A Hitman's Guide To Becoming A Hero

In the quiet night of the city, an old lady walked down a lonely street, passing beneath the glow of a street lamp.

Three men suddenly stepped out of a dark alleyway and moved toward her.

The moment she saw them, she shifted to the side, hugging her bag tightly in an attempt to avoid them.

They shifted with her.

The three ganged up around her, "Hey, old lady. Hand over the bag." the man said pulling out a knife.

The lady turned in an attempt to run, "I said give us the damn bag!" One of them yelled, as his hands shot forward.

She felt a rough hand grab her shoulder and yank her backward, sending her crashing onto the pavement.

One of them ruthlessly dragged the bag out of her hands, opening it to check the content, "She’s got a few bucks in here, her phone too"

"Please, I need the money in the bag... We won’t have anything to eat if you take it" The woman pleaded, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Old lady, we have to eat too. So do us a favour and shut the fuck up" another said, mild irritation in his voice as they turned away from the lady.

But as he turned, he noticed two sharp red lights staring from the darkness.

"Huh? What the heck is that?" He asked, calling his other colleagues attention to the strange glow in the dark.

"Stealing from an old lady! Truly, you have no shame!" A deep voice boomed from the figure as he stepped into the light.

His silhouette sharpening under the lamplight.

He seemed to be wearing a teddy bear costume, with yellow stripes along the sides and a large T drawn in front of the suit and a huge bear mask covering his face.

"Who’s that?" One of the criminals asked.

"A hero? Nah, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him" the other replied.

"Let’s beat him up and get out of here, we don’t have all night. The cops might be here soon" the third said pulling out a dagger from his jacket as he approached the teddy.

The teddy’s eyes glowed red with a ferocious glint as he moved with an inhumane speed, reaching the boy in a blink of an eye.

His curled fist coming down with a sharp punch, the boy’s eyes went wide as the incoming punch covered his entire face.

POW!

The punch smashed straight into his face, lifting him off his feet and straight to the wall. He slammed his back to the wall, instantly going unconscious.

The other two glanced at each other, "Shit! It’s an awakened! Let’s get out of here" One said as he quickly made a run for it, the other looked at the friend who had fallen unconscious and his friend who’d ran, torn between the options to choose.

But as he saw the large teddy suddenly coming closer, his instincts flared as he followed behind his friend, running with all his might.

As the two tore off into a race, they glanced back seeing the large teddy racing right behind them with practiced ease. Its speed completely surpassing theirs, covering the distance in seconds.

"Shit shit!" They panicked, increasing their pace, but all to no avail, they caught the red glint from the Teddy’s eyes as it leaped into the air behind them.

"Not so fast! Teddy Hug!" It caught the two in a tight hug, it’s soft foamy body, allowing them to sink into its embrace, but it wasn’t comfortable for long, as they felt the air in their lungs getting squeezed out.

In no time, the two passed out falling to the ground, in that same second the sound of sirens quickly filled the street.

Teddy grabbed the three criminals like ragdolls as he walked up to the police.

"Thank you uh..."The Policeman paused not knowing what to address the hero as.

"I am Teddy, D-rank hero from the association" He said keeping a dignified pose with his hands on his waist.

"Alright thank you! We’re glad that the association pays attention to all forms of crime, even petty ones like these. Please continue in your good deeds" The policeman urged as he threw the three boys into the back seat of the police car and drove away.

Teddy walked back to the old lady handing her her bag, "This should belong to you"

"Hero Teddy! Thanks so much! I wouldn’t know what I would do if those robbers got away" the old lady said, bowing her head in gratitude to the figure dressed in a teddy bear costume.

"It’s alright lady! That’s why we heroes exist, to make the world a safer place for the civilians." The teddy man said, placing his hands by his waist giving a dignified pose.

The lady flashed a smile before leaving with her bag.

Teddy turned to look at the now empty street, letting out a sigh, "C’mon. I’ve carried out several missions already and still nobody knows me? I deserve better than this. At this point, I might as well join one of the council associations. Besides, I need the funds" Teddy complained as he walked down the empty street.

’That phantom hero guy must really be having it easy... He’s all over the news already. And I heard rumours he only started the work some weeks ago. I wish I was that lucky’ Teddy thought placing his hands behind his head, but his eyes caught a figure under the lamplight.

A young girl dressed in a black gown, she playing with her fingers while looking across the road.

"Oh poor kid, she seems like she’s lost. I should help her" Teddy muttered, as he walked up to the little girl.

When he got close enough to the girl, she didn’t seem to notice his presence as she kept playing with her fingers. He was just about to tap her shoulder when—

"James Noah. E-rank hero." The little girl’s voice was soft.

Too soft.

Teddy paused, struck with confusion as the little girl called him by his name, his brows furrowed, his voice turning cold and cautious, "Hey kid, how did you know that?"

The little girl bent down, muttering words to herself as though speaking to someone else.

"Didn’t you just say you wanted people to know you. Why react that way when someone suddenly mentions your name?" A croaked voice asked behind him.

Teddy turned immediately, his senses sharpening as he saw the figure behind him.

A boy stood, playing with his hair as he continued speaking, "Master was right about heroes. They only want fame and popularity. Don’t worry, master says people become famous when they die... I’ll keep your brain though" Hexi said with an uneven chuckle as he turned his sharp gaze towards Teddy.

Teddy frowned, "Kid be careful, you don’t go around saying weird stuff" Teddy warned, his hands curling into fist.

Hexi looked at him for some time, "I forgot to tell you... Shadow hates when she’s ignored,"

"Huh?" Teddy was taken aback by the sudden words, but quickly remembered the little kid that was standing behind him.

As he turned around, his eyes widened.

Towering over him was a massive bear-shaped shadow.