Clark's nightly patrols had made him more adept at using his super speed, which had increased significantly. Meanwhile, at a second-hand clothing store, two masked individuals were attempting to break the electronic locks. One of them held a cube-shaped electronic device against the store's lock.
"Hurry up! Anyone could come here any minute."
"Don't rush me. Do you think I want to be standing here?"
The thieves whispered softly as they stood in front of the store. At the same time, from behind surveillance cameras, Lex Luthor was watching everything. He was the one who had helped these thieves get the device. He wanted to learn more about this thing that roamed the city every day, or as he called it, "the blur."
"So, will you come to be a hero, or will you ignore it?"
Lex smiled as he looked at the screen, then read a post in a newspaper called "The Daily Planet." It was a new local paper trying to attract attention. His phone screen displayed a news alert:
(Breaking News: Smallville Police Find Gang of Jewel Thieves Tied Up in Shack, News of Missing Bag Containing Five Million Dollars).
"Huh, yeah, stealing five million dollars from a gang. That's hilarious."
At that moment, the thieves had opened the door and gone inside.
"Hey, are you sure the money's here?"
"If I wasn't, why would I risk myself, you idiot?"
"Hey, don't insult me..."
...
A little distance away, he arrived, looking right and left.
"I have to pay attention to the road, or I might cause an accident if I'm not careful."
Clark had narrowly escaped a road accident a day ago, and if not for his super speed, something terrible could have happened.
Clark crossed the empty road. There were only some cats and dogs sleeping in the street, which Clark ignored as he continued to survey the area.
He wanted to continue patrolling and almost activated his super speed, but he heard sounds from nearby. At first, he thought it was a cat, but the sounds were human. Clark hadn't yet awakened his super hearing, but for his super-powered race, strong hearing was natural.
Clark went towards the sounds and saw shadows entering the clothing store. This clothing store was famous in the city because it was closer to a shopping center than a regular store.
Clark approached the place, looking around.
At the same time, Lex was getting closer and closer to the screen showing the location. Lex's gaze was that of a madman as he muttered, "Yes, yes, that's right. Show me what you'll do to them."
Lex was excited, but on the contrary, the thieves felt uneasy. Clark looked at the place and found two people inside.
"Is today a lucky day?"
Clark said quietly as he moved.
"Hey, are you done taking the money?"
"Yes, yes, we have to get out. The alarm will go off in five minutes."
At that moment, one of the thieves heard a sound coming from behind.
"Tap."
"What was that?"
But when he turned his head, he found nothing.
"Maybe I imagined it."
"Tap, tap."
"What's happening?"
Both of them looked towards the sounds, but to no avail. There was nothing there.
"Let's get out quickly."
"Yes."
One of them gestured to the other, and they headed towards the door, but something was preventing them. It wasn't something physical, but something like fear inside them that kept them from moving.
In a moment, a cotton rope was thrown towards one of them, strangling the thief.
Clark had found the rope lying in the store, so he decided to use it to tie up the criminals.
"I remember seeing the Flash tie up criminals with a rope. I'll try this method."
The moment Clark strangled the thief, he began to circle the criminals at super speed, tying them up with the rope.
"Damn it, what is this?"
"Gkkk, gkkkk."
One of them was choking, and the other was being tied up with the rope. Both fell to the ground, tied up. Clark loosened the rope around the thief's neck, not wanting him to die, and tightened and adjusted the rope so they couldn't untie it quickly.
Clark searched their belongings after they lost consciousness.
"Let's see, seven thousand dollars in the bag. This is the money they stole. There's also a sharp military knife. Why don't they have anything useful?" Clark decided to leave the place. There was no need for him to stay; the criminals wouldn't wake up until morning. Clark took the military knife with him.
...
Outside, Clark moved slowly and quietly. At this moment, he decided to return home, feeling that he had finished all his work for the day.
Outside, Clark stopped. His eyes widened at the sight, and he felt numbness in his head. He couldn't comprehend what was happening.
"How did this happen?"
In front of him stood Lex Luthor, holding a gun with a silencer, standing in the middle of the road near a black motorcycle. Lex was wearing black clothes with a green jacket.
"Hello, creature. Do you understand human speech?"
"..."
Clark was shocked by this. It hadn't been more than a month since Lex entered Clark's life, but he had managed to discover a lot about him in a short time.
"Oh, do you want to say something, or will I talk alone? But wait, why are you so short?"
"... Who are you?"
Clark was two and a half years old, so he was short, but to Lex Luthor, he thought he was a short man.
"My name is Lex Luthor. I'm a programmer and inventor. I discovered your existence when you saved my grandfather, so I searched for you and finally found you, huh."
Despite Lex's friendly words, he never lowered the gun from his hand, and the gun was pointed directly at Clark.
"You seem like a friendly person. Have you come to thank me for saving your grandfather?"
"Yes, yes, I'm here for that. Thank you."
"What a righteous person you are, going to all this trouble just to thank the person who saved your grandfather."
Clark mocked him, but Lex didn't care and said, "I heard you took five million. Do you want to invest it?"