The moment I saw the button attached to the boy’s backpack, I flinched, and the boy sensed my gaze and hid his backpack.
Why would there be a button shaped like the HunterKiller Team helmet, which has never been released in stores? I thought, but seeing him hide it made me realize that pretending to know right away wouldn’t be good. So, I brought up the situation just now.
“Those kids just now, do you know them?”
“…They’re in the same class as me.”
Are they being bullied? I could tell without directly asking.
“Even during vacation, do they act like this usually?”
“No, we met by chance… We were on our way back from the Comic Festival…”
“Comic Festival?”
I tilted my head at hearing something unfamiliar. The boy seemed to think he had said something wrong and flinched, averting his gaze.
“It’s about comics… We make books and sell merchandise based on that theme…”
“Oh.”
I had heard from Alt before. Alt, who liked Japanese comics, often went there when living in Japan.
I didn’t know there was such a culture in Korea. I thought Alt would like it if I told them later.
The boy, presumed to like comics, met classmates on his way back from the Comic Festival. His classmates, who usually bullied him, must have provoked him upon seeing him.
“It’s too much to dislike what others like.”
“…You probably won’t understand even if I explain.”
There was weight in the words of the young boy. While I’ve lived many more years than him, I can’t dismiss the weight of his worries lightly.
If the boy experienced something I haven’t, no matter how old I am, I’m still less experienced compared to him.
“What about that button?”
“!”
I tried not to focus on the button on the boy’s backpack, but I couldn’t help it. Curiosity got the better of me, and the boy finally gave up, lowering his hand that was hiding the bag.
“Do you know about it? The HunterKiller Team.”
“Yeah, I know.”
I thought I knew it better than anyone else on Earth.
The boy, unable to hide his unease, took a deep breath.
“I like the HunterKiller Team, but everyone thinks it’s bad.”
His gaze toward me was filled with distrust. I understood why.
Even if I helped in dangerous situations, it’s natural not to trust someone you’ve never met who talks about being ignored all along.
“I like the HunterKiller Team too.”
I said confidently to the boy who felt uneasy. It’s obvious that I like the girlfriends. They are my girlfriends after all. There was no hesitation in saying this in front of the boy who likes the HunterKiller Team.
“You really do?!”
The boy was startled, opening his eyes wide. The anxious look he had just moments ago vanished instantly, replaced by an intrigued gaze.
“Yeah. It’s cool.”
“Cool? It’s really cool, isn’t it?!”
The boy’s voice brightened at the thought of someone understanding what he likes. Although I was slightly taken aback by the sudden change in attitude, seeing the boy acknowledge the coolness of the girlfriends made me feel like my own smile would reach the sky.
I barely suppressed the smile spreading across my face.
“So you’re a fan of the HunterKiller Team?”
“Yes. I love them because they fight to protect Earth, and their fighting style is incredibly cool.”
The boy, with pure eyes, was burning with fandom for the HunterKiller Team.
I had never seen someone recognize the superhuman’s efforts to protect Earth and genuinely like the HunterKiller Team so purely.
“How did you come to like them?”
“I haven’t liked them for long. My younger sister, who goes to kindergarten, saw a battle nearby when she went on a school trip. The HunterKiller Team led her to a safe place.”
I’m not sure exactly when it happened, but it seems to have been last year. The HunterKiller Team guided children near the battle scene to safety multiple times.
Among those countless battles, my sister must have seen the HunterKiller Team.
“She boasted about seeing the battle from afar, so I looked it up. That’s when I started liking them.”
The boy was excited. He couldn’t speak freely about his fandom until now, but the thought of openly expressing it made him talk faster and louder.
“You really like them a lot?”
“Yes, but no one around me likes them, and when I say I like them, everyone looks at me strangely.”
I thought it was inevitable in today’s Earth. The negative perception of superhumans has been deeply ingrained, making it impossible for kids today to view them positively.
While sympathy was formed due to embezzlement scandals, it’s just sympathy, not positive support for superhumans.
“It must be hard.”
Leaving aside the position of a girlfriend of the HunterKiller Team members, it might be better not to mention liking the HunterKiller Team to live a normal life.
As if reading my thoughts, the boy spoke confidently with unwavering eyes.
“I’ll keep liking them anyway. They fight to protect the place we live, so it’s more strange to see someone disapprove of liking them.”
I was touched. Having fought countless battles and investigated superhumans continuously, I hadn’t met anyone so positively viewing superhumans until now.
Despite being adversaries, I couldn’t help but feel fondness for the boy as a girlfriend of the HunterKiller Team.
“You know quite a bit. The HunterKiller Team is indeed amazing.”
At my nod of agreement, the boy, who had been raising his voice, suddenly closed his mouth and looked up at me.
“Why?”
I wondered if he had something to say and asked while looking into his eyes.
“You speak proudly about liking the HunterKiller Team.”
When the boy said he liked the HunterKiller Team earlier, he spoke cautiously, not removing his distrustful gaze towards me.
I affirmed his statement and confidently said I liked the HunterKiller Team. I was naturally excited meeting a boy who liked the superhumans.
“Yeah. There’s no reason not to be proud.”
“Is it because you’re strong that you can speak proudly?”
I tilted my head at the boy’s question.
“Strong? Me?”
“Yeah. You chased away the kids who were bullying me just now.”
I’ve never considered myself strong. Compared to my peers, I’m not as capable as Siera, nor do I have Klugger’s leadership or Theo’s skills.
To the boy who saw me subdue children the boy couldn’t, I might appear strong, but I’m just an adult who learned to fight and subdued the kids.
“Can I ask your age?”
“14.”
“14… Elementary school?”
“I’m entering middle school this year.”
With my arms crossed, I muttered “Ah” and nodded.
The boy, who had a distrustful look, now had a bright expression and was looking at me with admiration.
“Unfortunately, I’m not a strong person.”
“Huh? But you easily subdued those kids.”
“While physical strength is possible, mental strength is more important.”
Throughout my life, especially with the girlfriends, I’ve deeply felt this. Physical strength and mental strength are different, and mental strength is crucial.
“You want to become mentally stronger?”
The boy stared blankly at me, not understanding.
“It’s about the heart. Even if people look at you negatively, you can proudly say you like what you like because your heart is strong.”
The boy seemed to partially understand, nodding. After pondering with lowered eyes, he looked up again.
“Then can I become a cool person like the HunterKiller Team?”
“Absolutely. Making someone strong isn’t about special power but mindset.”
The HunterKiller Team members aren’t necessarily the strongest in terms of mindset. They all carry deep scars and continue to grow.
What matters is growing. I, the girlfriends, and everyone are weak, but we rely on each other and gradually become stronger.
I believe the boy can become such a person too.
“So it’s okay to speak more proudly about liking the HunterKiller Team. If someone finds it strange, tell them—”
“What should I say?”
“Fuck off, you piece of shit.”
I used to react with profanity when someone criticized my enjoyment of something I liked.
“Fight back if they hit you, bite if they attack. Then you will surely win.”
I’m sure the kids who bothered the boy today will continue to harass him at school. Without visible intervention, I wanted to give him a solution to deal with it.
A solution doesn’t have to be violence, but if you act with determination, you can win.
“I’ll walk you to the main road.”
I decided to escort the boy to a safer place since staying in the alley was unsafe.
“What’s your name?”
“Gang In-yi.”
“What a cool name.”
Smiling, I praised the boy’s name, and Gang In-yi smiled back.
“But where did you get that button?”
I only recently found out that the girlfriends have helmet-shaped buttons.
“I bought it at the Comic Festival. There are people who like superhumans besides me. Not many, but there are.”
“I see.”
Hearing there was something related to the girlfriends in a culture I wasn’t familiar with, I became interested. I even felt a desire to obtain one.
“Don’t they look at you strangely there?”
I thought people who liked superhumans would receive odd looks in a festival, but Gang In-yi shook his head.
“People don’t interfere with genres others sell.”
…I don’t fully understand, but it seems fine among them.
Gang In-yi continued to share his experiences of searching for things related to the HunterKiller Team as we walked to the main road. Most were about battles, and recalling past battles with the HunterKiller Team, memories slowly surfaced in my mind.
“Be careful going home. If they bother you again, I’ll deal with it.”
“Okay!”
I said goodbye to Gang In-yi as we reached the main road. Gang In-yi stopped running and turned back to bow in farewell.
After waving goodbye, I watched his figure disappear into the crowd and stretched.
Though I had an unexpected outing and sudden situation, a part of me felt reassured.
Stretching, I noticed something in my hand that caught my attention late.
“Oh! I’m late!”
I had been out for a long time buying tofu, and I hurried home thinking Hayang, who was preparing lunch, would be waiting.
Though not visible, there are definitely people somewhere who like superhumans.
Feeling a glimmer of hope, I also felt warm knowing the efforts of the girlfriends up until now weren’t entirely in vain.
