them.

And when a butterfly touched someone...It could awaken a supernatural ability within them.

Miyu opened the strange system again.

[Power Classification]

E — D — C — B — A — S — SS — SSS

She looked at the list.

"So the stronger the ability, the higher the rank."

She remembered Yuna from yesterday.

[Target]

Name: Yuna Mizuhara

Age: 12

Ability: Enhanced Strength

Rank: D

Miyu nodded.

"Not very strong yet."

She paused.

"But she wanted to protect her friend."

A small smile appeared on her face.

"That's enough."

Miyu had already decided what she would do.

She needed allies.

Not ordinary allies.

She needed people who could stand against the villains that would appear in the future.

People who could protect innocent people.

People who could protect Akari Hoshizora.

People who could help change the tragic ending of the story.

And Yuna would be the first.

The First Avenger

That afternoon, Miyu found Yuna again.Yuna was sitting beside a fountain.

Her best friend was sitting next to her.

"You really saved me yesterday."

Yuna smiled.

"I couldn't just stand there."

Her friend hugged her.

Miyu watched them from behind a nearby building.

She couldn't help smiling.

"So that's why the butterfly chose her."

Yuna didn't know it yet, but she had become the first person Miyu had chosen for her secret plan.

Then suddenly...

Another black butterfly appeared.

Miyu's smile disappeared.

"No..."

The butterfly wasn't heading toward Yuna.

It was flying toward someone else.

Across the street stood a young boy.

He was staring at Yuna.

His expression was filled with frustration and anger.

Miyu narrowed her eyes.

"Negative emotions..."

The boy clenched his fists.

"I wish I were stronger."

The black butterfly flew toward him.

Miyu immediately understood.

"Another candidate."

She followed him.

That evening, the boy entered an abandoned warehouse.

He was alone.

His name was Ren Kurogawa.

He was twelve years old.

Ren had always wanted to become a hero.

But he had no special abilities.

He couldn't fly.

He couldn't control fire.

He couldn't move faster than normal people.

He couldn't even fight properly.

His dream seemed impossible.

Ren looked at his hands.

"I can't protect anyone like this..."His voice trembled.

"I need power."

At that moment...

The black butterfly appeared.

Ren stared at it.

"What... are you?"

The butterfly flew around him.

Then a voice suddenly echoed through the warehouse.

Do you want power?

Ren froze.

"Who's there?"

Do you want the strength to protect others?

Ren looked down.

His hands trembled.

"Yes."

The butterfly landed on his chest.

Black light spread across his body.

A powerful energy exploded outward.

Ren screamed.

Then everything became silent.

A transparent screen appeared before him.

[Ability Awakened]

Ability: Guardian Armor

Rank: C

Type: Defensive

Effect: Creates supernatural armor around the user's body.

Ren stared at the screen.

"I..."

He raised his hand.

Black armor formed around his arm.

His eyes widened.

"I have power!"

From the shadows, Miyu watched silently.

Her eyes widened.

"C-rank..."

She opened her own system.

[New Individual Detected]

Name: Ren Kurogawa

Age: 12

Rank: C

Ability: Guardian Armor

Potential: High

Miyu smiled.

"You're perfect."

The Villain's Secret

Miyu didn't reveal herself.

She didn't tell Ren who she was.

She didn't even tell him that she had given him his power.

Instead, she left a single black butterfly behind.

A small message appeared on the warehouse wall.

Become stronger.

Ren stared at the words.

"Who are you?"

There was no answer.

Miyu had already disappeared.

She returned to the roof of another building and looked over the city.

Two people now possessed powers because of her.

Yuna.

Ren.

Her first two potential allies.

But that wasn't enough.

She needed more.

Much more.

Miyu knew the future of this world.

The first major villain would appear in several months.

Then another.

Then another.

Eventually, the villains would become stronger than the heroes.

And Akari would begin losing people she cared about.

Miyu clenched her fists.

"I won't let that happen."

She looked at a television screen nearby.

Akari Hoshizora was being interviewed.

The heroine smiled brightly at the cameras.

She looked exactly like she had in the comic.

Miyu stared at her.

For a moment, she forgot about everything else.

"You're really here..."

Her favorite heroine was alive.Real.

Standing only a few kilometers away.

Miyu smiled.

"Don't worry."

She whispered softly.

"I'll save you, Akari."

The Heroine's Suspicion

Meanwhile, inside the headquarters of the city's heroes, Akari Hoshizora stood in front of several large monitors.

Photographs of Yuna and Ren were displayed on the screens.

Akari looked at them carefully.

"Both of them awakened their abilities within twenty-four hours."

A hero standing beside her nodded."That's impossible."

Akari pointed toward Yuna's photograph.

"Her ability appeared after she was attacked."

Then she pointed toward Ren.

"And his appeared after he experienced intense emotional distress."

The room became silent.

Akari looked at the image of the black butterfly.

"Do you think someone is giving people these powers?"

"I don't know," the other hero replied.

Akari stared at the screen.

"But I think someone is watching us."

The hero frowned.

"Who?"

Akari didn't answer.

For the first time, she felt something strange.

Someone was helping people from the shadows.

But whoever it was...

They didn't want to be seen.

High above the city, Miyu watched the hero headquarters through binoculars.She smiled.

"Good."

She had expected Akari to notice eventually.

But she didn't care.

In fact, this was part of her plan.

Let Akari believe there was a mysterious villain.

Let everyone believe the villain was dangerous.

The more suspicious people became of Miyu...

The less likely they would be to discover the truth.

Miyu looked at the black butterflies surrounding her.

"From now on..."

She raised her hand.

The butterflies flew into the night sky.

"...I am the villain."

A dark smile appeared on her face.

"But someday..."

She looked toward the distant Starcity Tower.

"...you'll understand why."

Yuna and Ren were only the beginning.They would become the first members of the secret group Miyu would eventually create.

Her own Avengers.

A group that would appear to serve a villain...

while secretly protecting the heroes.

Miyu had taken her first step toward changing the story.

But somewhere in the city...

Something much more dangerous had already awakened.

A transparent screen suddenly appeared before her.

[Unknown Entity Detected]

Rank: S

Status: Active

Miyu suddenly felt a chill.

Her smile disappeared.

"What...?"

For the first time, her mysterious system had detected something she didn't remember from the comic.

Something that wasn't supposed to exist.

Miyu stared into the darkness.

Her heart began beating faster.

"That wasn't in the story..."

The black butterflies around her suddenly scattered.

Miyu's expression became serious."Did I..."

She looked at the city below.

"...already change the story?"

End of Volume 1, Chapter 2.