Hero Association Meeting

Ever since the Caped Baldy entered the underground Monster Association, a rumbling vibration has been heard in Z-City.

"Where am I? I'm getting dizzy from all this spinning... And why are there so many Monsters?"

The Bald Demon King, who was crawling in and out of the tunnel, looked helplessly at the bloody path that had been carved out behind him.

Along this bloody path, at least a hundred Tiger-level Monsters and several Demon-Level Threat have fallen. This is only because many of these Monsters were captured by the Bald Demon King using his Space Ball.

The current Bald Demon King is somewhat like the Squirrel Party in the game. He picks and chooses from a large number of Monsters, selecting the most valuable ones to put into his Space Ball. Then, when he encounters a Monsters that can be sold for more money, he releases the Monsters from the Space Ball to kill it and collect newer and stronger Monsters.

At first, Saitama was very enthusiastic, but after encountering too many Monsters, he started to get a little tired.

Moreover, Saitama didn't have any particularly strong sensory abilities. Although he vaguely sensed that there should be a few stronger Monsters in this underground cave, he couldn't find them, which gradually made him a little impatient.

Just as the Caped Baldy was considering whether smashing the entire underground cavern with one punch would affect his leader's house, a strange light flashed across his Space Ball, Vegapunk immediately appeared beside him.

"Huh? No way? Vegapunk, are you going to come and steal my kills again?"

Saitama, who had been looking dead fish-like, immediately showed a nervous expression. All the Monsters he had killed in the past had ended up being killed by Vegapunk, leaving him only with some soup.

Is Vegapunk trying to steal kills again?

"The Hero Association is having a meeting! I'll take you with me; maybe it'll help you improve your ranking!"

Vegapunk rolled his eyes, ignoring Saitama's bizarre idea, and spoke directly.

"Raise the Hero Association's ranking?"

Saitama's eyes lit up. He didn't really care about the Hero Association 'Hero Association ranking, but if the ranking improved, he would receive more money and have to go on fewer missions.

Although the Monsters faced by top-ranked heroes on missions are much stronger, this issue is clearly not within Saitama's consideration.

So after thinking it over carefully, Saitama happily agreed:

When do we set off?

"Leave now, don't resist, I'll use my spatial abilities to move you away!"

Vegapunk casually slapped Saitama, unleashing Space-Time Ninjutsu.

In the blink of an eye, the two arrived in A-City, where the Hero Association was located. In the distance, directly in front of them, stood a tall building made of steel, which was the headquarters of the Hero Association.

"Alright, let's go take a look... By the way, Saitama, what's your current hero ranking?"

"Uh, I think it's the third- B-Rank..."

"Why are you progressing so slowly? I remember when you first joined the Hero Association, you were already B-Class Hero!"

Vegapunk asked with a smile, while Saitama scratched his head helplessly, somewhat embarrassed:

"There's nothing I can do. Who knows how those Hero Association staff actually made their judgments? I feel like I've done a lot of work!"

This matter really has nothing to do with Vegapunk. The Caped Baldy himself has a lazy and unambitious temperament, and with the Akari Aura on top of him, he looks like a passerby. No wonder he usually kills a lot of Monsters, but in the end, he doesn't improve his ranking much.

"Alright, let's go. I heard that the Hero Association is holding this meeting to deal with a huge crisis. If you can perform well in this crisis, Saitama, you might be able to become S-Class Hero in no time!"

Vegapunk waved his hand and spoke. Upon hearing this, the Caped Baldy's eyes lit up, and he was about to follow Vegapunk to the Hero Association.

In the Hero Association's conference room, a group of S-Class Hero with different appearances were already sitting at the conference table, discussing the matter.

"What exactly did they call us here for? I need to take my sister to the amusement Paradise!"

The speaker was a guy who looked like a delinquent student; he was none other than the S-Class Hero Metal Bat.

"I don't know, let's wait for the Hero Association staff to arrive before we can say anything,"

Bang man, said with a smile. As the oldest and most senior S-Class Hero, he and King are arguably the two most prestigious figures in the Hero Association.

As for Tatsumaki and Blast, who are ranked above him, one is a mysterious person who never shows her face, and the other is a superpowered person who looks like a loli but actually has a bad temper comparable to a menopausal Big Mom. They are capable of taking action and never talk nonsense. Naturally, in the eyes of other S-Class Hero, they are not leaders at all.

"Could it be that Vegapunk has pulled something again? He doesn't seem to be here yet. Is he planning something new?"

Sitting at the very bottom, Sweet Mask, with a serious expression, frowned and spoke.

Sweet Mask was doing well as the top A-class hero, but because of the Chakra system developed by Bejapunk, the strength of all the lower-class heroes in the Hero Association skyrocketed.

In particular, Fubuki and the Blizzard Group became extremely powerful. In the end, he was forced to take away the first place of A-Class Hero by Hellish Blizzard and could only come to be the tail of S-Class Hero. Sweet Mask still remembers this matter very clearly to this day.

"Dr. Vegapunk's research is indeed very useful. Now the heroes of the entire Hero Association are thriving and their strength has greatly increased. This is also a good thing for us. At least we S-Class Hero have fewer missions to take on."

The one who spoke was the S-Class Hero sitting in seventh place. He placed his hands on his chin, and the scars on his face and his serious expression made him look like a seated god, exuding an aura of divinity and demonic power.

"Mr. King is right. I was being a bit narrow-minded because of some personal grudges..."

When Sweet Mask saw King speak, he immediately apologized, not only because King had more influence, but also because what King said was the truth.

The Chakra Training System has indeed greatly increased the strength of lower-level heroes. Many heroes have even reached A-rank and S-rank strength. However, because it has been a short time, they have not yet obtained a ranking that matches their strength.

But at least in reality, this is already quite evident. In the past, S-Class Hero were almost like firefighters, often receiving missions to fight powerful Monsters. Now, however, before S-Class Hero even appear, some Demon-Level Threat have already been defeated by A-class B-Class Hero.

Most S-Class Hero can still be considered upright. Although the lower-level heroes have become stronger and there may be some monster-stealing situations, in reality, there are only about a dozen people in the entire S-class, so they naturally won't focus all their attention on improving their ranking anymore.

As for the money gained from defeating Monsters, S-Class Hero don't care much about it. On the contrary, with so many powerful lower-class heroes, they not only have to go out less often and become much more relaxed, but ordinary people also become much safer because of the activities of these lower-class heroes.

All of this can be attributed to Vegapunk. Public matters are public matters, and private matters are private matters. Although Sweet Mask harbors some resentment because his status as the number one A-Class Hero was taken away, he must admit that the Chakra system developed by Vegapunk is absolutely meritorious.

"I don't think it's related to Vegapunk. He probably doesn't have the time or inclination to work on any other inventions right now."

Crossing her arms and speaking with an impatient Tatsumaki, it was Tatsumaki who knew very well that Vegapunk was currently manipulating the embryo, preparing to create Super Monster!

Only someone with a screw loose would Vegapunk spread this kind of thing to S-Class Hero. While not all S-Class Hero are intolerant of injustice, there are quite a few with a strong sense of justice and fastidiousness, and they might end up fighting Vegapunk.

"Hmm? Does Miss Tatsumaki perhaps know what Dr. Vegapunk is doing right now? Ah... I haven't even congratulated Miss Tatsumaki on finally regaining her freedom..."

Atomic Samurai, who was speaking from the side, was slammed against the wall by Tatsumaki, who looked furious, with her superpowers. It looked like he couldn't be pried off.

"Little Tatsumaki's temper is still as fiery as ever... it doesn't seem to have improved at all..."

Atomic Samurai struggled slightly before falling off the wall. Looking at the furious Tatsumaki, he said with amusement.

As an S-Class Hero, even though Atomic Samurai isn't known for his physical strength, he could still withstand this amount of Psychic Power. Of course, this was also because Tatsumaki hadn't truly exerted her full power.

Tatsumaki gritted her teeth, turned her head away, and ignored the old man Atomic Samurai.

After sacrificing all the Sky Race to Vegapunk's Flesh Hive, she had completed Vegapunk's mission, and Vegapunk removed the Collar from her neck.

Even so, the time she wore the Collar was still a taboo for Tatsumaki.

"Everyone, please calm down first. Let's listen to what the Hero Association staff has to say before we try to resolve anything."

Bang shook his head and said a few words to an S-Class Hero, which at least prevented the situation from becoming too ugly.

Just then, footsteps came from the doorway. Everyone turned to look and saw Vegapunk leading a bald man into the conference room.

"I apologize, everyone, I brought a friend along, so we're a little late!"

Vegapunk greeted the many S-Class Hero and then sat down at the lower end of the table. He looked around and, seeing that there seemed to be no seats left, he reached out and manipulated his Electromagnetic Ability. The metal floor quickly rose and softened to form a new seat.

"Saitama, just sit here. Anyway, you'll definitely become S-Class Hero someday."

Seeing that Vegapunk had arbitrarily added a seat for Saitama, Sweet Mask was immediately displeased and coldly said:

"Becoming S-Class Hero isn't something just anyone can do, let alone a bald guy!"

"Hey, who are you calling bald?"

"You bastard, you're not allowed to insult Saitama- sensei!"

"Sweet Mask, what do you mean by this?"

The moment Sweet Mask finished speaking, before Vegapunk could even open his mouth, some people were already getting restless.

Saitama was the first to speak. Although he was bald, he was even more sensitive to people calling him bald.

As for the second one to speak, it was of course Genos, Saitama's loyal fan and the "budget warrior." His hands glowed, and he aimed them at Sweet Mask, looking like he was about to fight at the slightest provocation.

As for the third one to speak, it was Superalloy Darkshine. After all... this guy is very similar to the Caped Baldy, and can be described as a degraded knock-off version of Saitama. He also constantly trains to become stronger, and he also lost his hair because of training.

Hmm, it's a bit of a stretch to say whether he lost his hair from working out. After Superalloy Darkshine, given how obsessed he is with muscles, it wouldn't be surprising if he shaved his head to show off his muscles.

But this doesn't mean that Superalloy Darkshine has no reaction to the word "bald." Even though he shaved his own head, he doesn't want others to call him bald.

"Did I say something wrong? Besides, this guy doesn't look like S-Class Hero at all, does he?"

Sweet Mask chuckled coldly, looking completely indifferent, but just then, King spoke up:

"No, Saitama definitely has the ability to become S-Class Hero. His strength is far above mine, and he has defeated many powerful Monsters in the past, but it's just that he's not widely known!"

While others may not know Saitama's strength, King is fully aware of the Caped Baldy's fighting power. After all, he now knows that all the Dragon-level Demon-Level Threat he encountered before who died were killed by Saitama.

Although King himself wasn't entirely clear on how strong Saitama was, just looking at how Saitama was recognized by the Hero Association as the strongest man on Earth for his achievements, and how even these S-Class Hero admired him so much, King knew that Saitama's strength was definitely beyond imagination.

"That's true. Anyway, my strength is far inferior to Saitama's. With Saitama's strength, becoming S-Class Hero in the future is a sure thing."

It was Bang who spoke up at that moment.

This Caped Baldy, who once played rock-paper-scissors with Saitama and almost got enraged, and who was smashed into a pulp with a single blow by Saitama, also had no doubt about Saitama's strength.

After all... his dojo is still not repaired. The mountain he was on was half-collapsed by Saitama's plastic hammer. If anyone doubts the Caped Baldy's strength, then they are just being brain-dead.

Seeing that the two most prestigious S-Class Hero were praising this bald man so highly, Sweet Mask frowned but ultimately said nothing more.