Bang! Bang! Bang!
Gunfire erupted across the courthouse rooftop, the deafening noise echoing off the surrounding walls and concrete floor.
The young man standing beneath the sunlight didn't move.
Bullets struck his body one after another—but instead of tearing flesh, they bounced off as if they had hit solid steel.
Some ricocheted across the rooftop. Others clattered uselessly to the ground.
Not even his clothes were damaged.
The sharp echoes of the gunshots bounced between the walls and floors of the surrounding buildings. Through those sounds, Clark constructed a clear image of the scene in his mind.
He smiled, revealing a row of bright white teeth.
Then he faced the robbers calmly.
"Gentlemen," he said politely, "I have a great suggestion."
His tone was relaxed, almost friendly.
"Stop wasting your bullets, put down your weapons, and surrender."
"That way I can prevent you from getting hurt."
The robbers wearing animal masks froze.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Several of them rubbed their eyes in disbelief, wondering if they were hallucinating.
A bullet powerful enough to chip concrete had just struck a man—and failed to even tear his shirt.
"What the hell is this?" one robber muttered.
"Am I seeing things?"
"Are we seeing a ghost in broad daylight?"
"Shut up!"
The monkey-masked leader snapped angrily.
He forced himself to calm down, though his eyes still flickered with unease.
Then his expression turned ruthless.
"Freak," he growled.
"Try this."
He grabbed an RPG launcher and fired.
Whoosh!
The rocket shot forward trailing a stream of white smoke as it screamed toward Clark.
Clark's ears twitched.
He stepped aside effortlessly.
Then he struck out with lightning speed.
Ignoring the intense heat of the rocket engine, he grabbed the missile with one hand.
The rocket struggled in his grip like a trapped bird.
Its tail continued spitting flames and fuel, yet it could not escape his grasp.
Behind Clark stood a tall office building.
If the missile detonated there, the damage could be catastrophic.
So Clark simply changed its direction.
With a powerful swing, he hurled the rocket straight into the sky.
A moment later, red beams flashed from his eyes.
His heat vision struck the missile.
Boom!
The rocket exploded high above the city before it could fall back down and endanger anyone.
Clark lowered his head and looked toward the stunned criminals.
"Monster!"
One of the robbers shouted.
Seeing a man fire lasers from his eyes shattered whatever courage they had left.
Several gangsters immediately turned and ran.
Clark moved.
In the blink of an eye he intercepted them.
Within seconds the robbers were knocked to the ground one after another.
He quickly rescued the unconscious policewoman and checked her condition.
After confirming she was breathing normally and uninjured, Clark found a rope nearby and tied up the captured criminals.
He stood up slowly.
Then he took a deep breath.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
Being a vigilante wasn't so bad.
By hiding his identity, he could fight crime and use his abilities to help people in need.
Clark turned toward the rising sun.
His expression grew determined.
Then he leaped into the distance.
Through the countless sounds echoing across the city, he could already hear people who needed help.
Click!
The sharp sound of a camera shutter echoed from the street below.
Clark instinctively turned his head toward the noise.
But his eyes saw nothing.
He was still blind.
Instead, he listened.
Two people were standing together below.
One had a stronger heartbeat and deep abdominal breathing—male.
The other had a slightly slower heartbeat—female.
Judging from her breathing height and posture, she was probably very tall.
At least 1.7 meters.
Clark didn't linger.
He moved across the rooftops like a bird gliding through the sky.
Within seconds he disappeared into the distance.
…
"What exactly is this, Lois?"
Inside the editor-in-chief's office at the Daily Planet, Perry White stared at the photograph in his hand.
The middle-aged editor had gray temples and a tired expression as he set his coffee cup down.
In the photo, a figure was leaping between skyscrapers more than ten meters apart.
The golden sunlight cast a long shadow behind him.
A red cloak fluttered dramatically in the wind.
"My discovery," Lois Lane said calmly.
"And my next follow-up report."
She stood across the desk wearing a professional outfit.
Lois Lane was strikingly beautiful and carried herself with confidence and sharp intelligence.
There was a natural aggression in her eyes—the instinct of a reporter who hunted for the truth.
Within only a few years of entering journalism, she had already won multiple newcomer awards.
"It doesn't matter where you got this rumor," Perry said with a sigh.
"There's nothing here to investigate."
He placed the photo back on the desk.
"This is clearly a photoshopped image."
"Jimmy took that photo," Lois replied.
"And I was there."
Perry raised an eyebrow.
"Fine," he said.
"Maybe some thrill-seeking kid used a springboard to jump between buildings."
"That's a job for community police."
He leaned back in his chair.
"Not for my star reporter."
"Bring me something exciting."
Lois crossed her arms.
"This isn't the first sighting," she said firmly.
"There have already been multiple reports of mysterious superhuman activity across central and western Kansas."
She leaned forward slightly.
"I'm planning to investigate it."
Perry sighed again.
"Rumors without evidence are useless."
"The first rule of journalism is authenticity."
"We don't print speculation."
Lois smiled slightly.
"Now we have evidence."
She placed several more photos on the desk.
Spent bullet casings scattered across the courthouse rooftop.
Scorch marks from gunfire.
Fragments of a destroyed rocket launcher.
"According to multiple eyewitnesses," Lois explained, "this man stopped a kidnapping and prevented a murder on the courthouse roof."
"He faced several armed criminals alone."
"He has a body as strong as steel."
"He can leap dozens of meters between skyscrapers."
"And he moves faster than the wind."
Perry stared at the photographs silently.
The mysterious figure clearly possessed incredible abilities.
Even more interesting—he wasn't wearing a mask.
The first photo revealed part of his face.
Excitement sparkled in Lois's eyes.
Her reporter's instinct told her this was huge.
Soon the mysterious vigilante would become the most famous person in Metropolis.
And she intended to be the one who uncovered his story first.
…
Meanwhile, on Paradise Island…
Elegant music echoed through the ancient palace.
"Lift your leg higher."
"Yes—higher."
David sat comfortably inside the grand hall.
He rested his chin on one hand while watching the scene below with obvious amusement.
Outside the hall lay a wide stone plaza once used for military parades.
Now it had become something entirely different.
A group of powerful Amazon warriors stood there wearing delicate ballet tutus.
They stretched their bodies awkwardly as they attempted graceful swan-like dance movements.
For warriors accustomed to swords and bows, the performance looked extremely clumsy.
David ignored the furious glares directed at him.
Instead, he watched the steady flow of emotional points appearing before his eyes like a waterfall.
When David and Diana returned to Paradise Island, Queen Hippolyta immediately sensed something was wrong.
Then Diana revealed the truth.
She had personally witnessed David kill Ares.
The entire island erupted in shock.
"That outsider accomplished the feat of killing a god?"
"Princess… is this really true?"
Among the dancers wearing white skirts stood a tall and striking figure.
Diana herself.
David had personally chosen her as the lead dancer.
After all, the Amazons had already accepted him as their king.
Diana's expression was extremely awkward.
Wearing the humiliating costume, she tried to perform the unfamiliar graceful movements while hiding the embarrassment in her eyes.
Since returning to the island, she had answered the same question countless times.
Even during dance practice, another Amazon approached her to confirm the story.
"…It's true," Diana replied softly.
Her eyes drifted toward the throne.
There sat the man who had achieved the impossible.
No one among the Amazons believed a mortal could kill a god.
Even Queen Hippolyta doubted it.
At one point she insisted on using the Lasso of Truth to determine whether Diana had been manipulated.
But the result shocked everyone.
Diana was telling the truth.
"So," David said calmly from the throne.
His deep eyes swept across the hall.
"The Amazon race has existed for tens of thousands of years."
His voice echoed across the palace.
"Now you face a choice."
His gaze turned cold.
"Break your promise—and be erased from the world by me."
"Or keep your oath…"
"And accept me as your king."
....
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