After leaving Dr. Richard's house, I had countless questions about that fake Indigo. My initial guess was that he was a robot—but when Dr. Richard himself said otherwise, with such a serious expression, I was convinced he wasn't lying.
"I don't know... I've wondered the same thing myself. But one thing's for sure—he's not a robot or some kind of puppet being controlled by someone."
Dr. Richard's words kept echoing in my head.
As I was walking home, a sudden throbbing pain struck my head. I held my forehead.
I didn't understand what was happening.
This wasn't like what I saw in the webtoon.
My gut told me that if I made one wrong move, everything would end.
"Ugh... I have a bad feeling about this..."
*At home*
I threw myself onto the bed.
For some reason, I felt extremely exhausted today—as if my energy was slowly being drained. Could it be because of my powers? Maybe… since I still don't know my limits.
From now on, I need to be more careful when using my power.
Since my duties were temporarily being taken over by that fake Indigo, I should take this chance to rest.
At the Hero Association, Korea Branch
Lightnova and several A-rank Korean heroes were watching the replay of Indigo's attack at Namdaemun Market.
Lightnova felt something was off. After hijacking the airport, Indigo immediately launched another attack? Something didn't add up.
"As you can see, Indigo Reign is a villain who must be captured. If not, more lives will be lost,"
said the Director.
Even so, Lightnova didn't overthink it—Indigo was still a cruel and ruthless villain.
*Six days later*
Ji-hye was doing yoga at home.
As she focused on her breathing, her phone suddenly rang, making her stop.
It was the Director. She picked up the call.
"Ah, Director. What's the matter?"
"Ji-hye! Haven't you seen the news? Indigo is attacking the Ulsan Port!"
Hearing that directly from the Director shocked her. She rushed to her room and changed into her superhero outfit.
*At Ulsan Port*
Several ships—both fishing and passenger—were on fire. Some nearby buildings were burning too.
Atop one of the flaming structures stood Indigo, hands behind his back, watching the chaos unfold as if it were completely ordinary.
A light glimmered from afar—it was Lightnova.
In a flash, Lightnova tried to land a punch on Indigo, but Indigo effortlessly dodged it.
Not wanting to crash into the building, Lightnova stopped midair and landed atop the burning structure.
"You… What exactly do you want?"
Indigo turned toward Lightnova, his hands still behind his back.
Lightnova waited for an answer—but there was none.
Indigo remained silent, staring back at her.
"Say something! Damn it!"
shouted Lightnova, frustrated at being ignored.
Still, Indigo didn't respond.
Suddenly, Lightnova noticed something strange—behind the black mask, Indigo's eyes glowed red.
"You… You're not Indigo…"
Hearing that, the fake Indigo brought his hands forward.
"Me? What are you talking about?"
He spread his arms wide.
"I am Indigo Reign…"
"The real world is hell, and now, I'll turn this world into hell—so it can become the real world."
Lightnova's eyes widened—fear creeping in.
He's… not the Indigo I know.
"Lightnova… Ever since I appeared, you've always gotten in my way. People even call you my rival. Isn't that ridiculous?"
Lightnova said nothing—her fists clenched tight, ready to fight or dodge.
"That's why… I'll erase you first. So no one will ever stand in my way again!"
Then, the fake Indigo formed a pistol shape with his right hand. From his fingertip, a dark-blue light burst forth, shooting like a real gun.
Lightnova dodged immediately.
Indigo kept firing one shot after another.
Lightnova moved gracefully, dodging every blast while trying to close the distance between them.
But suddenly, something strange happened—she could predict Indigo's next moves.
It felt like a new power had awakened within her.
With that, she moved even faster, weaving through the blue blasts like light itself.
When she got close enough, she anticipated that Indigo would attack with his right hand.
She prepared to dodge the incoming strike—but Indigo suddenly kicked her in the stomach, sending her flying backward.
"Did you really think you could predict all my attacks?"
Lightnova groaned, clutching her abdomen.
How… how did he know I awakened a new power?
She got up, steadying her stance.
With the speed of light, she lunged at Indigo, striking again and again—yet Indigo dodged every single blow.
Ugh! He's infuriating—and too strong! How can he read all my moves?!
She aimed a punch at his masked face, but Indigo dodged as expected, so she quickly followed up with a kick to his side, like kicking a soccer ball.
The impact sent Indigo crashing into a wall, cracking it.
Lightnova straightened up, catching her breath.
But Indigo stood up again, completely unharmed, brushing off the dust.
"Your attacks are impressive, but they won't stop me."
Before she could react, Indigo suddenly appeared behind her.
She turned, too late. His punch smashed into her face, followed by a powerful kick to the stomach, sending her tumbling across the rooftop.
As she tried to get up, Indigo stepped on her shoulder. The force was immense, the rooftop cracked beneath them.
Lightnova screamed in pain.
The rooftop gave way, collapsing and sending both of them into the burning building below.
Lightnova crashed and rolled across the fiery floor, her body covered in wounds.
She struggled to stand, scanning her surroundings, flames engulfed the entire interior.
Not far away, Indigo was already getting up.
"Ugh… His power is the same as the real Indigo's, but this one's more brutal…"
She muttered to herself.
Indigo turned toward her, and in a blink, teleported right in front of her. He swung a punch, but Lightnova narrowly dodged and countered with a series of glowing strikes.
A punch to his chest.
Another to his gut.
Then an uppercut to his jaw, each one bursting with radiant light.
A normal person's bones would have shattered, but Indigo only staggered, then calmly stood back up.
"Haah… Haah… He's… too strong…"
Lightnova's breathing grew heavy. She was running out of energy.
"Impressive. Truly. You've managed to push me this far, I should applaud you."
Indigo clapped mockingly, unfazed.
The fire spread further, blocking every exit.
"Why are you doing this?"
she asked weakly.
"Why? To make the real world return to what it once was!"
"What it once was? You mean hell?"
"Exactly! The real world is hell—where sins thrive, where everything burns, and the sky bleeds red! That's the world I dream of…"
"And now… this world already holds all those sins. All that's left… is to add the color! I'll burn this world in suffering!"
This fake Indigo… he's lost his mind, but maybe he isn't fake at all…
It had been over a week, yet the real Indigo hadn't appeared.
The Indigo Lightnova knew was a manipulative, calculating villain, a master of puzzles and sabotage.
But the one before her was savage, destroying, killing, and burning everything.
As Lightnova's thoughts raced, Indigo appeared before her again, sweeping her legs. She fell hard onto her back.
Before she could get up, he pointed his finger, like a gun, at her face.
"Looks like your struggle ends here~"
Ah… Is this the end for me? I hate to admit it… but maybe it is.
"Goodbye… nuisance."
Before Indigo could fire, suddenly, a series of blue energy blasts came flying from behind.
Indigo dodged, rolling aside and aiming his finger at the source.
"Who's there!? Who dares interrupt me!!"
"Stop pretending to be me."
Through the smoke, another Indigo emerged, finger aimed forward, glowing with the same dark-blue light.
Lightnova's eyes widened. Hope returned.
She stared at the two identical figures before her.
Who… who's the real one?