Don't Worry, It'll Be Quick

Richard wasn't going to die right away. Yet anyone forced to witness themselves reduced to such a state, only to be critiqued by their tormentor, would find it utterly impossible to bear. In his sheer terror, he blindly reached out with his left hand and grabbed Qi Li's arm, begging in broken, desperate gasps, "Save me... Call an ambulance... I was wrong, I really was..." Qi Li glanced down at the hand clutching his arm. With a faint smile, he raised his right hand, patted Richard's trembling shoulder, and replied, "You don't know you were wrong. You just know you're about to die." "Don't worry. It'll be quick." The moment the words left his mouth— Squelch— Qi Li pressed his fist against the center of Richard's chest, forcing it in, inch by inch. "Ugh—" Richard's pupils contracted violently as bloody foam bubbled from his mouth. Beside them, Henry watched the scene unfold, the folds of fat on his face trembling uncontrollably. His legs had gone completely weak, but now, utterly reckless with fear, he let out a shriek and scrambled toward the door, tumbling and crawling in pure desperation. Qi Li paid him no mind, simply pulling his arm free. By then, Henry had already reached the door. A look of wild ecstasy washed over his face. He threw his weight into shoving the door, only for it not to budge an inch. Henry froze instantly. It was as if he could feel the hair-raising chill creeping up behind him. Shaking like a sieve, he threw every ounce of strength into slamming his shoulder against the door, screaming toward the outside at the top of his lungs, "Murder! Someone help me! Help!" Outside. Kate leaned her back against the doorway. A few passersby under her control stood gathered around the entrance, talking loudly and excitedly among themselves. Coupled with the deafening roar of the football stadium itself, no matter how much noise was made inside, no one would notice. Hearing Henry's frantic cries for help and Richard's agonized screams from behind the door, Kate crossed her hands in front of her. She merely cast a fleeting glance back, paid it no further mind, and resumed watching both sides of the corridor to make sure no one paid attention to the room. She didn't know why Qi Li was doing this; she only knew what she was supposed to do. Inside. Seeing that the door wouldn't open and no one was coming to his rescue, Henry was consumed by despair. And when footsteps approached from behind, that despair peaked into absolute terror. Slowly, with agonizing stiffness, Henry turned his head. A single glance at the scene made him avert his eyes, unable to look any longer. As for Richard, he lay limp on the floor, motionless. The perpetrator of it all had already stepped in front of him, asking with a faint smile, "You said earlier that you watched my movie. Then let me ask you: what was the villain's name?" "It... It was... It was..." Henry's lips quivered violently. Naturally, he couldn't answer. He only knew the line "With great power comes great responsibility" because it had gone viral online, and he had happened across it while scrolling. As for actually watching Bronze's movie? If he ever went to see a film starring someone from the Eastern Power, his friends and family would mercilessly mock and judge him for it. Only the perverts obsessed with transitioning kids would watch non-white movies. Henry remembered that Richard had been the one to say that. Richard had already gone to meet God. What about him? Henry saw the faint smile vanish from Qi Li's face. Finally, trembling from head to toe, he blurted out his parting thought: "Y-You're... you're definitely not... a superhero." At that, Qi Li smiled. "I never said I was." With that, he seized Henry's right hand and raised it... One minute later. The tightly shut door clicked softly from the inside. Kate turned around the moment she heard the sound. The door swung open. Qi Li stood before her.