Chapter 123: Hacker Hutch

Leonel scratched the back of his head, feeling a bit embarrassed. 

The truth was, even he, himself, had almost forgotten just how famous he was. But, he had neglected that fact for good reason. 

First, it had been too long. His life of training everyday for football seemed like a lifetime ago. After all, it had been a bit over a year now since the Metamorphosis began and he had experienced longer than that within Zones.

Second, even if he was still playing football, people coming up to him like this was rare. After all, he usually lived on a Paradise Island. Everyone who lived on one was like family. They had watched him grow up, so obviously they wouldn't fanboy over him. And, when he wasn't home, he was on campus. Who on their campus wasn't an elite of an elite, obviously they wouldn't fawn over him like this. 

Thirdly, he had still been an academy student. His level of fame compared to a player in the NAFL was still lacking. It could be said that he was only approaching them in name recognition because he was among the very best academy players of all time. 

And, finally… football was a sport where everyone wore helmets. The average fan wouldn't be very familiar with his face to begin with. Only those who loved the sport and followed it diligently would know his face at first glance like this old man did. 

Still, the embarrassment Leonel was feeling wasn't because the old man had spoken too loudly or even because numerous gazes had fallen onto him. Rather, he was embarrassed that he had neglected something so important. 

How was he supposed to keep hiding his identity like this? By now, at the very least, those in the immediate vicinity all knew his name. And, because he hadn't thought anyone would be able to link his face to the Fort incident, he hadn't come with his face covered either. 

It seemed he had made another mistake. 

"Sure." Leonel finally said, knowing he didn't have much of a way out of this. 

The old man laughed like a little kid. His thoughts of going out for a smoke were thrown to the back of his mind. He hounded Leonel with questions, not minding the weird gazes he was getting. 

It was only then that those who didn't follow football began asking around and finally learned a bit about who Leonel was. Of course, you couldn't expect everyone to be sports fans, but this day was the day Leonel learned that even those who couldn't be said to be his fans still recognized his name.

Leonel smiled bitterly. 'It seems that Royal Blue Academy made quite a bit of money marketing my name. Shouldn't I be a rich man, then? Why haven't I seen any of that money?"

"… Ah, look at me." The old man smacked his own forehead. "I completely forgot to introduce myself. You can call me Hutch or Old Man Hutch. I'm a big fan of yours, Morales. The game has gotten softer over the years, so I had lost interest in watching the NAFL. On a whim, I decided to watch the Academy League and haven't missed a single game of yours since. It's such a shame that the NAFL has been suspended until further notice, or else I would have loved to watch you teach those so-called professionals how to play."

The old man rambled on and on. He seemingly had an endless supply of air to give to his words. 

'This man's breath control is outstanding.'

Others might gloss over this, but Leonel was shocked. Ever since he formed his Fourth and Fifth Nodes into his lungs, he had been experimenting with breath control. It was a wonder just how much of a difference a perfectly timed breath made to power output. There was a reason there was a recommended breathing rhythm whenever one lifted weights. 

Damian, the catwoman, and the others, though, were frozen. 

"Vixen…" Damian mumbled toward the catwoman in a low voice. "… What did he just say his name was? Did I hear correctly?"

The catwoman gulped, her alluring aura completely gone. 

"H-Hutch… He definitely said Hu - Hutch…"

"He couldn't mean the Hacker Hutch, right…?"

The catwoman's lips trembled, but she didn't dare to nod. Because if she did, the reality would be too scary. 

Hutch was a legend. He was one of the best software engineers in history and unsurprisingly gained a Five Star evaluation during his Gene Analysis Exam. 

However, this wasn't a reason to fear him, one might say. Was there a need to be afraid of such a man? So what if he was good with computers?

And therein lied the problem…. The Hacker Hutch was a play on words. He was known for his wizardry in software engineering. But, he was even more known for hacking his opponents to death. 

In a civilization of advanced technology like theirs, there should have been no reason for anyone to use weapons in such a fashion. It was barely alright now that the Metamorphosis had descended. However, obviously, Hutch was retired, so his era was long before the Metamorphosis. 

Just what kind of sick, sadistic person did you need to be to gain such a nickname in this era? He had all sorts of fantastical weapons to choose from that would cause the military officials of the 21st century to drool. Even during his era, even mechsuits fitted with machine guns wasn't an impossible ask. 

Yet… The old man preferred a blade. Not just any blade either, but specifically a machete. 

That was right, the amiable old man fanboying over Leonel without a care in the world, even tossing aside his own dignity without a care for the thoughts of others, was a man known for dissecting his enemies with a bloody, rusted machete. It was certain that even the upper echelons of the Empire feared his name. 

As for his former title, it was above even Joseph's Vice Commander title. In his prime, he was known as Supreme Hutch. That alone was four levels of rank beyond Joseph.