Hero Hack: Reversing Heroes and Raising Harem-Chapter 255: Take a Nap

Velra looked around the hotel room, then turned to Zain. "Now what do we do, Master?"

Zain didn’t answer right away.

He walked slowly toward the window, eyes narrowed in thought.

"Information," he finally said. "That’s our first goal."

Velra tilted her head. "Information?"

Zain nodded. "We’re in a new place."

"I don’t know the layout. I don’t know the leaders. I don’t know the movement of their forces."

"We can’t act blind."

He turned to face her.

"And while you’ve been here before, Velra... it’s been years."

Velra sighed, sitting down again.

"Yeah. Back then I was just a guest. I didn’t pay attention to anything serious."

Zain walked across the room, pacing slowly. "So we’re both in the dark."

Velra frowned. "Then what do we do now? Go looking for information?"

Zain nodded once. "Exactly. But the question is... where?"

Velra stood up and walked over to him. "This isn’t like B-Zone, Master."

"The security here is tight. Patrol drones, ether ID tracking, hero watchpoints."

"Hero Association territory is different. They don’t ignore things."

Zain tapped his fingers against his arm. "They watch everything, but they can’t block everything. No system is perfect."

He stopped pacing.

"Alright," he said. "I’ve got a plan."

Velra raised an eyebrow. "That fast?"

Zain smirked. "Plans don’t need to be complex. Just effective."

He walked over to the bed and dropped down onto the mattress, arms folded behind his head.

Velra crossed her arms, still watching him. "And what now? Just sleep?"

Zain nodded slowly, eyes starting to close. "Exactly. For now... we wait."

Velra blinked. "Wait?"

He cracked one eye open, just enough to meet her gaze. "We move tomorrow."

She frowned a little. "Why wait?"

Zain smiled. "Because the timing matters. And when we act, we’ll get the information we need."

Velra stared for another second, then gave a small nod.

She walked to the other bed and sat down, pulling off her gloves and setting them aside.

"Fine," she said. "But I hope this plan of yours is good."

Zain was already half-asleep. "It is."

Velra lay back, looking up at the ceiling.

Tomorrow would be interesting.

---

The next few days passed quietly in Ether Haven.

There hadn’t been any alerts. No sirens. No threats.

Just order.

In one of the plaza corners, near a security station, two heroes stood by a glowing map display.

They wore polished armor, both alert but relaxed.

One of them wore a bright red jacket, gold-lined gloves, and tinted goggles.

His name was Starjack—loud, flashy, always moving.

He leaned against the console, spinning one of his pistols on his finger.

"Man," he said with a sigh, "this place is too quiet."

The other one beside him stood tall and calm, arms crossed.

A heavy metal shield was mounted on his back, and his armor looked more like a walking wall.

This was Ironstride—strong, steady, and the type who rarely spoke unless needed.

Starjack looked over. "Come on, don’t you feel it?"

"No action. No drama. Just people sipping tea and staring at clean air."

Ironstride shrugged. "That means the system works."

Starjack groaned. "That means I’m bored."

Ironstride glanced toward the crowd. "You think peace is boring?"

"Not peace," Starjack said, pointing his pistol toward the sky, "this peace."

"Nothing’s happened in months. Last time we had a real fight was what? That lab leak down in Sector Six?"

Ironstride nodded. "That was handled in under ten minutes."

"Exactly!" Starjack waved his hands. "No build-up, no chase, no tension. We blinked and it was over."

Ironstride looked back at him. "You’d rather we fail at stopping something?"

Starjack held up his hands. "I’m just saying... something’s off."

"It’s too perfect lately. No villains acting out, no weird ether surges, not even a protest. When has that ever lasted?"

Ironstride frowned. "We’re in the heart of Skyreach. Of course it’s quiet. You know why."

Starjack sighed. "Yeah, yeah. The Apex Guardian. No one wants to stir the nest when he watches from above."

Ironstride nodded. "Exactly. That’s the point."

Starjack kicked a loose pebble near his boot.

"Still... I’d rather face something ugly than wait for something worse to sneak up."

Ironstride looked at him, serious now. "You think something’s coming?"

Starjack didn’t answer at first. He just looked up at the glowing sky above the city.

"...I don’t know," he said. "But quiet like this? Feels like the kind that breaks."

Ironstride looked ahead again, eyes focused. "We stay ready."

Starjack finally smiled. "That’s more like it."

He spun his pistol once and slid it back into its holster.

Just as he was about to say something else, a loud crash echoed through the street.

People screamed.

From the far end of the plaza, five figures burst out of a side tunnel—wild, twitching, growling.

Their bodies were covered in patches of mutated flesh, fur, and scales.

Their eyes burned red, and their claws scraped against the clean ground as they charged forward without control.

Starjack’s grin widened. "Well, well. Mutants from the Beastkin Brood."

He stepped forward as civilians ran past him in every direction.

"Finally, something good."

Ironstride’s shield snapped off his back with a mechanical hiss.

His expression was tight. "Damn it. How can this be possible here?"

Starjack didn’t look back.

He stretched his arms, rolled his shoulders, and flicked both pistols from his hips in a quick motion.

"You always ask questions first," he said. "Let me work first."

Ironstride stepped between a group of children and the incoming chaos.

"I’ll get the civilians clear."

Starjack turned his head just enough to smirk. "You always do the boring part."

Ironstride didn’t respond.

He charged off toward the panicking crowd, his shield already extending to block falling debris.

Starjack now stood alone in the middle of the wide road.

He bounced on his heels once, then pointed both pistols toward the rushing mutants.

His eyes lit up behind the tinted goggles.

Five enemies. No backup.

Perfect.

He muttered to himself, "Showtime."

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