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It wasn't long after the games had ended that we all decided it would be best to go our separate ways and let the villains be villains and the heroes be heroes. As much as it hurt, I agreed with them. Unfortunately for me, that also meant not talking to them outside of work. They couldn't meet Jelly or anything, which was disheartening, but I understood why. I really did.

I still missed Poultry Man and Crimson. Surprisingly, I even missed Doc and Ren, who had given up being villains. Poultry Man and Crimson, though, remained steadfast in their roles. Poultry Man always said it was too fun destroying the entire city. Doc agreed but was more worried something would happen to his pup.

It was cute, but I’m glad he had a reason to retire. He honestly terrified me when he was a villain and undoubtedly would probably be a villain for hire for a little while... or the new redstone engineer for the Heroes Association.

I figured that out when I went to collect some new arrows and found myself descending the stairs into the redstone engineer's room. As I reached the bottom, I stopped short, surprised to see Doc there, meticulously working on a whole new batch of heroes' armor.

He looked completely absorbed in his work, a faint scowl of concentration on his face as he adjusted the wiring on one of the chest plates. I stood there for a moment, watching him. It was strange seeing him like this, so refined and focused, not the chaotic figure I remembered from our battles.

I cleared my throat awkwardly, trying to announce my presence. "Uh, Doc?"

He glanced up, his expression unreadable for a moment, then he sighed and straightened. "What do you need?" he asked, his voice still carrying that edge of professionalism.

"I was just here to pick up some more arrows," I replied, gesturing vaguely toward the room. "Didn't expect to see you here."

Doc nodded, his eyes flicking back to the armor he was working on. "The gear they had wasn't up to standard," he said, almost to himself. "Needed some improvements."

"Right," I said, feeling a bit out of place. "Well, it's good you're here. The Heroes Association could use someone with your expertise."

Doc didn't respond immediately, his focus returning to the piece in front of him. But then, unexpectedly, he glanced back at me, his expression softening just a little. "It's... different," he admitted. "But I have a reason to be here now. It's not just about power or control anymore."

There was a pause, and I could see the tension in his shoulders ease a bit. It was like a small crack in the armor, revealing something more vulnerable underneath.

"So, how's the pup?" I asked, trying to steer the conversation into safer territory.

A ghost of a smile tugged at the corner of Doc's mouth. "He's doing well. I'm surprised you didn't see him yet. Ren's been buzzing around this office like crazy. I think he might have finally found a place to sit down and relax—I don't know." He glanced around the room, his eyes scanning for any signs of the wolfish energy that usually accompanied Ren.

His gaze settled on one of the corners, where a makeshift pile of blankets and pillows had been arranged. To my surprise, there was Ren, curled up like a contented puppy, fast asleep. His wolf ears twitched occasionally, and his tail was draped lazily over the pillows.

“He’s here too?” I asked skeptically, my brow furrowing. “Why would the Heroes Association let him in?”

Doc chuckled softly, the sound surprisingly warm. “Ren’s not exactly a threat anymore, you know. He’s more interested in protecting the people he cares about than causing trouble. Besides, he’s got nowhere else to go now that he’s not… well, you know.”

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