My Borderline Supervillain-Slash-Hero System

"To make things more interesting, of course. Look around—do you see a single bored face?" Aaron gestured toward the arena filled with spectators, shouting, laughing, and placing bets. "This Ranking Tournament isn't just a trial. It's a celebration—a stage for heroes to be born."

Pudge narrowed his eyes.

But his gaze wasn't ordinary—it was saturated with concentrated offensive laws, aimed directly at Aaron.

"I don't buy that. It's not just about entertainment. Tell me the real reason," he pressed.

Aaron sighed.

He reached for his sunglasses, placed them on his face, and responded with rare seriousness.

"Fine. I'll tell you."

The dense, invisible pressure around them—caused by their clashing laws—dissipated instantly.

"You were right on the first day," Aaron began. "This year's batch of freshers has exceptional talent—more than we've seen in decades. And the Titan Ruin No. 3345… it's the closest to their trial zone. Letting them enter was the correct move. This is where real heroes will emerge. The city will remember them for what they achieve inside."

"What about their safety?" Pudge asked sharply.

Aaron answered calmly.

"There's already a group of teachers and elite senior students heading toward the ruin as backup. If anything gets too dangerous, we'll intervene. But you know as well as I do… real growth only comes when they're pushed to the edge."

The two continued their match.

Above them, the screen shifted again—showing reindeers falling under waves of attacks, new alliances forming, and Zane's solitary boat gliding quietly through the unknown.

The game of chess continued.

But a greater game had already begun—outside the Titan Ruin.

Some time later, Director Aaron and Pudge once again focused their full attention on the floating display.

"Gemini, switch the camera to Zane Carter. Increase the feed size," Aaron instructed through his communication link.

"Copy that, Sir Director."

A special broadcast window appeared in the sky, highlighting Zane's live activities on Mars. The crowd gathered in Fresher Meet Village instantly shifted their attention as the feed zoomed in on him.

They watched as Zane engaged a shoal of corrupted river monsters, deep within the water.

The audience immediately began to chatter, a mix of doubt, disdain, and curiosity filling the air.

"What's he thinking? I thought he was the smart one," a female teacher frowned.

"Fighting in water without a water affinity? That's reckless," another added.

"Kid's asking to get torn apart."

"He'll probably lose a leg. Let's see how clever he is with half a limb," someone sneered.

But then the scene shifted—pulling everyone into silence.

Though the underwater combat was difficult to follow, the surface told its own story. A massive fountain of water shot into the air, followed by bloody froth bubbling up from the river.

"I bet he's dead."

"Shut up. Don't be so biased. That kid's probably the one causing all this."

"We'll see soon enough."

The large ripple spreading across the surface made it clear—Zane was still alive.

The crowd leaned in, their expressions ranging from surprise to reluctant admiration. Even though many of them spoke with ill intent, none could look away.

Then he surfaced.

Zane swam toward the riverbank, pulling himself out of the water, and what he did next left even the doubters speechless—he began tossing the massive river monsters onto dry land one after another.

"Not bad," Director Aaron commented calmly, arms crossed, seated atop the stage.

A few minutes later, both Aaron and Pudge stiffened in their seats when they saw Zane effortlessly extracting core stones from the skulls of the fallen monsters and placing them inside his silk pouch.

"That shouldn't be possible… right? His Green Card should've already absorbed those," Pudge muttered.

Aaron frowned, speaking again through his device.

"Gemini, confirm the status of Zane Carter's Green Card. It should automatically devour those mana cores. Is there a malfunction?"

"Checking… please hold a moment."

A few seconds passed.

"Sir, his card is functioning normally. It appears Zane has a unique ability that temporarily disables the Green Card's absorption function. Nothing unusual detected otherwise."

Aaron and Pudge exchanged glances—both recognizing that Zane was no ordinary freshman.

The crowd roared again as the feed showed Zane arriving at the pyramid-like structure—the outer gate of the Titan Ruin. A group of freshers had already gathered near the base, but Zane walked calmly through them like a gust of wind passing through reeds.

Then the feed zoomed in.

Zane stood in front of Issah, who had been taunting and posturing—an arrogant smirk plastered across his face.

With a single flick to the forehead, Zane ended the fight instantly.

THWACK!

Issah dropped like a stone.

The crowd erupted with shock, laughter, and cheers as the broadcast played the moment in slow motion, replaying Zane's precise and effortless strike over and over again.

"MASTER FLICKER!"

The title flashed in golden letters across the screen.

It didn't take long before the nickname caught fire.

"Master Flicker! That's so satisfying to watch!"

"He didn't even use mana—just a flick!"

"Zane's got style."

Even some of the harshest critics were finally silenced.

Among the crowd, a few quiet voices began to admit what others had already started to feel:

Zane Carter was no longer just a participant—he was quickly becoming a legend.

Director Aaron, seated at the top of the main stage, smiled with quiet satisfaction as the brief fight concluded. The only problem was, while the visuals were stunning, the audio hadn't been transmitted.

Curious about the conversation between Zane and Issah, he tapped the communication link again.

"Gemini, activate subtitle mode—even if the audio is off."

"On it, sir," Gemini replied.

Within moments, live subtitles began overlaying the floating visual, generated by advanced AI transcription based on the students' lip movements and mana patterns.

What followed captivated everyone watching.

The silent drama of Asphalt asking Zane to join his team, Zane's clever refusals, and the eventual power play between them—all unfolded with crisp subtitles. Every sarcastic reply, every subtle taunt, every smug grin—now fully understood by the watching masses.