Chapter 239 - Inferiority Complex

The incident began simply.

[Egostic has been included in the HVC's overall villain ranking and is receiving considerable attention overseas. The famous magazine Berlin Post highly praised Egostic as a villain, stating, "This is the first case where a villain from a small Eastern country has received such a high ranking solely based on their influence on a single country, excluding physical power"...]

Egostic's name had made it onto the villain ranking.

Well, if you think about it, the ranking was suddenly quite high, but still ordinary enough that I didn't really care. It wasn't even an official Association ranking, so why should I care?

But apparently, I was the only one who felt that way.

*

[Why Egostic made it to the Villain TOP 100 OMG]

Forget everything else, it's all about connections<<<this alone made it possible

Atlas, the S-class villain known as the Ruler of the North Atlantic who ranks in the top 5, has only one region he never attacks: Korea = because Egostic is there

Katana, the S-class villain currently considered Japan's powerhouse, showed off his friendship by making his only trip outside Japan = to meet Egostic

Plus, there are already 4 S-class villains in Egostream LOL. And despite being active for several years, they haven't been caught

Conclusion: Mangostick, when are you going to stream to thank us????

I'mgoingcrazyI'mgoingcrazyI'mgoingcrazyI'mgoingcrazyI'mgoingcrazyI'mgoingcrazyI'mgoingcrazyI'mgoingcrazyI'mgoingcrazyI'mgoingcrazyI'mgoingcrazy

=[Comments]=

[That last line LOLOLOLOL]

[Okay I get it, just start streaming LOLOLOLOL]

[For real, Mangostick couldn't even make the rankings until last year, but suddenly he's in because of connections. Like, what other villain is friends with both Atlas and Katana LOL]

ㄴ[Seriously LOL. Foreign villain fanboys are most curious about this—who the hell is Egostic that he has an agreement with Atlas??? They're all asking]

[Mango pride swelling in my chest]

[But does this ranking even matter? I thought the Association had done something, but it turns out it's unofficial]

ㄴ[Their organization is pretty credible though? Since the Association doesn't rank them, they're kind of doing it instead]

[We're living in the age of Mango]

[Fact check: Regardless of unofficial rankings, Egostic's official Association rank is still just A-class villain]

ㄴ[Isn't he S-class?]

ㄴ[Wow, I just checked and he really is still A-class LOL. I thought for sure he'd be S-class LOL]

ㄴ[All his subordinates ranked in the top 50 are S-class, so why is he A-class? LOL]

ㄴ[Even reporters get confused sometimes and call him S-class in the news LOL]

*

"....."

"Oppa, hundreds of posts like these are appearing every day, especially on the fan cafe."

Seo-eun showed me the list of posts.

Seriously... why are they making such a big deal about this? Is it because I haven't been streaming so they have nothing else to talk about?

"What does it matter? It'll die down in a few days anyway."

That was my only response.

Why should I care? They're just having fun on my fan cafe.

...To be honest, making it onto the villain ranking isn't that big a deal to me. I'm already part of Kathedal, a group consisting only of top-tier villain organization leaders, so why would this matter?

That's how lightly I took it.

[This is the 9 o'clock news. We previously reported that A-class villain Egostic was included in the top 100 by the reputable hero and villain research institution HVC. Now, netizens are stirring controversy by asking, 'Why is someone like Egostic still only A-class according to the Association?' Reporter Kwon Seo-yeon has the details.]

"Hey, Da-in. You're the main story on today's news?"

"...."

...Well, this is a bit surprising.

I watched the news with that thought in mind.

To summarize, all other professional researchers have already assessed Egostic as sufficiently dangerous, so why does the Association still leave him as A-class? Apparently, there's talk about the Association being useless.

"I mean... it is strange that I'm S-class while you're A-class."

Seo Ja-young muttered, lying beside me.

But honestly, I didn't think much of it.

After all, Stardust is still A-class too.

"Well, the International Association headquarters is falling apart anyway, so what can you do? They're probably too busy to reassess me."

I answered while chewing on a grape that Su-bin had brought me.

The International Association hasn't been functioning properly for quite some time. If it were, the French and British Associations wouldn't be at each other's throats like they are now. It just means the central Association board isn't managing its branches at all. In the midst of all that, who has time to review the villain rank of someone from a small, distant country?

Besides, Association rankings don't mean much anyway. Even in the original story, Stardust was still far from being promoted to S-class. So naturally, I'd be in the same boat since I'm paired with Stardust.

And as I always say.

It's better to remain A-class. Going up to S-class just attracts unnecessary attention.

...Though that's meaningless now since I'm already on that ranking.

'....'

Still, it shouldn't be a big deal. I need to prepare for the upcoming Kathedal meeting; I don't have time to worry about things like this.

That's why I could answer so nonchalantly.

"Don't worry about it. Who's going to care about that anyway?"

***

Hero Stardust's home.

[Yes, Egostic being A-class is quite unusual...]

Stardust, who had just returned home and was taking off her coat after turning on the TV, narrowed her eyes when she saw Egostic on the news.

"....?"

Well, it's not like it's unusual for Egostic to be on TV. It's probably nothing important.

That's what she thought, but...

"Hmm, hmm."

She glanced at the TV while casually changing out of her outdoor clothes in the living room.

[Someone like Egostic is undoubtedly an S-class villain. Has there ever been a villain with this much influence in the Republic of Korea before? No. It seems the Association headquarters is too busy to review this, but they need to fix it quickly. Or they should delegate S-class promotion authority to each country's branch. What are they doing right now?]

[Yes, we've heard Expert Choi Da-hyun's opinion. But you seem quite agitated, so please calm down first...]

[How can I be calm? There's a reason people call Ego...stic an S-class hero. The Association isn't doing its job! I'd say Egostic is doing a better job in our country than the International Association.]

"Hmm..."

After changing into her indoor clothes, Stardust sat in a chair and processed what she had just heard.

So the controversy is about Egostic still being A-class?

"....."

It was a bit funny that Egostic was still A-class.

After all, even the dragon he rode last time immediately received an S-class rating, yet its owner had a lower rank.

[...So given this controversy, I think there's a possibility that the Association will soon promote Egostic to S-class.]

Just then, she heard the expert's opinion on the news that Egostic might be promoted.

...Well, that makes sense.

As she nodded unconsciously at this thought.

"Wait..."

She suddenly froze as she realized that she was still A-class too.

"...."

Of course, her skills were far superior to those of most S-class heroes, but she was still officially A-class.

So if only Egostic gets promoted, would that mean he'd be S-class while she remained A-class?

"......Hmm."

She fidgeted in her seat without realizing it.

Certainly, the Association's ranking system is stricter for heroes. Generally, they consider that an A-class hero can handle an S-class villain, while an S-class hero can handle dozens of S-class villains simultaneously.

But somehow... somehow the thought of her and Egostic having different ranks felt strange.

'Haha, A-class hero Ms. Stardust. Hello there. I am 'S-class' villain Egostic. Hahaha! Facing an 'A-class' hero like Ms. Stardust is rather boring. Haha... I'm yawning.'

'Perhaps I should target higher-ranked heroes for my future terrorist acts. Hahahaha!'

Somehow, she could hear Egostic's voice in her ears, mocking her and looking for other heroes. Of course, he would never do that, but...

"Hmm..."

In this vaguely unsettling mood, Stardust fretted to herself.

After being a hero for several years, this was the first time she ever cared about her Association rank.

"Damn it... why am I like this?"

Right. Egostic wouldn't do that. What does rank matter? It doesn't change the fact that she's his arch-enemy.

With that thought, she glanced at Egostic's cape hanging on the wall and briefly pulled out the handwritten letter from Egostic that she had carefully preserved in a deep drawer to maintain evidence and prevent damage. Then she sighed, grabbed a towel, and headed to the bathroom.

...Right. She was just mentally exhausted from dealing with another villain today. Let's shower quickly and go to bed early.

So Stardust showered and went to bed early.

And that night.

"Mmm... mm...."

She tossed and turned, dreaming of Egostic abandoning her and only dealing with some other woman who was an S-class hero.

...The tears in her eyes when she woke up were surely just her imagination. Yes.