Two weeks have passed, and Vincent is now back in the streets, observing the city he swore to protect. It was another perfect day. The sun was up but it was not that hot. The citizens were doing their lives as normally as they should be. Vincent’s cape flaps behind him as the wind breeze through. He perched on a building’s gargoyle; his jet-black eyes gazed upon the beautiful city of Rockmington. A few months back, he was still a novice hero who just started his career, but now, he's a full-pledged commander. Leading his own division and rising to the prominence of the world. But after the incident of severing ties with the Amazonian Tigers, his hero ranking has dropped significantly. From fourth to a hundredth. It doesn’t bother him, though. To him, a hero’s ranking doesn’t measure the power they have. The ranking system is mainly about the hero’s popularity. As Vincent gawked at the city, his AC vibrated. He tapped it and the hologram of David appeared.“Commander, we have a hostage

The master’s degree holder then arrived. It was man, maybe in his 30s, he has thinning brown hair, and he wore round glasses. He stood in front of Vincent after saluting at him. Vincent told him to move closer.“What’s your name?” Vincent asked nicely.“Wyatt Tormer, my hero name is Wire.” Wyatt introduced.“And you have a master’s degree on information technology, right?”“Yes, sir.”“Do you know anything about creating a hotline? Like 911. But this time, my plan is to make us a direct hotline. A direct hotline in which the citizens will now not need to be redirected from another dispatcher to us. It takes a lot of time. And I think this idea might also solve our delayed response problem.” Vincent explained.“Y-Yes, sir. It’s quite easy. We first need to build our own cell tower, then have it—”“Do it. I’ll fund the project. I’ll contact my brother for the materials. Just make a plan out of it and I’m going to have him talk to you. Is that okay?” Vincent asked.“Yes, sir! I will work

A couple more weeks have passed, and Vincent was at his usual spot, at the top of his headquarters’ roof, smoking a stick, trying to ease the stress he’s been having. It’s now in the middle of November; everything is going by real fast right now. A month and a half have been since the Gambling Center mission, and Vincent still can’t seem to let go of his statement back then. Especially when Arthur’s face is popping in every billboard he sees. Now that he’s thinking back about everything, he recently saw a news report from earlier, about the—”“I knew you’d be here.” Called a voice behind.It was Ian.“Why aren’t you out there patrolling? I thought you loved the streets and doing actual hero work?”Vincent sighed, “Something’s bothering me, I don’t know what it is, though.”Ian nodded and let it go as this is not different from their commander. Ever since he took into office as the commander of the 16th, he has done great things in this city and for its citizens. People kept coming and

The people Vincent saw made his heart almost drop. It was his friends. Jamie and Faye Philips, the twins. And some of the comrades he had during his time in the rebel army.“Are you that busy to even bother to call or message us?” Jamie pouted.“Just because you’re a big shot now, doesn’t mean you’ll ignore your friends who once was ready to die with you!” Faye followed.Vincent raised his hands in defeat, “Okay, okay. I’m sorry, I was just so busy that—”And all of a sudden, the twins hugged Vincent. Ian gave them some privacy as he stepped away. Vincent can feel their heart beats. This familiar sensation. These are his friends. He felt guilty not contacting them all this time.“We’re so proud of you, Vincent. And I know Champ will be too.” Faye sobbed as she buried her face into Vincent’s chest.As they broke apart, they then walked around the campus. Seeing familiar places and buildings. The hangout spots they used to go to. The cafeteria in which Vincent started his first ever sch

Hours have passed, and Vincent and the others are now outside the restaurant, waiting for taxis to take them home. Michaella was drunk as hell. She carries a wine bottle with her while singing a horrible Sasaki native song. Vincent, Faye, and Jamie all exchanged numbers to keep in contact with each other, and Andy also gave Vincent his own. As taxis arrived, Michaella was escorted by Norma into the vehicle, he seems to be pretty annoyed of her now. Norman thanked Vincent for the meal, while Michaella screamed at the top of her lungs,“Thank you *hic*, Four-Eyes!”And then, they left. The leaves the other four,“How about you, professor?” Vincent looked at Andy.“Oh, I’ll be sleeping at my quarters in the academy. Got a few more things to polish before school starts tomorrow.” Andy then patted Vincent on the back. “Well, I guess I’ll see you soon. Call me whenever you need something, okay?”Andy then walked towards the academy.“And you two?”“Our apartment is just right around the cor