The socially awkward villain's furry superpower

“I want to go,” Sienna said.

Sam glanced at the paper, then looked up at Sienna.

Even though Sienna usually considers herself not very good at reading people, she knows what Sam is thinking.

This idea is probably not very good.

"How did you get this?" Sam asked, waving the paper around.

Sienna sighed and slumped onto the dining table. "It was given to me by the Charismatic Warrior."

“Really?” Sam asked. “This looks like it was issued by the Heroic Response Force (HRF).

"That's true. Listen, HRF knows the Charismatic Warrior, or I guess I should call her Yezebel, and knows who I am when I'm not in uniform."

Clearly, it's quite common for heroes to remove their masks to recognize each other, but not want to reveal their identities to the HRF.

“That makes sense,” Sam said.

Sienna looked up at her. "Does that make sense?"

"Yes. Listen, it's terrifying to reveal your identity to an organization like HRF."

They are a huge government agency. They're a bit impersonal, and have a whole bunch of rules and regulations.

Anyone who isn't a heroic role model might worry about making a small mistake and suddenly finding the HRF knocking on their front door with a search warrant.

Sienna swallowed hard. Just thinking about it was like a nightmare.

"I've been researching this. Do you know how many heroes in HRF don't really qualify as heroes?"

“I…don’t know?” Sienna said. She perked up. Was Sam going to tell her that the HRF would accept villains like her, even those who didn’t intend to become villains?

“Probably half,” Sam said. She gestured for Sienna to calm down. “They’re not villains.”

Just one or two levels below a true hero. You know, above an anti-hero.

“Yes,” Sienna said. A long time ago, Handshaw had given her a hero ranking list, which she had studied for hours, and Teddy had also confirmed was fairly accurate. She was firmly in the black area, the “bad guys” column on the chart. The area representing the heroic good guys also occupied a large portion of the chart.

People who gain superpowers may initially be in the middle of the morality hierarchy chart.

For example, anti-heroes, rogues, or more unusual categories like businessmen, mercenaries, and guardians. There are many possibilities, but the general public tends to categorize people into five main types. They are either superheroes, heroes, rogues, villains, or, extremely rare, supervillains.

“Okay, so HRF will recruit members from the mid-level,” Sienna said.

“Yes,” Sam said. “People in the middle class may not want to be associated with those who are content to remain in the middle class.”

When you're labeled a 'volunteer police officer,' it can be much harder to act bravely and do good deeds.

Therefore, if someone is willing to cooperate with HRF but wants to conceal their identity, HRF can understand.

"Do they think I'm like that too?" Sienna asked. That makes some sense.

"Maybe. I bet they think you're somewhere in the middle."

Perhaps they are mercenaries, not true heroes? In any case, it's normal for superheroes to communicate with each other; if they do, they'll trust each other more than they trust government agencies.

“Yes,” Sienna said.

"That's called reciprocity. Heroes like the Charismatic Warrior open their hearts to those of slightly lower rank."

That person may be worried about HRF, but will confide in a friend who is open with them.

Then, bang! HRF has a way of finding you and sending you all this annoying spam. Sam waved the letter a few more times.

Sienna reached out and caught the letter before Sam could crumple it. She laid it flat on the table, careful not to get it dirty. The girls had eaten on this table earlier, so there were some stains on it.

【My dearest boss:】

The O'Clair Hero Response Team is honored to invite you to our annual "Little Heroes" event!

Our generation of children needs heroes as role models, and we believe you are very suitable to be an outstanding role model!

The event will be held this Friday at 6:30 p.m. at E. Clair Memorial Hospital. Catering will be provided. Please leave all weapons or dangerous items at home and reply with your attendance confirmation at the following address:…

The rest of the letter is a collection of legal clauses cleverly disguised with flowery language; the person who wrote it was probably on a meager salary.

Essentially, this is an annual event where several second-tier heroes appear in the pediatric ward of Aucler's largest hospital.

They'll linger there, distribute merchandise, and maybe even take some selfies—basically, they're doing some public relations activities.

This is the kind of boring, hypocritical good deeds that Sienna has always hated.

She had actually participated in similar events before. Several heroes showed up at her high school with merchandise and even held autograph sessions.

Sienna was determined to get away, so she wisely hid in the library.

She couldn't remember the heroine's name, but she showed up at the library, saying she was looking for a "lonely soul," and chatted with Sienna for a few awkward minutes before finally getting bored and leaving.

This embarrassing memory lingered in her mind for many years and was one of the most memorable of her many awkward moments.

“I think we should go,” Sienna said.

"Really?" Sam asked. "This idea looks terrible, but you're the boss, the boss. I'm listening to you."

Sienna moved her chin. She wasn't sure how to explain why she wanted to go.

She knew the reason, but it was a little…cheesy, and she worried that Sam might not take her concerns seriously. “I think we might…be getting a little…too good at being villains.”

“I think the reasoning needs to be more detailed,” Sam said.

“I don’t want to be a bad guy,” Sienna said. “I…it feels too easy and good to be a villain.”

Perhaps if I do something morally right, I can make amends?

She pointed to the letter. This might be the most objectively good thing she could do right now. Make a sick child happy? That's not villainous at all.

“Hmm. Okay, I think I understand,” Sam said. “You could say you want to cleanse yourself of your karma.”

“Yes, that’s it.” Sienna nodded firmly. This was what she wanted. A chance to escape her villainous identity.

Sam casually pointed at Sienna. "Is it because of that time she was wrongly accused of cheating on the exam?"

“No…maybe?” Sienna said. She had already told Sam what had happened.

Sam was the only person besides her mother whom she could confide in freely, and she didn't want her mother to know that she might be a little angry.

“You know, that Wesley is an idiot, right? He totally deserved to be yelled at by you.”

“It’s Wesley,” Sienna corrected. “Maybe? But I’m not usually like that.”

Sam shrugged. "If you put it that way, I think he's known as a lazy bum, so I don't think it'll hurt to let him come to his senses."

“It’s not that yelling at him was wrong, it’s that I actually yelled at him,” Sienna said.

She resisted the urge to complain. "I'm going to participate in this activity. It will show the sisters what doing good deeds is like, and it will benefit them. Maybe it will set a good example?"

Sam didn't seem to believe it at all, and Sienna secretly agreed with her.

"Okay, whatever. It's Friday, right? Well, we have a few days to get the clothes ready and get the girls used to saying proper polite things. I don't think you want them to act like they're doing normally in the hospital."

"Yes... I really don't want to."

"Teddy might turn into a bear and show off, making a complete mess of the room."

Or they might attack the hospital administrators once they learn about the hospital's charges.

Athena might try to put on airs in front of the doctors. Maple might turn a life-sustaining machine into a gun, and Trinity might end up plunging headfirst into a garbage bin full of biohazards.

“Oh my God,” Sienna murmured. These things all sounded extremely likely. “Yes, we need to… give them a lesson in behavior.”

"Okay, you'll have to do it. I have other things to do this week, boss."

Being a lackey is fun and the pay is pretty good, but I have to maintain my own social life, and I've neglected it for a while now.

"If you ask, maybe we can find other helpers to clean up." Sam lazily stretched his arms above his head.

“Yes, of course,” Sienna said. She didn’t even have the energy to be disappointed.

It's normal that Sam has a social life while she doesn't. Besides, she already felt a little guilty for taking up too much of Sam's time.

"I'll handle it. Don't worry."

Sam didn't want to worry about it; Sienna alone was enough to make both of them suffer.