Reaping What He Sowed

Late at night.

On a highway near Smallville.

Vroom!

A tanker truck loaded with gasoline cruised steadily down the highway.

A high-energy rock song played inside the cab.

The driver, Kade, bobbed his head along with the music.

Beep!

As the truck rounded a sharp bend, Kade spotted an old pickup truck parked some distance ahead in the glare of his headlights.

"Damn it."

Kade cursed under his breath. "Which idiot parked in the middle of the road?"

Honk! Honk!

Kade pressed the horn. The sound carried through the night, but no one responded.

"What's going on?"

Kade frowned slightly and instinctively checked the time. He had to deliver this load of gasoline by the deadline, or half his pay for the trip would be docked.

Click.

The middle-aged man pushed open the door and picked up the APXA1 Pistol from the passenger seat.

In free America, long-haul truck drivers generally carried weapons to guard against robbery and unexpected dangers.

Kade gripped the pistol and adjusted the baseball cap on his head. As he walked toward the abandoned pickup, he cursed and shouted, "Fuck! Whoever you are, move your car right now!"

Rustle, rustle.

Movement sounded from the dense woods nearby. Kade tightened his grip on the gun. "Who's there?!"

Before he could get closer, he felt the pistol grip gradually grow hot.

"Shit!"

It was as if the gun had been left baking in the desert for a full day and night. The extreme heat made Kade scream, and the weapon fell from his hand and hit the ground.

"What's happening?"

Kade stared in horror at the reddening pistol. The bizarre sight made his heart race, and he swallowed hard without realizing it.

Had he run into something supernatural?

Vroom!

The roar of the truck came from behind him.

Kade turned around and saw his own truck charging toward him at terrifying speed. In the driver's seat sat an elderly, middle-aged man with a sinister grin.

"Die!"

A cruel look appeared on Watt's face. He floored the accelerator and gave the wheel a slight turn, steering the massive truck straight at Kade.

The headlights shone on Kade's face, illuminating his terrified expression.

"No!"

Splat!

As though it had struck a soft sack of flour, the poor truck driver was sent flying by the front of the truck before he could even cry for help. He crashed onto the concrete shoulder and rolled again and again until he finally lay still.

Watt looked coldly at the driver's corpse beneath the truck, as if he had done nothing more than crush an ant.

He had decided on revenge three minutes after gaining his ability.

Everything that had happened tonight gave Watt a strange feeling. Ever since discovering that he could control fire, he had been brewing a "perfect" plan in his heart.

First, when Principal Guan got into the car, he controlled the flames to melt the door lock shut. Then he ignited a fire inside the vehicle and burned Principal Guan alive.

Although there had been a minor hitch in the plan—Principal Guan, who had nearly been burned to death, was saved by that damned Jino—the injuries were so severe that Principal Guan would not live much longer.

Watt twisted his fat body and let out a satisfied sigh.

Mm.

His plan had gone smoothly, and now Watt had decided to kill the person he hated most: Jino Luthor.

However, Watt also knew that Luthor Manor was heavily guarded and not somewhere an ordinary person could break into.

His fat, broad body made it difficult for him to sneak into Jino's room alone and burn him to death, but that did not mean Watt had no other ideas.

After thinking it over, the man came up with an even more vicious plan.

Since he could not infiltrate the place, he might as well hijack a tanker truck and imitate the methods used by people on the other side of the world.

He would drive the tanker into Luthor Manor, jump out the moment it crashed through the gates, and then use his ability to ignite the gasoline.

Then there would be a boom, and everyone in that manor would be blasted into the sky.

The music in the truck interrupted Watt's thoughts. The man pulled a crumpled map from his pocket.

Watt said to himself, "Next, let's see how to get to Luthor Manor."

Just as he was about to turn on the interior light, a soft chuckle came from behind him.

The voice was calm, with a hint of gentleness. "Drive straight for two kilometers, then turn left for one kilometer. Turn right onto South Smallville Road, then drive another five hundred meters and turn right. That's Luthor Manor."

The owner of the voice seemed very enthusiastic, carefully explaining the route to Luthor Manor.

But the sudden voice made cold sweat break out on Watt's back.

The reason was simple: he should have been the only person in the vehicle. So where had that voice behind him come from?

"Smack!"

Watt immediately switched on the cabin light. The orange glow dispelled the darkness.

In the reflection of the rearview mirror, Watt saw an elegant young man.

He wore sweatpants and sat casually in the back seat with one leg crossed over the other. One arm rested against the window, while his other hand lay lightly on his thigh, fingers tapping softly against his knee. His sapphire-blue eyes watched Watt with amusement.

"You!"

Watt's expression changed drastically. The person in the back seat was Jino Luthor!

Before he could think about how the other man had gotten into the vehicle, Watt instinctively made scorching waves of heat rise from his hands.

Just as Watt was about to turn around and smash his fist into Jino's face, his vision went black.

Jino was far faster than him.

Before Watt could make a move, Jino suddenly reached out and grabbed him by the neck.

"Bang!"

An irresistible force drove Watt's head viciously into the steering wheel.

"Beep!"

The truck let out a long, drawn-out horn.

"What, I gave you directions and you can't even say thank you, Coach?" Jino asked blandly as he grabbed Watt's head again.

"Bang!"

His temple collided intimately with the steering wheel once more. This time, Watt felt his brain spin, and the continuous impacts filled his ears with an incessant buzzing.

Expressionless, Jino repeated the motion. Watt tried to raise a hand and pry away Jino's left hand, but that arm was as hard as steel reinforcement. Even Watt's burning flames could not harm it in the slightest. Instead, they only made Jino increase the frequency of the impacts.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The rhythmic sounds of impact echoed through the vehicle alongside Watt's wails.

"Bang!"

Another blow landed, and this time Watt did not even have the strength to scream.

The skin on his forehead had split open, and dark red blood covered his entire fat face.

"Smack!"

Jino pushed open the door and kicked Watt out of the truck like a dead dog.

The chubby coach lay weakly on the cold concrete. Everything before his eyes doubled, and he saw countless Jinos walking toward him.

"P-please, don't kill me." Watt was afraid—truly afraid. He feared Jino's ruthlessness, and even more so the fact that Jino was completely unafraid of his flames. It all proved that he was no match for Jino.

Watt forced out the words, "I was wrong. I'm sorry."

He wanted to beg for Jino's forgiveness.

He saw Jino slowly crouch down.

Then he heard the youth's cool voice. "If apologies worked, what would we need the police for?"