"Ha?!" Tatsumaki, hovering in midair, was the first to explode. An invisible storm instantly swirled around her as her emerald eyes glared at Sekiguchi. "The Curse world? What kind of trash did they drag out of the woodwork? Does the Association think all of us S-Class Heroes are useless?! Do they need to bring in some nobodies to make up the numbers?! I can handle every problem by myself!"
Her slender fingers pointed at the holographic images, terrifying telekinetic energy shimmering at her fingertips.
"Exactly!" Metal Bat planted his bat on the ground with a clang, his fierce eyes narrowing. "Old man, who do you think you're looking down on? I even skipped my little sister's recital! And now you're bringing in outsiders to clean up after us? Believe me, I'll smash the support columns of this lousy building right now!"
Zombieman wiped down the parts of his handgun, raised his expressionless face, and gave a short, icy scoff. "Hmph. Reinforcements? Interesting. I hope they won't hold us back—or... end up as monster feed."
Child Emperor's youthful face also showed clear displeasure. "The Association's judgment is getting more and more ridiculous. Faced with a crisis of this scale, these so-called 'reinforcements' will have a negligible impact at best, and may even cause additional confusion in command. Their ability system is completely different from ours. The possibility of coordinated combat..."
He shook his head, clearly pessimistic.
King folded his arms across his chest, his body even more rigid. The low, rapid thud of the King Engine grew even clearer in the silent meeting room, heavy as a war drum, pounding at everyone's taut nerves.
Fine beads of sweat appeared at his temples.
"Um..." Amid the clamor of doubt and anger, a confused voice came from the corner. Saitama scratched his shiny