Villain Rui Kamishiro

In a world where people were born with extraordinary abilities, the line between hero and villain was usually decided by a single choice.

Some dedicated their gifts to protecting others.

Others used them to spread fear.

Tsukasa had once been celebrated as one of the greatest heroes of his generation. Strong enough to level buildings with a single punch, he seemed unstoppable. Nobody knew exactly what had happened, only that one day he disappeared, and when he returned, he stood on the opposite side of the law. His methods became ruthless, his crimes bolder, and before long, he was considered one of the most dangerous villains in the country.

Then there was Rui.

Rui technically counted as a villain too, although nobody was entirely sure why. He didn't have any superpowers whatsoever, but that had never stopped him from declaring himself an "evil genius." He built bizarre machines with wildly inconsistent success, gave dramatic speeches to empty rooms, and somehow managed to blow up his own laboratory more often than anyone else's.

Above all else, Rui was Tsukasa's self-proclaimed right-hand man.

Nobody had appointed him.

Tsukasa certainly hadn't.

That tiny detail had never discouraged Rui, who insisted they were close partners destined to reshape the world together.

For reasons Tsukasa himself couldn't explain, Rui simply... kept showing up.

Today was no different.

After effortlessly defeating a group of heroes, Tsukasa stepped into one of his abandoned hideouts, only to find Rui already inside, happily tinkering with a strange machine that looked equal parts ingenious and deeply unsafe.

Rui looked up the moment he noticed him, his face immediately lighting up.

"Ah, Boss! Perfect timing!" Rui beamed, adjusting his goggles. "I made something for your next evil scheme. It has about a sixty percent chance of working exactly as intended... which is a new personal record, I'd say!"