I Became a Police Officer in a Superhero Genre

Two days after it was confirmed that my arm had miraculously healed in an instant. I’m standing in front of a fuck ton of cameras wearing my uniform.

It’s not because I caused an accident, but because of the special promotion I had completely forgotten about in my head, I’m doing this for the award presentation and other annoying things.

The indoor space is noisy with flashing lights and murmuring voices.
As I watch a few members of the Special Investigation Team and the bald captain congratulating me and applauding – the light from the camera flashes reflects off the captain’s bald head and stabs my eyes.

That damn baldy bastard. To think he’d screw me over like this too. I maintain the best smile I can while holding what’s either a commendation or an award certificate, whichever it is, in my hand.

Special promotion. It’s certainly a good thing. If I don’t cause any accidents for the next few years, I can become a senior inspector, receive a sweet pension later, and live leisurely.

Honestly, if I try hard, I might even aim for superintendent, but the word furthest from me and most awkward is effort.

I’m going to suck honey at a quiet police substation in my later years and retire. If there’s a goal in my life, that’s the only one.

“[Seoul Gangdong-gu Special Investigation Team 1. Inspector Lee Mun-su. This individual showed great activity in the arrest of the ‘Human Center’ bishop case. In recognition of his merit-]”

A photo of me in uniform appears on the white screen behind, and I let the words of the person standing on the podium blah blah whatever go in one ear and out the other.

When you do a shitty rehearsal about 30 times where a high-ranking person comes out and puts a flower bud on my shoulder, whatever gilding you hear doesn’t go in your ears.

I feel like a yawn is about to escape. My eyes hurt, it’s noisy, and I’m tired. I tried to refresh my thoughts with “Isn’t it good to get dragged into the Special Investigation Team and even get a special promotion like this?”, but.

Seeing Sai applauding among the gathered people, black dust settles in my mind. They say you regret opening the window to ventilate on a yellow dust day, damn it.

“[-Therefore, Police Commissioner Kang Seok-beom will personally present it.]”

Then the Police Commissioner, whose face I don’t even know well, comes up to the podium. I salute the Police Commissioner as per the rehearsal, stiffen my waist, and smile with a face that looks like I’m dying of joy.

I’m smiling as much as I can, but why? The Police Commissioner flinches when he sees me.

“- Deputy Chief, why are you making a face like you’ve bitten something?”

“Leave him be. Has he not been a weirdo for just a day or two?”

I can hear you, you sons of bitches.

I’m really trying to smile well somehow, but these bastards are talking behind my back instead of praising someone’s hard work.

My fists are crying from frustration, but I still can’t get off the podium. Because what I have to do isn’t over yet.

“Inspector Lee Mun-su. I’ve heard a lot about your activities. Please continue to work hard day and night for the safety and peace of the Korean people in the future.”

The Police Commissioner said that while patting my shoulder, and as if he was done with me, he immediately turned his body and approached the podium that had somehow been prepared.

“Thank you all for gathering. Today, our police are here to commend the police officers who played an active role in the previous incident, and to work day and night to solve the superpower awakening incident that has disrupted our current society-”

The Police Commissioner continues his speech, setting me up as a backdrop. It’s really annoying that he’s doing this shit at a special promotion celebration event, setting up the specially promoted person as a folding screen, but what can I do? Rank is a thug.

It was already famous that the new Police Commissioner who came this time likes to put on shows and draw attention. When they said they would make a place with reporters and people coming, I knew it would be like this.

The indoor space that instantly turned into a press conference hall. The Police Commissioner continues his self-praise from his seat, saying what we’re going to do in the future, that we’re tracking where the superpower awakening drug was made, that we’ve succeeded, and so on.

“Furthermore, for the protection of our police officers, we will officially employ outstanding individuals among the awakened ones as government official heroes-”

To think the Police Commissioner would suddenly start a press conference at a special promotion celebration event. Reason and common sense are waving their hands from the warm sky of comfort, but-

They say even a temple dog can recite poetry after three years, so it’s about time I get used to it too.

Okay, let’s have bone hangover soup for lunch today. I feel like having something spicy. I thought while answering roughly to questions while standing at attention.

After the special promotion appointment celebration ceremony – no, the Police Commissioner’s press conference ended. I was called to the team leader’s office without even having time to take off my uniform.

Seeing the short message ‘Please come to the team leader’s office’, I walk with heavy steps like a patient diagnosed with a terminal illness.

Now that I’m back in the Special Investigation Team, what awaits me in front of me is probably a parade of life-threatening hardships prepared by the world’s greatest psycho.
Thinking about that disgusting and frightening ‘word’ that Sai said, which I never want to recall again, I won’t die. Even if I suffer to the point of wanting to die or become disabled, I won’t die.

But the ‘interest’ she showed in the novel is something that Mina, a superhero, endured, and honestly, it’s uncertain whether I can survive.

No, I should be able to live after all. Sai is a master at tormenting people using mental stress, physical injuries, and various other things. Adjusting to a level where people don’t die should be nothing for her.

That’s why I’m terrified right now.

The first thing I heard after being discharged was that Justice hasn’t been caught yet and the Special Investigation Team is currently putting all their efforts into catching him.

In such a situation, I’m being called? If it’s not about a case related to that Justice bastard, I’ll change my name from Lee Mun-su to Park Mun-su.

According to Dokkaebi’s testimony, Justice is involved with Yagi – there’s no need to doubt it.

“Welcome, Inspector Lee Mun-su.”

“Hello, Team Leader Yagi.”

Thinking that, I entered the team leader’s office and Yagi greeted me with her characteristic expressionless face.
She was wearing a police uniform and gestured for me to sit in the chair in front of her, and I slowly approached and sat down where she indicated.

A moment of silence followed. As if not wanting to waste even that fleeting moment, Yagi’s blue eyes move up and down as if checking my condition.

“I heard you recovered without any problems. I’m really glad. And congratulations on your special promotion.”

“Thank you.”

We exchange formal conversation. And then, as if the pleasantries are over, she takes out a file folder from under the desk and says.

“It’s really a joyous day, but – as the person sitting here, I’m afraid I’ll have to ruin Inspector Lee Mun-su’s celebratory day.”

“It’s fine.”

“That’s a relief. You must have heard while resting, Detective? About the criminal called Justice.”

“Of course.”

I was dragged into the arrest operation before I could even be discharged because that bastard specifically called for me.

Without unnecessarily mentioning the latter part, I wait for her next words, and she opens the file folder she took out and spreads it well on the desk so I can see it.

The file folder contained articles saying that all the official hero candidates had suffered serious injuries in some kind of accident, and that new candidates were being selected.

I frowned at seeing that article. I knew the candidates had been attacked because I had heard what Dokkaebi said, but all of them were attacked and new candidates are being selected? Wasn’t that Justice bastard among the candidates too?

-Ah, it’s not strange. It’s strange in itself that a criminal bastard was on the government official hero candidate list.

Even if Sai is plotting something, as long as she’s hiding her identity, it would be too much to forcibly make such a bastard an official government hero.

She could do it if she wanted to – but the backlash would be no joke. How can a criminal bastard who even appeared on the news be a hero?

Thinking that, as I was reading down the newspaper clipped in the file folder, I saw that there was an official document behind the newspaper. I looked at Yagi, and she nodded for me to check that document.

And the document I checked contained information about the new hero candidate. The candidate’s name was Park Su.

According to the superpower user classification grade that the government is newly implementing, he’s an A-grade superpower user with a ‘clean’ past record and is reported to be a diligent and justice-filled person.

But the face of the person attached to the report – it’s a bit rude to say this, but it looked closer to the face of a murderer than a diligent and justice-filled person.

But this name. I think it was the name of Justice that Dokkaebi mentioned…?

“The government announced only one additional hero candidate. In reality, this man will be decided as the official hero. But the problem is – this man.

As a result of our Special Investigation Team’s investigation. Although he revealed his name and face, we suspect this person to be the supervillain Justice who committed special civilian murders and police murders.”

“……?”

It seems that Justice’s real name was Park Su as Dokkaebi said. No, more than that, the problem now is what the government, no, that Sai bitch, has done.

“Are they really going to make this bastard a hero? Officially?”

“Yes. It seems the government has already decided so. We thought they simply included this guy as a candidate to gather votes from Justice’s admirers, but-

It seems they’ve found another reason to bring this man in as an official hero. Rumors say he took care of someone the politicians found uncomfortable, but the exact facts haven’t been confirmed.”

This…… this fucking?

I barely hold back the curse that’s about to come out as I watch Yagi mutter as if she doesn’t know anything with a nonchalant face.

Someone the politicians would find uncomfortable. Who could it be? I can’t think of anyone in particular except that Dokkaebi bastard who goes around cracking the heads of corrupt politicians every day.

So Yagi is now making Justice look like a card that politicians would want to have in their hand by using Justice to clean up Dokkaebi.

If a bastard like Justice is really employed as an official hero and used as the government’s dog, what would happen?

Only fucking shitty things I don’t even want to imagine would happen. This already shitty country would become even shittier.

If someone who kills even neighborhood gangsters and thugs without hesitation gets the title of official hero on his back, I can bet my entire fortune that he’ll even kill civilians who curse at him.

This alone is terrible, but the worst case I imagine is New Hope fighting the rampaging Justice and somehow rendering him incapacitated.

No matter how much of a bastard Justice is, if he’s employed as an official hero, New Hope would be attacking a government employee. If that happens, she would be called a supervillain, not just a simple vigilante like now.

In the superhero genre, there are many stories where heroes are framed as villains and go through hardships, but damn it, that could really get fucked up considering what will happen afterwards.

After Human Center, dangerous superpower users are gathering and causing incidents, but what could a small fry like Justice [by New Hope’s standards] do?

And if New Hope, driven to become a supervillain in such a situation, gives up fighting – even the threadlike hope of defeating Sai would disappear along with it.

“- So what do you want me to do?”

I asked, glaring at Yagi’s blue eyes. Then Yagi slightly raised the corners of her mouth.

As expected, she’s laid out a path. I gritted my teeth and rubbed my face dry. Sai gives hardships and pain but she’s not the type to torment people by completely blocking the path.

Her method is to create a small breakthrough that would take a miracle to barely pass through and set up a situation where you have no choice but to go that way.

In the novel, she said with her own mouth that people are driven to extremes and reveal their true nature not when there’s no path, but when there’s only one path.

I’m not sure about the true nature stuff, but anyway, thanks to that dirty personality, I guess I should be grateful that there’s a path to break through.

No, should I be grateful? Damn it, I feel shitty just thinking about it. That damn Satan bitch, really.

“We expect that if Park Su. This man becomes a government official hero, we’ll have no choice but to suck our thumbs. The wall surrounding this man is too thick. To the point where we can’t touch him with just circumstantial evidence.”

Yagi stopped there. She put on a smile that felt somewhat gloomy.

Damn it, I understood what she meant. So this is that, right? It’s not a goal if it doesn’t go into the goal post, right?

“- Let’s find physical evidence instead of circumstantial evidence before he becomes an official hero. And since it’s awkward for the Special Investigation Team to move without a warrant, I, who Justice showed interest in first, will move to draw him in and find evidence. Is that it?”

“Yes. That’s it.”

Yagi smiled, saying I understood correctly.

At that face, I thought, Damn it, now I’m even doing something like spying.

No, it’s not that I’ve never investigated like this before, but because the person ordering this is who she is, I felt extremely dirty.

If a third party saw this situation, it would be a scene where a silver-haired beauty team leader proposes an illegal but gray job for justice to somehow catch a bad guy.

But that silver-haired beauty is the mastermind behind this incident? If this were a detective drama or movie, it would zoom in on the silver-haired beauty team leader smiling suspiciously as I leave like this.

Knowing that, I want to punch Yagi’s face hard if I could, as she babbles with a serious face that only I can solve this case.

It feels like nothing but mocking people, damn it. I was very uncomfortable, but I couldn’t really hit her, so I answered that I would do it with a rotten face.

Anyway, it’s not good to just leave someone like Justice alone either. Thinking that while rubbing the back of my head, suddenly there was something that bothered me, so I asked Yagi.

“But I’m also…… although I really hate it, a somewhat famous person, right? If I approach that bastard, won’t the higher-ups pay attention too?”

“There’s already an official meeting scheduled for tomorrow between Inspector Lee Mun-su and suspect Park Su anyway. We should use that.”

“……? A meeting?”

“I know. It was decided in a hurry. They probably want to show a good image to the public by showing the detective called the most upright getting along with the hero candidate. They’re in a hurry too. But if we use that in reverse-”

??? What is she really talking about?

I reflexively shook my head at Yagi’s gibberish and asked.

“No, when did you say there was an interview? I didn’t hear a single word about that.”

“What? Didn’t you answer that you understood when the Commissioner was speaking at the special promotion ceremony just now? Don’t you remember?”

“I was only thinking about eating bone hangover soup for lunch then.”

“……”

That’s when I saw Yagi’s face at a loss for words for the first time.

Among colleagues, she’s called the Ice Beauty because she expresses little emotion, and even in the novel, most descriptions of her were of an expressionless beautiful woman.
I felt a bit curious about seeing a new face, but-

What do I care? Whether it’s the Police Commissioner or a new expression or whatever, there was only bone hangover soup in my mind right now.
At times like this, you have to be brazen or you’ll lose. I straightened my head and looked at Yagi. She let out a deep sigh.

It was winter.