Aozaki Aoko Case File

A blond youth, dressed in an expensive, stylish jacket and adorned with vintage-looking gold jewelry, strolled through the commercial streets of Fuyuki City.

His handsome and well-proportioned features undoubtedly attracted the attention of many women on the street. However, upon noticing the proud and icy expression on his face, they found themselves hesitating, unable to muster the courage to approach him.

This unknown citizen, whom we'll call Mr. Gold, wandered leisurely past various shops, mentally critiquing the prosperity that modern humans had built. His evaluations ranged from disdain to deeply considered conclusions.

After wandering and feeling slightly bored, Mr. Gold found himself at a game center.

Possessing the Omniscient and Omnipotent Star, he naturally understood what kind of place this was and how the facilities were meant to be played.

After casually throwing a large sum of money to the staff at the exchange counter, Mr. Gold received a substantial amount of game tokens. He then chose a machine that caught his interest and took a seat.

What happened next shocked all the players around him. No matter which gambling-style game he played, Mr. Gold won easily, racking up massive winnings.

Thanks to his unique skill, Golden Rule EX, even if he blindly tossed a token, he could effortlessly rake in money. Regardless of whether the store had secretly adjusted the odds of winning, Mr. Gold could grasp the one winning possibility in a sea of randomness, achieving overwhelming victories.

It didn't take long for him to go from a single basket of tokens to having so many winnings that he couldn't even store them all. He began handing out free tokens to the other players around him.

In his own words: "This king is in a good mood today, so take them!"

However, games like these can lose their appeal after consecutive wins. As Mr. Gold continued playing, his brow furrowed deeper and deeper, and he eventually lost interest in the machine in front of him.

Standing up, he casually grabbed a handful of tokens from his overflowing basket and distributed the rest to the surrounding players before searching for his next challenge. He had absolute confidence in his ability to turn any situation in his favor.

After surveying the game center, Mr. Gold set his sights on a well-made fighting game machine.

The game featured two modes: PvE against AI opponents and local PvP against other players in the game center. Mr. Gold first tried a few rounds against the AI, easily defeating the highest-difficulty COM opponents with his exceptional reflexes and sharp intuition.

Since the machine couldn't satisfy the king's demands, human opponents were the only option left.

Without hesitation, Mr. Gold entered the PvP lobby and randomly matched with another player in the game center for a match.

After both players selected their characters, the battle began.

At first, Mr. Gold approached his opponent with a judgmental and somewhat dismissive attitude. However, when his own character's health was reduced by half while his opponent had only lost one-fifth of theirs, he realized he had to take things seriously.

"Hmm, not bad," the King of Heroes remarked with a smirk. His interest was piqued—after all, for him, any game only became enjoyable when his opponent was strong enough to provide a challenge.

The battle was intense. Mr. Gold relied on his incredible reflexes and skillful maneuvers to hold his ground against his opponent. Yet, his opponent often turned the tide with techniques that caught Mr. Gold off guard, putting him in a tight spot.

After several fierce rounds, the two were evenly matched, though Mr. Gold's opponent ultimately secured more victories overall.

At one point, when Mr. Gold ran out of tokens, he even called a staff member to bring him another basket so he could continue the match.

Although Mr. Gold was thoroughly enjoying himself, he seemed dissatisfied with his win rate. Determined, he demanded another match, fully confident that he could surpass his opponent's victories.

But just as he was about to continue, his opponent abruptly exited the game room, bringing their intense rivalry to an end.

Mr. Gold was furious. How dare someone walk away from a match with the king? Such insolence!

Lifting his head high, he scanned the game center, intent on identifying the mongrel who had so brazenly disrespected him.

After searching for a while, he finally spotted a red-haired boy on the opposite side of his machine, smiling and waving at him.

For some inexplicable reason, as Mr. Gold locked eyes with the boy, he felt a faint, dull ache in his elbow...

"You there, brat. Was it you who dared to flee after defeating this king?" Mr. Gold asked arrogantly.

"My mom says I have to go home," the boy replied. "But, mister, you're good at this game! I hope we can play again next time!"

"You think you can just walk away after defeating this king?!" Mr. Gold glared at the boy. "I'll pay for your tokens, so come and fight me for another three hundred rounds!"

"That won't work," the boy said seriously, shaking his head. "I promised my mom I'd only play until this time. When it's time, I have to go home."

Mr. Gold fell silent, a rare occurrence for him.

For a moment, he studied the boy intently, seemingly realizing something. Then, he gave a meaningful smile.

"Keeping promises is an admirable quality, boy," Mr. Gold said.

After a brief moment of thought, he flipped his hand, producing a short sword of exquisite craftsmanship and undeniable quality. Its hilt was adorned with a gemstone.

"Take it, boy," Mr. Gold said, tossing the short sword to the red-haired youth. "Consider it this king's reward for defeating him."

The boy fumbled to catch the absurdly prestigious-looking item. Just as he was about to refuse—his mother had warned him never to accept gifts from strangers—he looked up and realized that the blond man across from him had already disappeared without a trace.

The boy stared at the short sword in his hands, scratching his head in confusion as he pondered what to do with it.

After thinking for a moment, he decided to unsheathe the sword and take a closer look.

Glancing around to make sure no one was watching, he carefully slid the blade out of its scabbard.

The moment the boy caught sight of the blade, he was captivated by its radiant brilliance.

The short sword was immaculate, flawless, and seemingly born perfect, with no evidence of forging. It was as if the sword had existed in this form since the beginning.

In the center of the blade, mysterious inscriptions—written in a language the boy couldn't recognize—seemed to whisper ancient tales of the weapon's storied past.

Something deep within the boy stirred. In his short life, he had never felt so aware of his true self as he did at this moment.

The short sword felt as though it had always been a part of him, fitting perfectly in his grasp.

Just then, the clock struck the hour. Jolted from his reverie, the boy glanced at the clock on the wall and hurriedly sheathed the sword, hiding it under his jacket before rushing out of the game center.

Ps: Hero of Justice first appearance.