The socially awkward villain's furry superpower

In her mother's words, Jessbel was an ambitious young woman who would either achieve great things or get herself overwhelmed in the struggle. Her relationship with her mother was somewhat tumultuous.

Part of her ambition stemmed from this. She wanted to leave home. Her life at home wasn't bad, but it wasn't exactly idyllic either, and she always felt she deserved a better life.

She doesn't know when it started, but this idea made her grow into a diligent, hardworking, and determined student. When she went to school, she knew that she had to do everything she could to befriend anyone who stood in her way to success.

Then, she gained superpowers.

This is simply a joke.

She spent so much time practicing social skills and put in so much effort, yet she effortlessly received the greatest blessing that everyone dreams of, aside from being born with a huge fortune.

Now, every moment she's awake, she can feel a pressure deep within her mind. It's not painful, it's just constantly there.

Moreover, she can throw out a glittering ball of light whenever she wants, and she can make the ball explode at will to confuse and frighten others.

To be honest, this ability is pretty useless. The light orbs she throws are weak; they can't even break a window, and the impact of their explosions is so great that they can't even budge her hair five meters away.

She even bought fireworks at the gas station to play with, just to confirm that the fireworks were indeed more powerful than her light ball.

Her only advantage lies in that peculiar effect of diverting attention.

Well, there are a few other minor changes. She feels a little stronger now. But it's about the same as the effect of exercising more regularly.

She can still look directly at the sun without getting hurt, and her vision adapts to changes in light and dark much faster than before.

Overall, it's not as powerful as superpowers like flight, laser eyes, or super strength, but she will try her best to make good use of her abilities.

She had her own plan. To get to know the local heroes. To make a name for herself as a rising star, to befriend those who might be more capable but less socially adept, and then ride their coattails toward a bright future.

However, Sienna, the "boss," and her bunch of brats showed up.

Jessbel was mature enough to understand that blaming all her troubles on one woman and a group of girls—were they even teenagers?—pre-adolescent kids, that was childish. But most of her recent troubles could indeed be traced back to the arrival of "the eldest," Sienna.

So she decided to do what any mature, confident young woman would do: she would politely speak with "the boss," Sienna, face-to-face to find out what was going on.

However, we need to find the "boss" first.

Finding Sienna wouldn't be difficult, but after her last conversation with Sienna, the girl immediately messed up her plans. It's possible Sienna doesn't like interference in her civilian life, which Yezebel finds understandable.

Yezebel and Charm Girl are essentially the same person, just in a different outfit.

Sienna concealed her role as the "leader" even more deeply. This... might not be a bad idea. Sienna successfully positioned herself as the leader of the entire team.

Yezebel did some investigation but couldn't find any information about the kids who followed "the boss." And as far as she knew, the Hostage Rescue Team (HRT) knew nothing about them either.

Things have progressed to this point, and if they want to find out the truth, they have to start investigating proactively, which is usually only done when facing particularly ruthless villains.

As long as everyone can take off their masks and go home to live a normal life, then both heroes and villains have ample reason to show mercy.

To make a long story short, when she heard that the little brats—who weren't with the "boss"—were on patrol, she went out to meet them.

That was a mistake.

“Oh, hey, it’s that sparkly lady,” the girl dressed in a bear-themed outfit said, pointing at her. She rubbed her nose, giving Charm Girl a disgusted look. “What are you doing here? Humph? Trying to play the hero?”

"Hello," Yezebel said.

She flashed her most charming customer service smile. She hadn't gone straight to university after graduating high school, so she spent two years working at the front desk.

That job was terrible, but I did gain some valuable experience in dealing with people.

These kids weren't acting alone.

There's that bear girl, "Ursa Minor," the "Owl Watcher" in a leather jacket and "I'm a Little Punk" outfit, two of the three "Robber Girls," and... another hero?

The woman was about the same age as Yezebel, but taller and darker-skinned. She was wearing stylish jeans and a top, with a coat over them, and a half-mask on her face.

Judging from her attire, she doesn't seem like a lone hero, but more like... a sidekick?

Maybe it's because of that baseball bat. It's not exactly a heroic weapon.

It's not hard to guess why a slightly older person would accompany a group of children on patrol. This girl is either a newly recruited hero teammate of the "leader" or a babysitter.

“Hey girls,” Yezebel said. She smiled and waved at them. “I just happened to be passing by and thought I’d check on you. Are you on patrol?”

The punk girl, "Owl Watcher," narrowed her eyes. "Nonsense," she said, "I bet you're here to spy on us."

Charismatic Superwoman rolled her eyes. She wasn't here to spy on these kids, but to spy on the "boss." Or rather... at least something like spying.

The "boss" has disrupted her plans several times.

Yezebel was no longer a child and knew that things rarely went according to plan, but these repeated disruptions were still starting to bother her. Worse still, they made her look quite disheveled.

What she can't accept right now is a damaged image, or worse, making herself look incompetent. She needs to figure out what "the boss," Sienna, is plotting so she can find a way to deal with it.

She could observe the "boss," record her actions, outline the general pattern of her behavior, and then deduce her goals from that. Or she could simply ask her directly.

After all, she is a hero, and asking politely seems to be the proper thing to do in a hero's capacity.

“I’m not here to spy on you,” she said, “but… well, would you mind if I patrolled with you? I think it wouldn’t hurt to have an extra pair of hands if anything happened, right?”

The girls exchanged glances, clearly weighing the pros and cons. Their body language easily revealed that they wanted to refuse, but could they?

“No. Go home,” the “robber” said.

Yezebel blinked.

She had assumed these kids would… well, act like adults in awkward situations. If you cut in line in front of most people, they'd just mutter a few words and glare at you behind your back, but they wouldn't yell at you directly.

Children don't have that kind of awkwardness filter, "Uh... what if you need help?"

All four children snorted at the same time. Then the bear-like girl pointed at her and said, "If we need more sparkly things, we'll call you."

“Yes, if we’re having a birthday party and need fireworks, we’ll let you know,” said “Owl Watcher.”

Yezebel felt his face burning. These kids were so... mean.

“Give us your wallet, and we’ll let you come with us,” one of the “robber girls” said.

Yezebel was at a loss for words. The other children were still nodding vigorously. "What would you do with my wallet?"

“Buy ice cream, then steal your identity,” the “robber” said. She opened her bag, which had dollar signs printed on it, and held the opening out toward Yezebel, as if she really expected Yezebel to throw things in.

"I won't give you my wallet."

“Hey, you’re Glamour Woman, right?” the girl who was probably a sidekick asked.

“Yes, that’s me.” Yezebel straightened up, put his hands on his hips, and struck a classic hero pose. “Would you like an autograph?”

The girl shrugged. "Maybe later."

“Hey!” said the “Owl Watcher,” “Don’t collude with the enemy… unless you want to seduce them to carry out some evil plan, in which case you can associate with them a little.”

“Or if you want to collude with their henchmen and abduct them, that’s fine too,” another “robber” pointed out.

Yezebel felt his headache starting to flare up.

“Alright,” the henchman said, “see that little shop on the corner over there?” She pointed over Yezebel’s shoulder to a shop on the corner. It was a gas station convenience store.

"Watch these kids, don't let them cause trouble. I need to make a phone call. Thanks!" With that, the young woman walked away and disappeared into an alley.

“What?” Yezebel asked.

She looked at the four girls who were staring at her.

"How much money do you have to buy candy?" "Little Ursa" asked.

“No!” Yezebel said. She certainly had cash with her, but that wasn't—

“She’s lying! She has so many. Let’s go!” said the Owl Watcher.

With a scream, the girls rushed toward the store, leaving Jessbel all alone.

“Wait, I don’t actually have to be responsible for you, right?” she called out from behind the children, then chased after them. “I said wait!”

What kind of rabble did the "boss" lead?!